Thursday, August 28, 2014

TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis

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On Thursday, the Minnesota Golden Gophers will open up their 2014 season with a matchup against the Eastern Illinois Panthers from the FCS.

Eastern Illinois had a strong season last year after finishing with a 12-2 overall record and an 8-0 record in the Ohio Valley conference. Their two losses came against Northern Illinois and Towson, which were both close games. They had the best offense in the FCS after gaining close to 600 yards per game and scoring 48.2 points per game.

Quarterback Jalen Whitlow, who transferred from Kentucky in the offseason, will be the starter for Eastern Illinois this year now that star quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo has graduated. They still have an excellent receiver in Adam Drake, who had 1,305 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns in 2013.

Minnesota was able to exceed most experts’ expectations last year by winning eight games and finishing with a 4-4 record in the Big Ten. They rushed for 195.2 yards per game, which was good enough for 37th in the country. They also gave up just 22.2 points per game, which put them in the top 25 in the country.

The Golden Gophers should be a rush-first team again in 2014. David Cobb, who rushed for over 1200 yards last season, will be the main man again and could be a contender for the Big Ten's player of the year.

Injuries to Watch

Eastern Illinois Panthers

No Injuries to report at this time

Minnesota Golden Gophers

08/22/14 TE Duke Anyanwu Knee out for season
08/22/14 WR Drew Wolitarsky Undisclosed questionable
08/21/14 OL Ben Lauer Ankle questionable
08/03/14 QB Philip Nelson Personal has left team

Josh's Pick: Take Minnesota

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