8 storylines to follow before Minnesota's bowl game against New Mexico

We're just over a week away from the 2025 Rate Bowl between Minnesota and New Mexico on Dec. 26. Here are eight storylines to follow before the game.

Can the Gophers extend their bowl game win streak to nine?

P.J. Fleck has a perfect 6-0 record in bowl games at Minnesota, but the Gophers' winning streak dates all the way back to the 2015 Quick Lane Bowl as a program. Latest betting odds from FanDuel Sportsbook view the Gophers as a 2.5-point betting favorite, as they look to extend their bowl game win streak to nine.

Dec 28, 2021; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers head coach P. J. Fleck reacts as he is doused with Powerade by Minnesota Golden Gophers linebacker Braelen Oliver (14) during the second half against the West Virginia Mountaineers at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images | Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

Will there be any significant opt outs?

Fleck and the Gophers' coaching staff have routinely kept bowl game opt-outs close to the vest. There will almost certainly be one or two surprises. Between now and the game, we might get more information, but it always has a major impact on modern bowl games, for both teams.

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Mayo bath encore?

The presenting sponsor of the Rate Bowl is Rate, which is a private mortgage company. Unfortunately, for fans of the bowl game theatrics that the Pop Tarts Bowl and Duke's Mayo Bowl have made famous, it's hard to get creative with a mortgage company. The entertainment will have to come in the form of football.

Baseball field conditions

The Rate Bowl is played at the Arizona Diamondbacks' home stadium, Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona. Minnesota has already played at Wrigley Field in the regular season, and the bowl game will be its third at a baseball stadium since 2021. The field conditions always happen to be a storyline at a stadium that normally doesn't host football, so it will be worth monitoring if Minnesota is able to get out of the game fully healthy.

Darius Taylor's bowl game dominance

Taylor has averaged 27.5 carries for 160.5 rushing yards and two touchdowns, to go along with 3.0 catches and 14.0 receicing yards in his two career bowl games. He exploded for 208 yards in 2023 against Bowl Green, and he had 113 rushing yards last season against Virginia Tech. With Fame Ijeboi off to the transfer portal, he could have another monster game this year against New Mexico.

Koi Perich

Perich's potential two-way role was a top storyline in the offseason after his breakout true freshman campaign. That resulted in only 20 offensive snaps in the regular season. The bowl game seems like a great opportunity to revisit that plan and potentially give him a bigger workload. I am curious to see him more at receiver against the Lobos.

WR rotation

Le'Meke Brockington, Javon Tracy, Jalen Smith and Logan Loya are all expected to play against New Mexico, but five other receivers have revealed their intentions of entering the transfer portal. Does that open the door for a bigger role for Perich? Does Donielle 'Nuke' Hayes get a chance to showcase his skills? Do we get our first look at former four-star recruit Bradley Martino? Wide receiver is a position that I will be watching closely.

Drake Lindsey

By the time of kick off, Lindsey will have had 26 full days after his final start of the regular season against Wisconsin. The quarterback position will always be the most important on the football field. I will be very interested to see how he looks against a Group of 5 defense for the first time since August.

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