The Floyd of Rosedale Trophy is on the line this Saturday when Iowa hosts Minnesota at Kinnick Stadium.
The Hawkeyes won last year’s meeting in Minneapolis 31-14, while the Golden Gophers won two years ago in Iowa City 12-10 on the infamous Cooper DeJean fair catch call. Whenever these two teams match up on the gridiron, expect a heated and tightly contested game where the winner is more than deserving of bringing Floyd home.
This year’s iteration of this classic rivalry promises more of the same, as both teams are playing some good football at the moment. They’re both 5-2 overall and 3-1 in the Big Ten. They’re both coming off impressive home victories over good opponents. And they both have a natural disdain for the other, which is what makes this rivalry so special every year.
The question on everyone’s mind is who will take home the Floyd of Rosedale on Saturday? Here are the expert predictions for Iowa vs Minnesota.
Iowa vs. Minnesota expert predictions
CBS Sports: Iowa -8.5. CBS Sports is riding wth the Hawkeyes to win the game and cover the spread. Here’s more of what they had to say.
“While Minnesota found its rushing attack against Nebraska with 186 yards — up from a combined 133 in the previous three Big Ten games — Iowa’s stout run defense, allowing just 2.8 yards per carry and roughly 92 yards per game, should keep the Golden Gophers in check. That defensive advantage, combined with Iowa’s consistency ATS in the series (7-2-1 since 2015), makes the Hawkeyes a comfortable pick.” -Cody Nagel
Fox Sports: Iowa 28, Minnesota 16. Fox Sports is also backing Iowa to win and keep Floyd in Iowa City.
Sports Illustrated: Iowa 17, Minnesota 13. Sports Illustrated is predicting the Hawkeyes to win a closer, more low-scoring affair on Saturday.
College Football News: Iowa 23, Minnesota 16. College Football News is backing Iowa to win the Floyd of Rosedale Trophy once again. Here’s more of what they had to say.
“The Hawkeyes have won nine of the last ten in the series, and it would’ve been ten in a row if not for a flag on a Cooper DeJean punt return.
It’s about the field position battle, and they’re both great on special teams. It’ll come down to the big mistakes, and neither team makes mistakes.
It’ll be a close, low-scoring blast of a game, with both teams hanging around right up until Iowa comes up with one big play to survive.” -Pete Fiutak
Bleacher Report: Iowa 23, Minnesota 16. Bleacher Report agrees with College Football News that Iowa will take care of business by a touchdown on Saturday.
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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Iowa football vs. Minnesota expert predictions nationally
Reporting by Zach Hiney, Hawkeyes Wire / Hawkeyes Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
