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The Illinois Fighting Illini are 1-5 against the Minnesota Golden Gophers since November of 2015, but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Saturday. Illinois and Minnesota will face off in a Big Ten battle at noon ET at Huntington Bank Stadium. The Golden Gophers should still be riding high after a big victory, while Illinois will be looking to get back in the win column.
Illinois didn't finish too far behind, but the squad still lost 20-14 to the Rutgers Scarlet Knights last week. Despite the defeat, Illinois got a solid performance out of QB Brandon Peters, who passed for two TDs and 190 yards on 19 attempts. Peters' 52-yard touchdown toss to QB Isaiah Williams in the second quarter made for one of the most memorable moments of the day.
Meanwhile, Minnesota ran circles around the Northwestern Wildcats last week, and the extra yardage (442 yards vs. 241 yards) paid off. The Golden Gophers made easy work of Northwestern and carried off a 41-14 win. Minnesota's RB Mar'Keise Irving looked sharp as he rushed for two TDs and 110 yards on 19 carries.
Illinois is the clear underdog, so they're hoping it's the size of the fight that determines this one. However, those who like betting on the underdog should be happy to hear that they are 4-1 against the spread when expected to lose.
Illinois is now 3-6 while Minnesota sits at 6-2. A pair of offensive stats to keep an eye on: Illinois is stumbling into the matchup with the 209th fewest passing yards per game in the nation, having accrued only 153.7 on average. The Golden Gophers have had an even harder time: they are 208th worst in the nation in passing yards per game, with only 153.8 on average. It's possible one of these Achilles' heels will wind up tripping the losing team up.
