Football Minnesota at Illinois rankings comparison, season and bowl projections

[Matt Jessen-Howard]

GOPHERS

Offense S&P+ Rank (algorithm): 87
Offense Pro Football Focus Rank (human analysis): 46
Defense S&P+ Rank (algorithm): 39
Defense Pro Football Focus Rank (human analysis): 54
Special Teams S&P+ Rank (algorithm): 12
Special Teams Pro Football Focus Rank (human analysis): 19

S&P+ predicts the Gophers will go 6-6 this year and have a 71% chance of making a bowl game, while TeamRankings predicts the Gophers will go 5.7-6.3 this year and gives Minnesota a 56% chance of making a bowl game.

TeamRankings

Bowl projections:

• Kyle Bonagura (ESPN): SERVPRO First Responder Bowl vs. North Texas
• Mitch Sherman (ESPN): None
• Bleacher Report: Quick Lane Bowl vs. Virginia Tech
• USA Today: None
• Sports Illustrated: None
• SB Nation: Pinstripe Bowl vs. Syracuse

Remaining Minnesota schedule:

• Purdue (No. 30 S&P+, No. 22 TeamRankings)
• Northwestern (64, 44)
• Wisconsin (17, 25)

MATCHUP

Vegas line: Minnesota by 9.5
TeamRankings: Minnesota No. 62, Illinois No. 106
Massey: Minnesota No. 65, Illinois No. 103
S&P+: Minnesota No. 59, Illinois No. 114
TeamRankings prediction: Minnesota by 7.4 with a 79.4% chance of victory
NumberFire prediction: Minnesota by 8.5 with a 76.7% chance of victory
S&P+ prediction: Minnesota by 11.2 with a 74% chance of victory