Gophers at Indiana, 2:30 p.m. Saturday, Memorial Stadium, BTN, 100.3-FM. Line: Gophers by 7 ½

In two short weeks, the Gophers (6-4, 4-3 Big Ten) went from a one-game lead in the Big Ten's West Division to a third-place tie, one game behind first-place Wisconsin and Iowa. Minnesota will have plenty of opportunities to get well against Indiana (2-8, 0-7), which is on a six-game losing streak.

Three big story lines

Playing for bowl positioning

Though the Gophers remain alive in the West race, they'll need much help to realize that goal. With a 2-0 finish against Indiana and Wisconsin, they could at least salvage an 8-4 regular season and move up in the postseason pecking order to possibly the Music City or Las Vegas bowl.

Touchdowns over field goals

The Gophers have been among the better teams in the Big Ten in red zone performance, ranking third with 30 scores in 33 red zone possessions (90.9%). At Iowa, however, they settled for three field goals on three trips inside the Hawkeyes 15-yard line, which was telling in the 27-22 defeat.

Indiana's revolving door at quarterback

Michael Penix Jr., a second-team All-Big Ten QB last year, suffered a shoulder injury on Oct. 2 and hasn't played since. Jack Tuttle replaced Penix, but he suffered a lower leg injury. True freshman Donaven McCulley started last week. As of Thursday, coach Tom Allen hadn't announced his starter among those three.

Two key matchups

Gophers running backs vs. Indiana LB Micah Miller

Freshmen Ky Thomas and Mar'Keise Irving rebounded from subpar games against Illinois to rush for 126 and 80 yards, respectively, at Iowa. They'll face a challenge in Hoosiers linebacker Micah Miller, who leads Indiana with 62 tackles and ranks second in the Big Ten with 15 tackles for loss.

Indiana WR Ty Fryfogle vs. Gophers defensive backs

Fryfogle, the Big Ten wide receiver of the year in 2020 after catching 37 passes for 721 yards and seven TDs, has 43 catches this season but only one TD as the team's QB play has suffered. He'll still provide a stiff challenge for Gophers CBs Justin Walley and Coney Durr.

One stat that matters

32.0

Points allowed per game by Indiana, which ranks 13th in the Big Ten and 106th nationally. The Hoosiers have given up 159 points in their past four games.

The Gophers will win if …

Their offensive line dominates as usual, their run game keeps producing, Tanner Morgan finds Chris Autman-Bell for a couple of big gains, they avoid turnovers, and their defense limits big plays by Fryfogle and tight end Peyton Hendershot.

The Hoosiers will win if …

Their playmakers like Fryfogle and Penix show up like it's 2020, they find a way to force a couple of turnovers, their defense plays much better than it did against Rutgers, and their kickoff and punt coverage improves greatly.

Prediction

Gophers 31, Indiana 13