Floyd of Rosedale is coming back to Huntington Bank Stadium. Minnesota hosts No. 15 Iowa at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 24, on FS1. It's the 120th meeting between the 2 programs, and the prize is the same 98-pound bronze pig they've played for since 1935.
The trophy goes back to a 1935 bet between the 2 states' governors. Iowa comes in 5-1 and Minnesota 4-2, according to Iowa athletics. The Hawkeyes have dominated the series lately: they've won 10 of the last 11 meetings, 20 of the last 25, and 5 straight in Minneapolis going back to 2016. Kirk Ferentz is in his 28th season at Iowa with 214 career wins, and he's the longest-tenured active head coach in college football.
P.J. Fleck is 1-8 against Ferentz. Minnesota had a bye week to recover from a 41-13 loss at Purdue, and Iowa is the first of 3 straight ranked opponents on the Gophers' schedule.
That 1 win was a big one. Minnesota last held Floyd after a 12-10 win in 2023, a game remembered for an Iowa punt-return touchdown that was overturned. The Gophers' last win over Iowa in Minneapolis was a 51-14 rout in 2014. A win Saturday would also give Minnesota Floyd, the Little Brown Jug and the Axe all at once, at home, for the first time since 1978.
Points will be hard to come by. Linebacker Cam Buffington is second in the conference with 52 tackles and has 2 sacks, and defensive back Deshaun Lee is tied for second in Big Ten interceptions. On offense, running back Kamari Moulton has 519 rushing yards, sixth in the league.
Minnesota's passing game runs through wide receiver Noah Jennings, who has 360 receiving yards. Jalen Smith has 210 and caught 3 passes for 89 yards and a touchdown last time out. Linebacker Maverick Baranowski leads the defense with 45 tackles, a sack and an interception. Third down could decide it: Minnesota ranks 14th in the Big Ten on third-down conversions at 37%, and Iowa is 13th at 39%. "Those downs are critical," Smith said.
Defensive coordinator Danny Collins said the staff used the off week to go back to basics, focusing on the "fundamentals in the bye week."
