Gophers football likely to play in one of these three bowl games

On Sunday afternoon, the Gophers football team will find out the bowl game in which it will play. Judging by the team’s three most likely destinations, fans traveling to the game will need to do one of three things:

• Pack some sunscreen.

• Dust off those cowboy boots.

• And, as a last resort, have a winter jacket at the ready.

Following a regular season that included a 7-5 overall record and a 5-4 mark in the Big Ten, the Gophers appear to be in play for three bowls: The Rate Bowl on Dec. 26 in Phoenix, the Music City Bowl on Dec. 30 in Nashville and the GameAbove Sports Bowl on Dec. 26 in Detroit.

Of the three, Phoenix appears to be the clear leader as Minnesota’s destination, with Nashville second and the Detroit a longer shot.

“We’ve had pretty good experiences with Minnesota in the past in our game,” said Erik Moses, executive director and CEO of the Fiesta Sports Foundation, which runs the Rate Bowl. “The last time they were here with us, they did well on their ticket sales. … We like to think that our destination is a pretty compelling spot to be in December if you’re from Minnesota."

The Big Ten team in the Rate Bowl will have an opponent from the Big 12, and Moses spoke highly of a potential Upper Midwest matchup at Chase Field, home of the Arizona Diamondbacks.

“We sure wouldn’t mind a Minnesota-Iowa State matchup to harken back to the old times,” Moses said.

The Gophers sold their entire ticket allotment for the 2021 Guaranteed Rate Bowl, and Moses is impressed with how Minnesota athletic director Mark Coyle and coach P.J. Fleck promote their program.

“We think really highly of Mark Coyle and obviously P.J. as well,” Moses said.

For the Rate Bowl’s selection committee to pick the Gophers, they’d have to be available after five other bowls make their selections. The Big Ten’s bowl lineup appears to be falling into place with little drama. Ohio State (12-0), Indiana (12-0) and Oregon (11-1) are locks for the College Football Playoff. Michigan (9-3) slots into the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Fla., while Iowa (8-4) appears headed to the ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa, Fla.

“In our group, you circle Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska and Illinois,” Ramsey said. “Iowa, we’ve had them twice in the past three years, so that probably won’t fit.”

Most projections have the Las Vegas Bowl taking Nebraska. That would leave the Music City Bowl to decide between 8-4 Illinois and the Gophers. Ramsey wouldn’t tip his hand regarding his choice but complimented Minnesota’s administration.

“Minnesota’s in with that group of three teams that we’re taking a look at with the conference,” Ramsey said.

Picking next after the Music City and Las Vegas bowls is the Pinstripe Bowl, which will be played Dec. 27 at Yankee Stadium. A Penn State vs. Pittsburgh matchup in New York makes a lot of sense for attendance and interest reasons.

The Rate Bowl picks after the Pinstripe, and if Illinois lands in Nashville, it appears the choice in Phoenix will be between the Gophers and 6-6 Northwestern. In the Gophers’ favor: Their reputation with this bowl game, their better record than Northwestern and the sizable Minnesota contingent that lives or winters in Arizona. In Northwestern’s favor: The Wildcats beat the Gophers 38-35 in November, and they have yet to play in this bowl.

“It’s just like any other draft, right?” Moses said. “You’ve got to see what happens in front of you and then have a couple of scenarios that you think work for you.”

College Football Playoff: Ohio State (12-0, first-round bye), Indiana (12-0, first-round bye), Oregon (11-1)

Citrus Bowl, 2 p.m. Dec. 31, Orlando, TV: ABC

Michigan (9-3) vs. Texas (9-3)

ReliaQuest Bowl, 11 a.m. Dec. 31, Tampa, ESPN

Las Vegas Bowl, 2:30 p.m. Dec. 31, ESPN

Nebraska (7-5) vs. Utah (10-2)

Music City Bowl, 4:30 p.m. Dec. 30, Nashville, ESPN

Illinois (8-4) vs. LSU (7-5)

Pinstripe Bowl, 11 a.m. Dec. 27, New York, ABC

Rate Bowl, 3:30 p.m. Dec. 26, Phoenix, ESPN

Gophers (7-5) vs. Iowa State (8-4)

GameAbove Sports Bowl, noon Dec. 26, Detroit, ESPN

Northwestern (6-6) vs. Western Michigan (8-4)

Note: The four former Pac-12 members in the Big Ten — UCLA, USC, Oregon and Washington — will use the Pac-12 bowls’ tie-in if not in the College Football Playoff.

Washington (8-4) vs. Boise State (8-4)

Alamo Bowl, 8 p.m. Dec. 30, San Antonio, ESPN