B1G notes: Minnesota coach sees recruiting as program’s next step

CHICAGO - With eight wins in each of its last two years, Minnesota's football program has elevated from also-ran to divisional title contender.

The Gophers captured The Little Brown Jug against Michigan for the first time since 2005 and battered border rival Iowa 51-14 to reclaim Floyd of Rosedale. Minnesota entered the final weekend last year in a winner-take-all game against Wisconsin for the Big Ten West Division title but fell short 34-24.

For any program, taking the next step is essential. To reach that step, Gophers Coach Jerry Kill specifically targeted Wisconsin.

'Last year we were one game away from playing (for the Big Ten championship),” Kill said. 'And, really, Wisconsin has been the one that's kept us out of there. And I feel like we had a lot of success last year. We got three trophies. But we don't have ... we haven't had the Axe in a long time. I think that's been the issue.”

Minnesota has lost 11 straight to Wisconsin, the most-played rivalry in Division I football. The Gophers led Wisconsin in the third quarter but was outscored 21-7 in the second half.

'How do you get over the hump? Got to recruit better players,” Kill said. 'Everybody gets fired up about the coaches and talks to the coaches. But coaches don't win games. Players do. And I think our recruiting has gotten better, and that's how we're going to have to get over the hump.”

BATTLE FOR ‘NU'

Northwestern and Nebraska have turned their series into annual tug-of-war over the initials 'NU.” Their first three meetings as Big Ten opponents were classics, from the Wildcats' upset at Lincoln in 2011 to the Cornhuskers' Hail Mary victory in 2013. Last year Northwestern led at halftime, but Nebraska dominated the second half.

'We're (1-3 against Nebraska), so I wouldn't call that interesting,” Northwestern Coach Pat Fitzgerald said. 'I'd probably call that disappointing from our perspective.

'And I'll go back to the relationship that I had with (former Nebraska Coach Bo Pelini) and his staff. Those were, I mean, backyard street fight games that we've been in the last three years. We've been successful in one and you know, we had opportunities in the other two.”

The teams play again Oct. 24 in Lincoln.

RUTGERS-PENN STATE SERIES

Rutgers and Penn State hardly share the collective history that conjures any of the sport's great rivalries. Rutgers has beaten Penn State just once since World War I, and the Nittany Lions own a 23-2 advantage all-time. Penn State won last year 13-10.

But the Big Ten stapled the teams together in the same division when Rutgers joined the league last year. Their proximity makes the series exciting to both fan bases. But it's not yet a rivalry, Rutgers Coach Kyle Flood said.

'Rivalries could come down to three things,” he said. 'Geography, certainly the geography is there. Recruiting. Do you have players in both programs that were recruited by both schools? We do. Certainly the case. And then competitive football games which we had last year.

'So is it the start of something like that? It might be. But I think those things have to happen organically. I don't think you can create them.”

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