Nation's Longest Non-Conference Win Streak?

GILBball

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Not 100% sure on this, but I did a bunch of Wikipedia browsing while laid up with a bum leg tonight and couldn't find anyone with a non-conference win streak longer than our's. It wasn't particularly close either.

The Gophers last lost a non-conference game to #2 TCU in September 2015 and are currently on a 15 Game win streak. Acknowledging that it hasn't exactly been a murderer's row, that still didn't stop the rest of the country from losing a bowl or a buy game during that time period. Just something kind of neat to get us through the off-season. Let me know if you see any corrections needed.

The years don't count the exact date of bowl games, just the season.

The Gophers:

2018
W - vs Georgia Tech
W - Miami (OH)
W - Fresno State
W - New Mexico State
2017
W - Middle Tennessee State
W - @ Oregon State
W - Buffalo
2016
W - vs Washington State
W - Colorado State
W - Indiana State
W - Oregon State
2015
W - vs Central Michigan
W - Ohio
W - Kent State
W - @ Colorado State
L - TCU

The Rest of the Country (kind of):

Iowa - 2016 Florida
Nebraska – 2018 Troy
Wisconsin – 2018 BYU
Illinois – 2018 South Florida
Northwestern – 2018 Notre Dame
Purdue – 2018 Auburn
Indiana – 2016 Utah
Michigan – 2018 Florida
Michigan State – 2018 Oregon
Ohio State – 2017 Oklahoma
Penn State – 2018 Kentucky
Maryland – 2018 Temple

Iowa State – 2018 Washington State
Kansas – 2018 Nicholls State
Kansas State – 2018 Mississippi State
Oklahoma – 2018 Alabama
Oklahoma State – 2016 Central Michigan
Texas – 2018 Maryland
Texas Tech – 2018 Ole Miss
Baylor – 2018 Duke
TCU – 2018 Ohio State
West Virginia – 2018 Syracuse

Syracuse – 2017 LSU
Boston College – 2018 Purdue
Pittsburgh – 2018 Stanford
Virginia – 2018 Indiana
Virginia Tech – 2018 Cincinnati
North Carolina – 2018 East Carolina
North Carolina State – 2018 Texas A & M
Duke – 2017 Army
Clemson – 2017 Alabama
Miami – 2018 Wisconsin
Florida State – 2018 Florida
Louisville – 2018 Kentucky
Georgia Tech – 2018 Minnesota
Notre Dame – 2017 Stanford

Washington State – 2017 Michigan State
Washington – 2018 Ohio State
Oregon – 2017 Boise State
Oregon State – 2018 Nevada
Stanford – 2018 Notre Dame
California – 2018 TCU
USC – 2018 Notre Dame
UCLA – 2018 Fresno State
Arizona – 2018 Houston
Arizona State – 2018 Fresno State
Colorado – 2016 Oklahoma State
Utah – 2018 Northwestern

Florida – 2017 Florida State
Georgia – 2018 Texas
South Carolina – 2018 Virginia
Alabama – 2018 Clemson
Auburn – 2017 UCF
Ole Miss – 2017 California
Mississippi State – 2018 Iowa
Tennessee – 2018 West Virginia
Vanderbilt – 2018 Baylor
Kentucky – 2017 Northwestern
LSU – 2017 Notre Dame
Arkansas – 2018 North Texas
Missouri – 2018 Oklahoma State
Texas A&M – 2018 Clemson

Houston – 2018 Army
UCF – 2018 LSU
South Florida – 2018 Marshall
Tulane – 2018 Ohio State
Navy – 2018 Army
Temple – 2018 Duke
Cincinnati – 2017 Michigan
UCONN – 2018 Syracuse
East Carolina – 2018 NC State
Memphis – 2018 Wake Forest
SMU – 2018 Michigan
Tulsa – 2018 Arkansas

Buffalo – 2018 Troy
Kent State – 2018 Ole Miss
Miami OH – 2018 Army
Ohio – 2018 Cincinnati
Toledo – 2018 FIU
Akron – 2018 South Carolina
Bowling Green – 2018 Georgia Tech
Eastern Michigan – 2018 Georgia Southern
Western Michigan – 2018 BYU
Central Michigan – 2018 Michigan State
Northern Illinois – 2018 UAB

San Diego State – 2018 Ohio
Fresno State – 2018 Minnesota
Air Force – 2018 Army
Boise State – 2018 Oklahoma State
Wyoming – 2018 Missouri
Colorado State – 2018 Illinois State
New Mexico – 2018 Liberty
San Jose State – 2018 Oregon
Utah State – 2018 Michigan State
UNLV – 2018 Arkansas State
Hawaii – 2018 Louisiana Tech
Nevada – 2018 Toledo
 


I would rather see the Gophers play one "name" opponent in the non-conf schedule. Even if that means they lose some of those games. that is one of the things holding the Gophers back from making it to that "next level" we talk about - being able to play, and defeat, other power-5 opponents. the kind of games that get you on national TV and draw attention to the program.

one big win over a good team would do more for the program than multiple years of beating Directional State and the University of Wherever.
 

Yes, but there is some small level of marketing value in starting the season 6-0, 7-0 or whatever and the pundits start debating whether team XYZ is real. This happens almost every year. It is at this point the meat of the respective schedules hit and the wheels generally fall off in spectacular fashion.
 

Its ok to play a tough non conference opponent when we are talented enough to compete. We really havent been there. Maybe we are now but i would take a win over a lesser opponent than loss t an earlier vs a team like TCU. It deflates early optimism.
 


I would rather see the Gophers play one "name" opponent in the non-conf schedule. Even if that means they lose some of those games. that is one of the things holding the Gophers back from making it to that "next level" we talk about - being able to play, and defeat, other power-5 opponents. the kind of games that get you on national TV and draw attention to the program.

one big win over a good team would do more for the program than multiple years of beating Directional State and the University of Wherever.

It is a double-edged sword. While it is great to play a tough nonconference schedule, you have to have the talent to match against such opponents.

We'd like to see what PJ Fleck is building come to fruition. They are not there yet. I do like where the recruiting is leading.
 

Its ok to play a tough non conference opponent when we are talented enough to compete. We really havent been there. Maybe we are now but i would take a win over a lesser opponent than loss t an earlier vs a team like TCU. It deflates early optimism.

On one hand, I like the idea of 'tune-up' games, especially with a younger roster like the Gophers had last season. Let everybody get some game reps, try some experimental stuff if you like, and hopefully rack up 3 wins.

On the other hand, I was under the impression that the non-con games don't count in the conference standings. So if you lose one or two non-con games, it doesn't hurt you if your goal is a B1G division title.

Somebody please set me straight if I'm wrong about that.
 

It is a fairly nice streak. If I remember correctly the Gophers have only lost to TCU in 2014 and 2015 in the regular season, otherwise Minnesota is undefeated in non-con since 2012. I do agree that some better opponents would be nice. Doesn't have to be top tier, but Power 5 would be good. That match up with Syracuse in 2012 was great.
 

Alabama here in late November. Make it happen PJ.

Sent from my phone using Tapatalk
 



I would rather see the Gophers play one "name" opponent in the non-conf schedule. Even if that means they lose some of those games. that is one of the things holding the Gophers back from making it to that "next level" we talk about - being able to play, and defeat, other power-5 opponents. the kind of games that get you on national TV and draw attention to the program.

one big win over a good team would do more for the program than multiple years of beating Directional State and the University of Wherever.

I think you're arguing for something that sounds wonderful on paper, but just isn't/shouldn't be the priority. I think from a fan standpoint, it gets things hyped up and is a blast (that TCU game was fantastic to be at-one of the most electric games I've attended-even with both teams being somewhat lackluster on the field). But the issues relied on the fact that we had just come off back-to-back 8 win seasons and people were reasonably optimistic about the year, which was done by beating those low tier non con teams and winning some in conference games. The winning in conference is what will get us back on the map. Look at the Wisconsin model to how they got "known" as an upper tier team. It was definitely not through playing top flight opponents non-conference. That came later as their teams established themselves. Instead when you're developing a program, bowl games (and wins) are important and conference wins are important (paging Wren). While it would be huge for them to play and win against a solid non-conference "name" team, it takes being good for awhile for that to be possible, both from a winning standpoint as well as from a scheduling standpoint. That's just my opinion.
 

I enjoyed the USC series even though it went sideways. I was the lone guy standing up and cheering wildly in a sea of sullen fans every time Kiffin stupidly went for two and failed (at the Coliseum) and Shortell almost pulled out the miracle game winning drive. Even though they failed that was a fun game.

I do remember some of the guys, particularly Ge Shun Harris looking around in seeming awe before the game instead of listening to Kill et al. Going on the road to storied facilities is pretty cool.
 

I really hope that PJF continues to build the program so that we can schedule some competitive P5 non-con games in the future. But agree that it’s more important to get the Ws and make bowl eligibility at the stage the program is at now. In two or three years...? It’s awesome as a fan to know there is a marquee game coming up early in the season. The chatter and analysis is fun. And also gets the program covered in places leading up to the season that makes for good PR. The buildup to that early TC game when they were highly ranked was another level. At the right stage of the program I would love to have that every year or two heading into a season.
 

I really hope that PJF continues to build program so that we can schedule some competitive P5 non-con games in the future. But agree that it’s more important to get the Ws and make bowl eligibility at the stage the program is at now. In two or three years...? It’s awesome as a fan to know there is a marquee game coming up early in the season. The chatter and analysis is fun. And also gets the program covered in places leading up to the season that makes for good PR. The buildup to that yearly TC game when they were highly ranked was another level. At the right stage of the program I would love to have that every year or two heading into a season.

I to this day think Kiffin was point shaving the game at TCF. We covered by 1/2 point and he was 0/3 on 2 point conversion.

This is how my brain remembers it anyways
 



I enjoyed the USC series even though it went sideways. I was the lone guy standing up and cheering wildly in a sea of sullen fans every time Kiffin stupidly went for two and failed (at the Coliseum) and Shortell almost pulled out the miracle game winning drive. Even though they failed that was a fun game.

I do remember some of the guys, particularly Ge Shun Harris looking around in seeming awe before the game instead of listening to Kill et al. Going on the road to storied facilities is pretty cool.

I was there as well with my brother at the Coliseum. He lives in Southern California. Anyway it was a good time all in all. Just had some Hawkeye/ SC wannabee fan next to us talking crap the whole time. :rolleyes: How did I know, he told us. Again:rolleyes: Kill had the team ready to play.
 

IIRC 0/2 on the 2 point conversions at the coliseum and if Shortell hadn’t thrown the pick it would have been the reason for the loss. All they had to do was get in field goal range. Missed opportunities...huge opportunity

Kiffin. “What an idiot!” - W. Ferrell
 

I was there as well with my brother at the Coliseum. He lives in Southern California. Anyway it was a good time all in all. Just had some Hawkeye/ SC wannabee fan next to us talking crap the whole time. :rolleyes: How did I know, he told us. Again:rolleyes: Kill had the team ready to play.

The USC fans were extremely well behaved and nice. I OTOH was a bit obnoxious which I admit readily but between Kiffin tripping over his own feet and the euphoria of nearly a huge win on the road I couldn’t contain myself. I’m not always good when the emotions get going...
 

Come to think of it most USC fans I knew weren’t enthralled with Kiffin at the time and probably secretly agreed with my cat calls at Lane (and are in deep shock now with Helton).
 

Come to think of it most USC fans I knew weren’t enthralled with Kiffin at the time and probably secretly agreed with my cat calls at Lane (and are in deep shock now with Helton).
The SC fans that visited here were cool too.

Sent from my phone using Tapatalk
 

Many had never forgiven Lane for blowing their last offensive possession as favorites in the championship game vs Texas. They needed two yards, Reggie Bush was kept on the sidelines, and Kiffin called RUTM with LenDale White which everyone saw coming and LenDale was stuffed. The rest was Vince Young history
 

The soft non-conference schedule of the past few years was a Jerry Kill creation. He got the UNC series canceled and was a firm believer in having 3 cupcake games prior to the start of the B1G schedule.

As a fan, it’s more interesting to watch the Gophers play a team like Colorado than it is to watch us play Georgia Southern. Is one approach better? An argument can be made either way. A P5 team may get us ready for the speed and size we’ll see in the B1G, but it also gives another coaching staff the chance to expose a weakness prior to the B1G season starting.

Either way, we play BYU next year and then have series with Colorado and UNC after that. Playing another P5 team in the non-conference will soon be the norm.
 

The soft non-conference schedule of the past few years was a Jerry Kill creation. He got the UNC series canceled and was a firm believer in having 3 cupcake games prior to the start of the B1G schedule.

As a fan, it’s more interesting to watch the Gophers play a team like Colorado than it is to watch us play Georgia Southern. Is one approach better? An argument can be made either way. A P5 team may get us ready for the speed and size we’ll see in the B1G, but it also gives another coaching staff the chance to expose a weakness prior to the B1G season starting.

Either way, we play BYU next year and then have series with Colorado and UNC after that. Playing another P5 team in the non-conference will soon be the norm.

To be fair, Fresno State was a better team last season than BYU, North Carolina or Colorado — P5 or not. And if we're looking at the non conference schedules that Kill's teams played, TCU from a few years back was better than any of those teams.

That being said, the gist of your post is true.
 

To be fair, Fresno State was a better team last season than BYU, North Carolina or Colorado — P5 or not. And if we're looking at the non conference schedules that Kill's teams played, TCU from a few years back was better than any of those teams.

That being said, the gist of your post is true.

Agree that Fresno St last year was better, but the non-conference games are usually scheduled 6+ years in advance. No one knew Fresno St was going to be that good last year, just like no one knew if Colorado or UNC would be good when we play them.

I don’t remember if Kill tried to cancel the TCU series. He might not have had enough time, or maybe we went ahead with it because his best friend Gary was their coach.
 

I enjoyed the USC series even though it went sideways. I was the lone guy standing up and cheering wildly in a sea of sullen fans every time Kiffin stupidly went for two and failed (at the Coliseum) and Shortell almost pulled out the miracle game winning drive. Even though they failed that was a fun game.

I do remember some of the guys, particularly Ge Shun Harris looking around in seeming awe before the game instead of listening to Kill et al. Going on the road to storied facilities is pretty cool.

I remember when the Gophers played USC the week after losing to South Dakota in the worst Gopher performance of my lifetime. A game that made Robb Smith look like Bill Belichick.

I thought our guys might die the next week, but actually looked sorta OK against SC.
 

Agree that Fresno St last year was better, but the non-conference games are usually scheduled 6+ years in advance. No one knew Fresno St was going to be that good last year, just like no one knew if Colorado or UNC would be good when we play them.

I don’t remember if Kill tried to cancel the TCU series. He might not have had enough time, or maybe we went ahead with it because his best friend Gary was their coach.

You're spot on in saying that we can't really know how good our non conference opponents are going to be when scheduling them years in advance. And to a degree, that fact alone makes it a little harder to accuse any coach of scheduling 'cupcakes'. You can try for a soft schedule, but there are no guarantees.

I don't remember if Kill tried to get out of playing TCU, but I recall pretty clearly that he wasn't thrilled about it — and said so.
 

I think for teams with leaner rosters talent wise some coaches don’t want to get beat up physically in the non conference and there is no need to build a resume for a national championship beauty contest vote. The tune up games are just that. They can oftentimes be misleading but years later wins and losses are talked about but most commenters don’t consider the schedules. TCU 2014 was a great team. If we had played just about anyone else that would have been the X number of times since 1961 the team has won 9 games or whatever useless stat we hear about.
 

Judging OOC schedule toughness can be tricky since games are scheduled so far in advance. I don’t think anyone expected TCU to be #2 when scheduled. Gophers had Oregon State the years prior and I'm not sure people expected them to be THAT bad. Coming up they have games that could/should be decent with home-and-homes versus North Carolina, Colorado, and BYU. Mostly at least one P5 in the future it looks like.

It would be nice to have a premier game once in awhile but the recent trend has been to have many marquee games as neutral site games. Not sure how happy season ticket holders would be if they had to give up a TCF game to get a team like Oklahoma, ND, etc. Would it be worth it if the game was played at US Bank?
 

Ask Wisky about BYU (at home no less). A shot to to the waterline regarding their 2018 CFP run
 

I just like seeing the Gophers play recognizable opponents. For me at least, I would rather see the Gophers play an Arizona - or Arizona State - for example, instead of a MAC team. Or if you want to go East, play Wake Forest or Duke.

I wish they could get Iowa State on the schedule, but I understand why ISU doesn't want to do that as long as they play IA every year.
 

I just like seeing the Gophers play recognizable opponents. For me at least, I would rather see the Gophers play an Arizona - or Arizona State - for example, instead of a MAC team. Or if you want to go East, play Wake Forest or Duke.

I wish they could get Iowa State on the schedule, but I understand why ISU doesn't want to do that as long as they play IA every year.

I've always thought Missouri would be an interesting opponent. Or Kansas, or Kansas State. I like the idea of playing P5 teams from midwestern schools. In my mind, it would have a B1G feel.
 

I would rather see the Gophers play one "name" opponent in the non-conf schedule. Even if that means they lose some of those games. that is one of the things holding the Gophers back from making it to that "next level" we talk about - being able to play, and defeat, other power-5 opponents. the kind of games that get you on national TV and draw attention to the program.

one big win over a good team would do more for the program than multiple years of beating Directional State and the University of Wherever.

Check the future schedules and beginning next year BYU, Colorado and North Carolina start showing up.
 




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