• The Vikings control their own destiny for the rest of the season, meaning that if they win their remaining games they are assured of winning the NFC North. The first of their final five — Monday night at Seattle — is the most daunting. They will have to contend with travel, crowd noise and a certain quarterback named Russell Wilson.
• Stop me if you've heard this: The Wild is heading out on the road again. Yeah, after that brief two-game respite Minnesota heads out for three games against the Eastern Conference starting Tuesday in Florida. By the end of that trip, the Wild will have played 20 of its first 30 games away from Xcel Energy Center.
• Unlike the road-weary Wild, the Wolves probably relish an escape from the Twin Cities given their very odd home-road splits. They are 3-7 at Target Center — where they have lost five in a row — but are a robust 7-2 on the road, including four straight road wins. They have four road games in six nights starting Wednesday in Dallas.
• The Notre Dame women's basketball team has played in the NCAA title game each of the past two seasons and won a championship in 2018. The Irish are just 5-4 this season, but they still will provide a formidable test for the Gophers (5-1) during the ACC/Big Ten Challenge on Wednesday in South Bend.
• The four teams in the College Football Playoff will be announced Sunday, and the rest of the bowl invitations should fall into place after that. The Gophers' dreams of a Rose Bowl trip are unlikely after Saturday's loss, but a trip to Tampa for the Outback Bowl on New Year's Day wouldn't be a bad consolation prize.
