Gophers, Cyclones to ring in the new year in Tempe

Seeing people around Sun Devil Stadium on game day dressed in maroon and gold is a very common sight. But you won’t see many Sun Devils displayed on the game day attire of those football fans–you’ll see gophers instead.

For the third time in four years, the Minnesota Golden Gophers will represent the Big Ten Conference in the Insight Bowl in Tempe. This year, the opposition will be supplied by the Iowa State Cyclones of the Big 12, who are making their first bowl appearance since a 2005 trip to the Houston Bowl.

The Insight Bowl hasn’t been kind to the Gophers. In 2006, Minnesota roared out to a 38-14 lead over Texas Tech after three quarters, only to see the Red Raiders come roaring back for an improbable 44-41 double overtime win. Last year, the Golden Gophers were soundly beaten by Kansas 42-21 in the 20th annual bowl.

Meanwhile, Iowa State is making its second Insight appearance. The Cyclones beat Pittsburgh 37-29 in 2000, as quarterback Sage Rosenfels threw two touchdown passes. It was one of only two bowl victories in the history of Iowa State football.

Here’s a closer look at both teams:

Minnesota Golden Gophers (6-6)

Head Coach: Tim Brewster (3rd year at Minnesota, 14-23)
Offensive Coordinator: Jedd Frisch
Defensive Coordinator: Kevin Cosgrove and Ronnie Lee

2009 Schedule

Sept. 5 - @ Syracuse - W 23-20 OT - Eric Ellestad kicks game-winning 35-yard field goal in overtime.
Sept. 12 - vs. Air Force - W 20-13 - LB Nathan Triplett 52-yard fumble return for touchdown.
Sept. 19 - vs. California - L 21-35 - WR Eric Decker had 8 catches for 119 yards and 2 tds, also threw a td pass.
Sept. 26 - @ Northwestern - W 35-24 - Duane Bennett runs for three touchdowns in Gophers’ win.
Oct. 3 - vs. Wisconsin - L 28-31 - WR Eric Decker had 8 catches for 140 yards and 1 td.
Oct. 10 - vs. Purdue - W 35-20 - RB DeLeon Eskridge runs for two touchdowns.
Oct. 17 - @ Penn State - L 0-20 - Gophers held to just 138 total yards.
Oct. 24 - @ Ohio State - L 7-38 - Minnesota commits 4 turnovers.
Oct. 31 - vs. Michigan State - W 42-34 - QB Adam Weber throws for 416 yards and 4 touchdowns.
Nov. 7 - vs. Illinois - L 32-35 - Gophers fight back from 28-7 deficit before losing.
Nov. 14 - vs. South Dakota State - W 16-13 - Eric Ellestad kicks 3 field goals, including game-winner with 2:22 left
Nov. 21 - at Iowa - L 0-12 - Minnesota loses despite outgaining Hawkeyes 201-171.

Talk about a grueling schedule…Minnesota played 12 games in 12 weeks. That’s right, no bye weeks. The Gophers struggled for most of the year on offense, ranking 113th in the nation in total offense (295.83 yards/game). Things weren’t helped much when leading receiver Eric Decker was lost for the season with an ankle injury in the loss to Ohio State.

The offense is led by quarterback Adam Weber, who has made 37 starts for Minnesota, and will be one of the most experienced quarterbacks in the nation next year as a senior. But, Weber’s yardage, touchdown passes and QB rating are all down from a year ago, and he’s thrown almost twice as many interceptions this season (14) as he did last year (8). The leading rusher on the season was sophomore Duane Bennett, who only mustered only 376 yards on 98 carries.

The Gophers’ defense is dominated by their linebackers. Lee Campbell led the team with 112 total tackles, and 9.5 tackles for loss, while Nate Triplett (96 tackles) and Simoni Lawrence (77 tackles) ranked 2nd and 3rd on the team.

Kicker Eric Ellestad has been solid all year, connecting on all 30 of his extra points, and on 11 of his 14 field goal attempts, while Troy Stoudermire ranked 7th in the Big Ten, averaging 25.2 yards per kickoff return.

Iowa State Cyclones (6-6)

Head Coach: Paul Rhoads (6-6, 1st year at Iowa State)
Offensive Coordinator: Tom Herman
Defensive Coordinator: Wally Burnham

2009 Schedule

Sept. 3 - vs. North Dakota State - W 34-17 - Austen Arnaud throws 2 tds to Marquis Hamilton.
Sept. 12 - vs. Iowa - L 3-35 - Cyclones commit 6 turnovers in loss.
Sept. 19 - at Kent State - W 34-14 - Austen Arnaud 2 td runs, 1 td pass.
Sept. 26 - vs. Army - W 31-10 - Alexander Robinson 178 total yards, 3 touchdowns.
Oct. 3 - vs. Kansas State - L 23-24 - Austen Arnaud two td throws, 1 td run.
Oct. 10 - at Kansas - L 36-41 - Alexander Robinson runs for 152 yards and 2 scores in loss.
Oct. 17 - vs. Baylor - W 24-10 - Cyclones roll up 454 yards of total offense in win vs. Bears.
Oct. 24 - at Nebraska - W 9-7 - ‘Clones defense forces 8 turnovers in first win in Lincoln since 1977.
Oct. 31 - at Texas A&M - L 10-35 - Jerome Tiller scores Iowa State’s only touchdown.
Nov. 7 - vs. Oklahoma State - L 8-34 - Arnaud returns from injury, throws three picks.
Nov. 14 - vs. Colorado - W 17-10 - Alexander Robinson 158 total yards, 1 touchdown.
Nov. 21 - at Missouri - L 24-34 - Cyclones allow 539 yards of offense to Tigers.

In a strange scheduling quirk, this year’s Insight Bowl pits two teams who did not have a bye week in the 2009 season. Iowa State showed a 4-game improvement from 2008 under first year head coach Paul Rhoads, who took over for Gene Chizik. Chizik became the head coach at Auburn for the 2009 season. Only four teams in FBS (SMU, Idaho, Washington, Middle Tennessee State and Ohio) had larger improvements than Iowa State this season.

Offensively, the attack is paced by junior tailback Alexander Robinson, who ranks 29th in the nation in rushing, and finished the regular season with 1,058 yards on 210 carries. Incidentally, Robinson hails from Minneapolis, Minnesota, and considered signing with Minnesota before enrolling at Iowa State. Junior quarterback Austen Arnaud did miss two games this season, but still threw for 1,799 yards and 13 touchdowns while running for 485 more yards and 7 scores.

Iowa State’s 99th ranked defense yielded 414.3 yards and 22.6 points per game. All-Big 12 linebacker Jesse Smith was all over the field in ‘09, registering 128 tackles (10th in the nation), and also had 2 intereceptions and 2 forced fumbles this season. Defensive end Christopher Lyle led the team with 4 sacks and 11 tackles for loss.

The Cyclones’ kicker, Grant Mahoney, has been shaky this season, missing four extra points, and connecting on only 13 of 20 field goals–although, he did show a strong leg, hitting 3 field goals of 50 yards or more.

Insight Bowl

This is the 21st Annual Insight Bowl, and the the 10th to be played in the greater Phoenix area. After relocating from Tucson after the 1999 game between Colorado and Boston College, the Insight Bowl called Chase Field (Bank One Ballpark) home for the next six seasons, before settling in at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe in time for the 2006 game.

Last year’s Insight Bowl between Kansas and Minnesota drew 49,103 fans to Sun Devil Stadium and featured the 2nd-highest attendance figure in bowl history, and the largest since moving to the Valley in 2000. The 1997 game (then called the Insight.com Bowl) between New Mexico and hometown Arizona still holds the game’s attendance record, 49,385.

The Insight Bowl is traditionally one of the highest scoring bowl games as well. In the last four seasons, the Insight Bowl has featured an average of 69.0 points per game, with the winning team averaging 45.0 points per game.

For more information on this year’s game, visit the Insight Bowl’s official website here.

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Tags: Adam Weber, Alexand Robinson, Austen Arnaud, Christopher Lyle, DeLeon Eskridge, Duane Bennett, Eric Decker, Eric Ellestad, Gene Chizik, Insight Bowl, Iowa State Cyclones, Jerome Tiller, Jess Smith, Lee Campbell, Marquis Hamilton, Minnesota Golden Gophers, Nathan Triplett, Paul Rhoads, Simoni Lawrence, Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Tim Brewster, Troy Stoudermire