Mitch Leidner (7) and David Cobb (27) give Minnesota a formidable backfield. (Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports)
KICKOFF: Saturday, noon ET
GAMEDATE: 11/15/14
SITE: TCF Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, Minnesota
TV: ABC
SERIES: Ohio State visits Minnesota for the first time since 2010. The Buckeyes have a 43-7 record in the series and are 20-4 in games played in Minneapolis.
RANKINGS: Ohio State 8th, Minnesota 25th
KEYS TO THE GAME
Its 49-37 victory at Michigan State moved Ohio State up to the No. 8 spot in the latest College Football Playoff rankings, and the Buckeyes are, in coach Urban Meyer’s words, playing much better football than they were early in the season when they lost at home to Virginia Tech.
The question OSU fans now are pondering is whether the Buckeyes can do enough in the final weeks to grab one of the top four spots in the playoff.
“This is the most improved team that I’ve been a part of,” Meyer said. “I’ve been fortunate enough to be around some championship-level teams. They have one common characteristic and they’re grinders. And they get better each week. Those are championship level teams.”
Does that make the current Buckeyes playoff worthy?
“I keep getting all these questions that I don’t know,” Meyer said. “But I do know a championship-level team. A team that continues to grow like they are, like this, there’s no question this is one of them.”
The Buckeyes can’t spend too much time thinking about rankings as they head to Minnesota. The Gophers are coming off an impressive victory of their own with the 51-14 rout of Iowa.
“Relentless effort, very well coached,” Meyer said. “Statistically, they’re very good. And to do that to Iowa, who I think Iowa is a heck of a team, they’ve got some momentum right now.
“We’re done with the celebration part. Now we’re learning from it.”
The Gophers are No. 25 in the CFP rankings after dominating the Hawkeyes and are tied with Wisconsin and Nebraska for the top spot in the Big Ten’s West Division.
But in Ohio State they are facing a team they haven’t beaten since 2000.
“It’s hard to believe that there’s somebody playing better than them right now,” Minnesota defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys said of the Buckeyes.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Buckeyes
–QB J.T. Barrett was nothing short of sensational against Michigan State. He passed for 300 yards and three touchdowns, and ran for 86 yards and two scores against the nation’s fifth-ranked defense to earn Big Ten Offensive Player and Freshman of the Week honors.
–RB Ezekiel Elliott ran for 154 yards and two touchdowns in the win at Michigan State and continued to draw praise from coach Urban Meyer for how hard he plays without the ball. The sophomore is sixth in the Big Ten in rushing with 863 yards.
–DT Michael Bennett is a candidate for several national awards. He has five tackles-for-loss with two sacks for the season.
–S Vonn Bell is coming off a seven-tackle game in the win over Michigan State. He has 47 tackles, third on the team, for the season along with two interceptions.
Gophers
–QB Mitch Leidner is a double threat. He threw four touchdown passes against Iowa and completed 10-of-13 attempts for 138 yards and also rushed 11 times for 77 yards.
–TE Maxx Williams had his best game of the season against Iowa. The sophomore caught five passes for 46 yards, including three touchdowns, giving him 22 receptions and seven touchdown catches for the season, both team highs.
–Damien Wilson leads the Gophers in tackles with 88 stops with eight for losses. He has two sacks, intercepted two passes, broken up two others, recovered two fumbles and forced one.
–S Cedric Thompson recorded a team-high nine tackles and forced a fumble against Iowa. He’s second on the team with 51 tackles and is also second with two interceptions.
