The Gophers enter their border battle against the Badgers as two-touchdown underdogs. An upset would allow the Gophers to finish in a first-place tie in the Big Ten West, but they've already been eliminated from the conference title game by tiebreakers.
The Gophers haven't celebrated with Paul Bunyan's Axe since 2003, a string of 12 consecutive losses to their rival. The Badgers still have a shot at the College Football Playoff, and they own one of the five best defenses nationally.
In other words, the Gophers really have nothing to lose, except a 13th consecutive meeting.
They should act accordingly, particularly on offense. This is not the time to play conservatively.
Gophers offensive coordinator Jay Johnson should hold up his playbook, give it a good shake and see what falls out.
As the kids say, Johnson needs to get weird.
The Badgers defense is too suffocating to play it safe and conventional. They rank in the top 10 nationally in scoring defense, total defense, rushing defense and third-down defense.
They held Michigan to 14 points — about 28 points below the Wolverines season average.