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Minnesota has enjoyed a two-game homestand but will soon have to dust off their road jerseys. They will face off against the Purdue Boilermakers at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday at Ross-Ade Stadium. Both teams took a loss in their last game, so they'll have plenty of motivation to get the 'W'.
Minnesota went for two against Illinois on Saturday, and the resulting failed attempt cost them the game. Minnesota was just a hair shy of victory and fell 27-26 to Illinois. Minnesota didn't live up to their potential and found themselves falling short of the advantage oddsmakers thought they had coming into the game.
The losing side was boosted by Athan Kaliakmanis, who threw for 167 yards and three touchdowns.
Even if they lost, Minnesota's defense sure didn't make it easy: Illinois' QB was sacked five times before it was all said and done. Leading the way was Jah Joyner and his two sacks.
Meanwhile, Purdue's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Saturday after their fourth straight loss. There's no need to mince words: Purdue lost to Michigan, and Purdue lost bad. The score wound up at 41-13. The over/under was set at 53.5 points, so nice work oddsmakers; you were right on the money.
Minnesota's loss dropped their record down to 5-4. As for Purdue, their defeat was their third straight on the road , which bumped their record down to 2-7.
Not only did the two teams lose their last games, but neither team managed to cover the spread. Going forward, Purdue is the favorite in this one, as the experts expect to see them win by a single point. There could be an interesting gambling play in this one: Minnesota is only 3-6 against the spread overall, but they're a solid 4-1 ATS vs. Purdue across their last five meetings.
Minnesota came up short against Purdue in their previous matchup back in October of 2022, falling 20-10. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Purdue's Devin Mockobee, who rushed for 112 yards and a touchdown on only 11 carries. Now that Minnesota knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? Check CBSSports.com after the match to find out.
