Simon Seidl looks back at journey to becoming Gopher football's newest commit
MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Golden Gophers football team was victorious Tuesday against the Bowling Green Falcons in the Quick Lane Bowl.
But with a 5-7 record this season, just how did the Gophers get into a bowl game in the first place?
The Gophers are certainly no strangers to bowl games. Including Tuesday's win, Minnesota has won seven-straight bowls, with five of those wins under current coach P.J. Fleck.
But it wasn't about athletic prowess this time around. According to CBS Sports, Minnesota was picked for the Quick Lane Bowl because of all NCAA teams that have won five games this season, the Gophers have the best Academic Progress Rate (APR).
The Associated Press reports there were six teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision that had six wins or more: Alabama, Clemson, Mississippi, Northwestern, Ohio State and Wisconsin.
"Maybe on the field we didn't have enough wins, but we talk about why these men are student-athletes, celebrating their success not only on the field but also in the classroom," Fleck told the Associated Press earlier this week. "We're the example of that this year."
Darius Taylor rushed for 208 yards in Tuesday's bowl game, his first appearance since suffering a leg injury during the Gophers' win against Iowa on Oct. 21. The freshman also ran in a 17-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter that helped cement Minnesota's victory.
In his first-ever start as quarterback, Cole Kramer threw for two TDs and also ran one in.
The Gophers' bowl game winning streak started with 2015's Quick Lane Bowl, when the team was led by Tracy Claeys. And just like in 2023, it was all about the team's APR. There was also a shortage of six-win teams across the country that year, according to AP.
NOTE: The original airdate of the video attached to this article is Dec. 20, 2023.
Stephen Swanson is a web producer at CBS Minnesota. A 20-year station veteran, Stephen was a floor director for a decade before moving to the newsroom, where he focuses on general assignment reporting.
But it wasn't about athletic prowess this time around. According to CBS Sports, Minnesota
Minnesota
The Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represents the University of Minnesota in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Founded in 1882, Minnesota has been a member of the Big Ten Conference since its inception in 1896 as the Western Conference.
was picked for the Quick Lane Bowl because of all NCAA teams that have won five games this season, the Gophers have the best Academic Progress Rate (APR).
That left one spot available for a five-win team and the tiebreaker has nothing to do with football. The spot went to the team with the best Academic Progress Rate. Of the five-win teams remaining, the Golden Gophers had the best APR.
The Gophers, who qualified for a bowl game by NCAA rule because they had the best Academic Progress Rate score among the five-win teams after there was a shortage of eligible teams, are 4-0 in bowl games under coach P.J. Fleck.
FCS teams who are in the final year of the two-year FBS transition process, if they have at least a 6–6 record. Finally, 5–7 teams that have a top-five Academic Progress Rate (APR) score. This was later adjusted to allow other 5–7 teams to be selected thereafter—in order of their APR.
The are 41 bowl games this postseason, which does not include the College Football Playoff championship game. That means 82 teams in the Bowl Subdivision must finish with six or more wins to fill all the spots.
But it wasn't about athletic prowess this time around. According to CBS Sports, Minnesota was picked for the Quick Lane Bowl because of all NCAA teams that have won five games this season, the Gophers have the best Academic Progress Rate (APR).
This year's Gophers may have ended the regular season on a three-game losing streak, but they still finished in the top 10 for academic performance. And of the five-win teams, Minnesota ranked No. 1, earning a bowl invitation.
Bowling Green and Minnesota to play in 2023 Quick Lane Bowl. DETROIT – The Bowling Green Falcons (MAC) and the Minnesota Golden Gophers (Big Ten) will play in the 2023 Quick Lane Bowl at Ford Field on Tuesday, December 26, at 2:00 PM EST.
The latest bowl appearance for Minnesota came in their win against Bowling Green in the 2023 Quick Lane Bowl. A win in that game brought Minnesota's all-time bowl record to 12 wins and 12 losses (12–12).
The Minnesota Vikings have +8000 odds to win the Super Bowl as of August 8. The Vikings finished 7-10 a season ago and failed to make the postseason. They scored 20.2 points per game (22nd in the league) while conceding 21.3 (13th).
In order for a team in the Football Bowl Subdivision to become eligible to play in a bowl game, it needs to win at least six games with a minimum .500 winning percentage. Bowl Season requires a total of 82 teams to fill the current 41 bowl games scheduled for the postseason.
If, as happened in 2015, there are more bowl game openings than eligible teams, then additional teams can become eligible. They are divided up into four groups; all of the teams from a group must be chosen (or decline a bowl bid) before teams from the next group can be chosen.
the regular season ends on Conference Championship Weekend. That means only games played during the regular season can count towards a team's bowl eligibility. If Army and Navy want to be bowl eligible, then the team would need to already have 6 wins going into the game.
But prior to overtime rules being added in the mid-1990s, there was a chance players could head into the winter without that thrill of victory since games could end in a tie. In the history of official college football bowl games, there have been 26 games which have ended in a tie.
The most concrete example is the teams that compete in the College Football Playoff (CFP). The conferences where the semifinalist teams play receive $6 million each, although they do not receive any extra payment if their team reaches the final.
DETROIT – The Bowling Green Falcons (MAC) and the Minnesota Golden Gophers (Big Ten) will play in the 2023 Quick Lane Bowl at Ford Field on Tuesday, December 26, at 2:00 PM EST.
In total, nine Big Ten teams are bowl eligible for 2023-24: Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State, Maryland, Rutgers, Iowa, Northwestern, Wisconsin, and Minnesota.
Generally, teams must win six or more regular season games to be bowl eligible, although there are exceptions (for example, Minnesota finished 5-7 but was granted an NCAA exemption based on their Academic Progress Rate score and due to a lack of 6-6 teams to fill out the field).
Eligible Teams An eligible team is defined as one that has won a number of games against Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) opponents that is equal to or greater than the number of its overall losses (e.g., a record of 6-6, or better). Tie or forfeited games do not count in determining won-lost record.
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