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2018 Minnesota

7–⁠6 (3–⁠6 Big Ten), coached by P.J. Fleck.

Schedule and results

Minnesota in 2018, game by game: won vs. New Mexico State 48–10; won vs. Fresno State 21–14; won vs. Miami (OH) 26–3; lost at Maryland 13–42; lost vs. Iowa 31–48; lost at No. 3 Ohio State 14–30; lost at Nebraska 28–53; won vs. Indiana 38–31; lost at Illinois 31–55; won vs. Purdue 41–10; lost vs. No. 24 Northwestern 14–24; won at Wisconsin 37–15; won vs. Georgia Tech 34–10+38−29Won 48–10 vs. New Mexico State+38New Mexico StateWon 21–14 vs. Fresno State+7Fresno StateWon 26–3 vs. Miami (OH)+23Miami (OH)Lost 13–42 at Maryland-29MarylandLost 31–48 vs. Iowa-17IowaLost 14–30 at No. 3 Ohio State-16No. 3 Ohio StateLost 28–53 at Nebraska-25NebraskaWon 38–31 vs. Indiana+7IndianaLost 31–55 at Illinois-24IllinoisWon 41–10 vs. Purdue+31PurdueLost 14–24 vs. No. 24 Northwestern-10No. 24 NorthwesternWon 37–15 at Wisconsin+22WisconsinWon 34–10 vs. Georgia Tech+24Georgia Tech
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 30vsNew Mexico StateW 48–⁠1069%
Sep 8vsFresno StateW 21–⁠1451%
Sep 15vsMiami (OH)W 26–⁠377%
Sep 22atMarylandL 13–⁠4257%
Oct 6vsIowaL 31–⁠4845%
Oct 13at3Ohio StateL 14–⁠3013%
Oct 20atNebraskaL 28–⁠5357%
Oct 26vsIndianaW 38–⁠3153%
Nov 3atIllinoisL 31–⁠5556%
Nov 10vsPurdueW 41–⁠1033%
Nov 17vs24NorthwesternL 14–⁠2438%
Nov 24atWisconsinW 37–⁠1519%
Dec 26Bowls & playoffvsGeorgia TechQuick Lane BowlW 34–⁠1039%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Georgia Tech 34–⁠10 in the Quick Lane Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 9th in the Big Ten.

In program history: The 60th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 135 on file).

Record
7–⁠6
Conference
3–⁠6 tied for 9th in Big Ten
AP final
Unranked
Points
376–⁠345
Coach
P.J. Fleck
Elo
1564 +58 this season
SP+ rating
6.3 No. 45 of 130; offense No. 75, defense No. 37, special teams No. 30
SRS
4.8 No. 47 of 130 in FBS
Returning
52% of last season’s EPA, No. 89 of 130
Recruiting class
No. 38 roster talent No. 48 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Kirk Ciarrocca
Defensive coordinators
Robb Smith and Joe Rossi
Offense
Spread
Defense
4–⁠3

How good, play by play

  • Offense73rd of 130
  • Defense67th of 130
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted69th of 130
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted66th of 130
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0945%1.1373rd of 130
Defense0.1143%1.2367th of 130
Opponent-adjusted0.09 off
0.09 def		44% off
42% def		—69th off
66th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.6own 3117% allowed
Defense3.1own 2815% caused

CORE rating -0.1, 65th of 130 (offense -0.6, defense -0.4).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsTanner Morgan QB1,401 yds
Passing touchdownsTanner Morgan QB9 TD
Rushing yardsMohamed Ibrahim RB1,161 yds
Rushing touchdownsMohamed Ibrahim RB9 TD
Receiving yardsTyler Johnson WR1,169 yds
Receiving touchdownsTyler Johnson WR12 TD
TacklesBlake Cashman LB104 tkl
SacksCarter Coughlin LB9 sacks
InterceptionsConey Durr DB2 INT

Top recruits in the 2018 class

Curtis Dunlap OG★★★★No. 218
Daniel Faalele OT★★★★No. 295
Rashod Bateman WR★★★★No. 367
Alex Reigelsperger WDE★★★No. 480
Jamaal Teague DT★★★No. 492

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2018 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.836
Running backs23.00.864
Receivers53.20.854
Offensive line63.30.866
Defensive line52.80.843
Linebackers42.80.820
Defensive backs33.00.856
Athletes and specialists13.00.833
Whole class273.00.849

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2019

The 2019 draft
Rd 5Blake Cashman ILBNew York Jets

Roster 97

The 2018 roster

97 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2018 line; 54 have a stat line. See the roster

All-Big Ten

1 first team, 2 second team

First team

Second team

From Wikipedia’s 2018 all-conference team article, with the selectors that named each player (AP-1: the Associated Press’s first team).

2018 Big Ten standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Ohio State8–⁠113–⁠13
Michigan8–⁠110–⁠314
Northwestern8–⁠19–⁠521
Penn State6–⁠39–⁠417
Iowa5–⁠49–⁠425
Wisconsin5–⁠48–⁠5
Michigan State5–⁠47–⁠6
Purdue5–⁠46–⁠7
Minnesota3–⁠67–⁠6
Maryland3–⁠65–⁠7
Nebraska3–⁠64–⁠8
Indiana2–⁠75–⁠7
Illinois2–⁠74–⁠8
Rutgers0–⁠91–⁠11

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.