Will we beat a ranked team in 2009?

Sorry to be a downer on a Monday morning, but it has been a long time since we beat a ranked team. To be precise it was October 8, 2005, when we beat #21 Michigan. Since that time we have lost ten in a row to ranked teams.

To be fair, though, we only played one ranked team in 2008 (Ohio State) and I think we played them fairly well.

Looking at a compliation of preseason polls: LINK there are 4 teams that appear in various pre-season top 25's:

8. Ohio State
11. Penn State
15. Cal
21. Iowa

Illinois starts and finishes with a rough schedule, but its soft in the middle so they could come in ranked with a string of victories. And Michigan State could easily be ranked if they can have a decent offense. There is no way Northwestern will be ranked when we play them (because their 1st 3 games are all cupcakes). Wisconsin could be ranked if they come in 4-0 with a win over Michigan Stae (but I doubt it).

My guess is that we will play a total of 5 ranked teams and that we will beat one teams that is game-ranked but who ends the season way outside the Top-25 (a la 2005 Purdue) and that we play a legitimately ranked team very close and possibly pull off the upset (I'm thinking Cal or Penn State here).

A win over a ranked team would go a long way in showing our improvement as a program.

I've already said this, but Brewster gets a signature win this year, either at Penn St. or Ohio St.

There will certainly be a lot of opportunities to beat ranked teams. Minimum of 3; maybe as many as 7.

I think the most likely "break out" or signature win this year will be against Cal, given that they may well be a top ten team, yet have struggled mightily on the road east of the Rockies in the last decade. The next most likely will likely be against OSU, as I could see them having some trouble getting all cylinders to fire smoothly. Penn St will likely be a long long game for the Gophers and going into Happy Valley will be an ordeal for all teams this year especially if their WR corp can click a little and open up the ground game.

That being said I really have no idea what kind of Gopher team shows up this fall, and could see a serious step back coming out of this schedule just as easily as a big step forward.

I think it is high time that we bring one of the traveling trophies back to the trophy room, and any of those games could well come against a ranked team. If there is one win that I never thought we would have to wait so long for it was one that terminated with our team parading around with one of our prized knickknacks, and it is for these wins that I am most impatient. Until Brewster starts filling the glass closets he still is on square one of my gameboard.

PlayHosea said:

I've already said this, but Brewster gets a signature win this year, either at Penn St. or Ohio St.

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If so, I hope it is OSU because I just ordered tickets. It is all about ME.

I think to get the program seriously back on track it starts with the rivalry games and re-establishing a trophy case with an ax and pig. Then, move on to springing those upsets over ranked teams.

Penn State is ripe for a fall.

Isn't this the 10th anniversary of us beating them in Happy Valley while ranked? Why not do it again?...

I choose Iowa

Best chance of beating a ranked team would be Iowa. Plus that would be sweet revenge.

Yes.

No.

GVBadger said:

No.

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The Badgers have lost 6 in a row versus teams that finished the season ranked, so I think you should be just as concerned about your team.

DarrenTheGreek said:

Penn State is ripe for a fall.

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I agree. Penn State has given a couple to the Gophers in the past. How about the win at Beaver in 99? Fantastic win. But the point is this, the Lions have a way of losing to the Gophers when something is on the line and MN is on the way up. I think 09 will be a repeat of what happened a decade ago.