Page 23 - Gophers News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

The first two years for Ben Johnson as head coach at his alma mater Minnesota were a struggle in many ways, with myriad injuries that made program development all the more challenging given the impact of the transfer portal and growing pains for a young team. After going 22-39 overall and 6-33 in the Big Ten, there is pressure this season on Johnson to shepherd measurable progress even with external expectations never lower. For now, with the opener on Nov. 6 against Bethune-Cookman coming up, Johnson and his staff can start by relishing the fact that they finally have a full roster.

Dragan Kesich made four field goals and Minnesota won at Iowa for the first time since 1999 to snap an eight-game losing streak in the series, holding the No. 24 Hawkeyes to 12 yards in the second half in a 12-10 victory Saturday. With the Floyd of Rosedale bronze hog statue at stake in the cross-border rivalry, Iowa appeared to take the lead with 1:21 left when Cooper DeJean fielded a punt that had bounced near the Minnesota sideline and returned it 54 yards for a touchdown.

Look for a low-scoring game. The matchup pits two of the nation's worst offenses.

Line: Iowa by 3 1/2, according to FanDuel Sportsbook. Iowa can stay ahead of the pack in the Big Ten West with a win here. The Hawkeyes hold a half-game lead over Wisconsin and own the tiebreaker against the Badgers after winning in Madison last week.

In his day job, Jamie Verbrugge often sits quietly to the side at Bloomington city council meetings, a municipal manager running the day-to-day work in the state's fourth largest city with a mostly soft voice and a low-key demeanor. Residents might not recognize him on some nights and weekends. Verbrugge, a self-described recovering introvert, deepens his voice and cranks up his volume, his ...