CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The Minnesota Golden Gophers put their seven-game bowl win streak on the line Friday night in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl against a Virginia Tech squad that has been decimated by transfers and opt-outs.
The Gophers (7-5) have won the last five of those bowls under head coach P.J. Fleck, a testament to the coaching staff’s ability to continue the development process of younger players while striking the balance of serious preparation and holiday-season fun.
“They just love playing football and they love getting better, and when you have a team like that, that makes the preparation a lot more enjoyable,” Fleck said.
The Gophers will rely heavily on running back Darius Taylor, who ran for 873 yards and nine touchdowns this season while hauling in 50 catches for 333 yards and two touchdowns.
“At Minnesota, we take high pride in bowl games,” Taylor said. “We work so hard during the season so we view it as a privilege to be here. We take winning these bowl games very seriously as a team.”
Virginia Tech (6-6) will be without 14 starters due to the usual bowl-season spate of transfers and opt-outs for injury prevention.
“These guys weren’t starters all year, but some of them have played, and honestly some of them are more ready than others,” Hokies coach Brent Pry said. “But the good thing is that we knew early enough about these situations, so these guys have had a ton of reps in practice. I think you have to vanilla things up in places to make sure you are able to get out there and execute.”
Minnesota won’t be missing nearly as many, though. Fleck declined to confirm who’s in and who’s out ahead of the game. Left tackle Airontae Ersery, the Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year, has declared for the draft and is one of the players who is not expected to participate.
One key player who the Gophers will have is quarterback Max Brosmer, who transferred a year ago from New Hampshire and needs nine completions to set the program’s single-season record currently held by Adam Weber (258 in 2007).
Brosmer had a stellar sixth season of college football in his first experience in the FBS, ranking as the fifth-best passer in the country by Pro Football Focus analysis. He’s on track to set the program record for completion percentage, too.
Fleck called Brosmer the best processor of information he’s ever been around.
“The legacy he’s going to leave is what he passed down in terms of the process, in terms of the preparation, to the other guys,” Fleck said. “I think that’s the ultimate definition of a leader.”
Freshman quarterback William “Pop” Watson is expected to make his second career start for the Hokies.
Watson completed 14 of 21 passes for 254 yards and a touchdown and ran 11 times for 48 yards and a score in a victory over in-state rival Virginia in the regular season finale.
“He got better from the Duke game to the UVA game,” Pry said. “He’s confident and poised and making the right decisions and the right reads, that’s where he needs to grow — and that is what this experience gives him.”
The Duke’s Mayo Bowl has earned a national reputation for its tradition of dumping a five-gallon bucket of mayonnaise over the head of the winning head coach. Fleck isn’t a mayo guy, but said he’d gladly accept the mayo bath if his team wins.
“I’m bald, so I’m hoping it will all run right off,” Fleck said.
“I kind of wish he had hair because I think it would get stuck in his hair a little bit more,” Brosmer joked. “It might be a little easier to clean off if he’s shaven.”
Minnesota finished the regular season with five wins in seven games, closing out with a 24-7 victory over Wisconsin in the finale. Virginia Tech, on the other hand, lost three of its last four games and needed to beat Virginia to become bowl eligible.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
