Minnesota Golden Gophers (2-4)At #25 Wisconsin Badgers (5-1)

Date & Time: October 14, Saturday, 12:00 p.m.
In the AP poll for the first time in 2006, the 25th-ranked Wisconsin Badgers try to continue their move up in the eyes of the voters this week as they welcome the Minnesota Golden Gophers to town for a Big Ten Conference showdown. Last Saturday, the Badgers easily handled the Northwestern Wildcats in league play with a 41-9 decision at home, giving the squad its second straight win following its only loss of the campaign, a 27-13 setback at Michigan. With their inclusion in the national rankings again, the Badgers have now shown up in the poll in 10 consecutive seasons dating back to 1997.

As for the Golden Gophers, they dropped to 2-4 on the year when the squad was unable to hold off the Penn State Nittany Lions in overtime last weekend, 28-27, at the Metrodome. The setback was the third straight for Minnesota, which began the season by outscoring three opponents by a combined 123-42. While that sounds like a substantial number, a closer look shows a 44-0 victory over Kent State and a 62-0 thrashing of Temple book-ending a 42-17 loss to California. Heading into this meeting, the Gophers hold a 59-48-8 advantage over Wisconsin even though the Badgers are 30-22-6 on their home field since the series began in 1890. Last year, Wisconsin claimed a narrow 38-34 victory, giving the squad its second straight and third win in the last four meetings against Minnesota. Since 1995, the Badgers have taken nine of the 11 encounters between the two.

TAKE #25 WISCONSIN BADGERS MINUS -8 POINTS

TAKE THE OVER 49 POINTS