CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2023 Minnesota

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

Schedule and results

Minnesota in 2023, game by game: won vs. Nebraska 13–10; won vs. Eastern Michigan 25–6; lost at No. 20 North Carolina 13–31; lost at Northwestern 34–37; won vs. Louisiana 35–24; lost vs. No. 2 Michigan 10–52; won at No. 24 Iowa 12–10; won vs. Michigan State 27–12; lost vs. Illinois 26–27; lost at Purdue 30–49; lost at No. 3 Ohio State 3–37; lost vs. Wisconsin 14–28; won vs. Bowling Green 30–24+19−42Won 13–10 vs. Nebraska+3NebraskaWon 25–6 vs. Eastern Michigan+19Eastern MichiganLost 13–31 at No. 20 North Carolina-18No. 20 North CarolinaLost 34–37 at Northwestern-3NorthwesternWon 35–24 vs. Louisiana+11LouisianaLost 10–52 vs. No. 2 Michigan-42No. 2 MichiganWon 12–10 at No. 24 Iowa+2No. 24 IowaWon 27–12 vs. Michigan State+15Michigan StateLost 26–27 vs. Illinois-1IllinoisLost 30–49 at Purdue-19PurdueLost 3–37 at No. 3 Ohio State-34No. 3 Ohio StateLost 14–28 vs. Wisconsin-14WisconsinWon 30–24 vs. Bowling Green+6Bowling Green
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 31vsNebraskaW 13–⁠1073%
Sep 9vsEastern MichiganW 25–⁠667%
Sep 16at20North CarolinaL 13–⁠3147%
Sep 23atNorthwesternL 34–⁠3771%
Sep 30vsLouisianaW 35–⁠2459%
Oct 7vs2MichiganL 10–⁠5234%
Oct 21at24IowaW 12–⁠1029%
Oct 28vsMichigan StateW 27–⁠1274%
Nov 4vsIllinoisL 26–⁠2774%
Nov 11atPurdueL 30–⁠4960%
Nov 18at3Ohio StateL 3–⁠3713%
Nov 25vsWisconsinL 14–⁠2859%
Dec 26Bowls & playoffvsBowling GreenQuick Lane BowlW 30–⁠2448%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Bowling Green 30–⁠24 in the Quick Lane Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 8th in the Big Ten.

In program history: The 80th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 135 on file).

Record
6–⁠7
Conference
3–⁠6 tied for 8th in Big Ten
AP final
Unranked
Points
272–⁠347
Coach
P.J. Fleck
Elo
1523 −66 this season
SP+ rating
0.4 No. 63 of 133; offense No. 103, defense No. 31, special teams No. 18
SRS
−2.4 No. 74 of 133 in FBS
Returning
41% of last season’s EPA, No. 90 of 131
Recruiting class
No. 45 roster talent No. 57 in FBS
Offensive coordinators
Matt Simon and Greg Harbaugh Jr.
Defensive coordinators
Joe Rossi and Nick Monroe
Offense
Multiple
Defense
4–⁠3

How good, play by play

  • Offense91st of 133
  • Defense99th of 133
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted82nd of 133
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted106th of 133
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0441%1.1191st of 133
Defense0.1743%1.2299th of 133
Opponent-adjusted0.08 off
0.16 def		41% off
43% def		—82nd off
106th 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
Offense3.9own 2914% allowed
Defense4.7own 2714% caused

CORE rating -5.0, 85th of 133 (offense -3.4, defense 1.5).

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 yardsAthan Kaliakmanis QB1,838 yds
Passing touchdownsAthan Kaliakmanis QB14 TD
Rushing yardsDarius Taylor RB799 yds
Rushing touchdownsDarius Taylor RB5 TD
Receiving yardsDaniel Jackson WR831 yds
Receiving touchdownsDaniel Jackson WR8 TD
TacklesJack Henderson DB52 tkl
SacksJah Joyner DL7.5 sacks
InterceptionsTyler Nubin DB5 INT

Top recruits in the 2023 class

Darius Taylor RB★★★★No. 351
Jerome Williams OL★★★★No. 449
Greg Johnson OT★★★No. 546
Donielle Hayes WR★★★No. 634
Kenric Lanier II WR★★★No. 674

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

The 2023 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks22.50.809
Running backs23.50.887
Receivers53.00.866
Offensive line53.20.870
Defensive line33.00.862
Linebackers23.00.859
Defensive backs42.80.841
Athletes and specialists32.30.772
Whole class262.90.848

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 2024

The 2024 draft
Rd 2Tyler Nubin SNew York Giants

Roster 114

The 2023 roster

114 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2023 line; 48 have a stat line. See the roster

Transfers in 10

The 2023 portal
Elijah Spencer WR★★★★from Charlotte
Jack Henderson S★★★from SE Louisiana
Sean Tyler RB★★★from Western Michigan
Corey Crooms WR★★★from Western Michigan
Ryan Selig LB★★★from Western Michigan
Chris Collins DE★★★from North Carolina
Craig McDonald S★★★from Auburn
Rowan Zolman S★★★from Miami (OH)
Tyler Bride CB★★★from Georgia Southern
David Kemp K★★from Memphis

Transfers out 18

Treyson Potts RB★★★to Penn State
Deangelo Carter DL★★★to Texas
Dylan Wright WR★★★to TCU
Michael Dixon S★★★to Rutgers
Austin Booker DE★★★to Kansas
Beanie Bishop CB★★★to West Virginia
Braelen Oliver LB★★★to Georgia Tech
Gage Keys DL★★★to Kansas
Steven Ortiz Jr. S★★★to Massachusetts
Cameron James OT★★★to Jackson State
Donald Willis LB★★★to Western Michigan
Ike White WR★★★to Charlotte

And 6 more, lower-rated or unrated.

All-Big Ten

2 first team, 2 second team

First team

Second team

From Wikipedia’s 2023 all-conference team article, with the selectors that named each player (AP-1: the Associated Press’s first team).

2023 Big Ten standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Michigan9–⁠015–⁠01
Ohio State8–⁠111–⁠210
Penn State7–⁠210–⁠313
Iowa7–⁠210–⁠424
Northwestern5–⁠48–⁠5
Wisconsin5–⁠47–⁠6
Maryland4–⁠58–⁠5
Rutgers3–⁠67–⁠6
Minnesota3–⁠66–⁠7
Illinois3–⁠65–⁠7
Nebraska3–⁠65–⁠7
Purdue3–⁠64–⁠8
Michigan State2–⁠74–⁠8
Indiana1–⁠83–⁠9

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