The University of Minnesota first played Wisconsin on Nov. 15, 1890, kicking off the most-played rivalry in all of college football. (For the record, the Gophers won 63-0 that day at home in front of about 800 fans.)
Through the end of 2024, after the Gophers closed the regular season with a 24-7 win in Madison, the all-time series stood at 63-63-8.
So, overall bragging rights and the yearlong guardianship of Paul Bunyan’s Axe were on the line when the Badgers visited Huntington Bank Stadium for Saturday’s 135th meeting. For fans watching the game on TV, it was a picturesque snow globe scene. For the near-capacity crowd at “The Bank,” it was both pretty and pretty dang cold, or as head coach PJ Fleck said in an interview before the game, “perfect weather for a football game.”
For three-plus hours, the two rivals battled it out in between TV timeouts that doubled as a chance for the grounds crew to shovel off the sidelines, end zones, and yard markers. In the end, the Gophers parlayed a stout defense, three turnovers, and just enough offense into a 17-7 victory in front of 46,038 mostly elated fans.
The star of the game was Gopher defensive back John Nestor, who had a team-high nine tackles, recovered a fumble, and had two interceptions. His second interception and long return in the third quarter set up the clinching touchdown—a 13-yard pass from redshirt freshman Drake Lindsey to senior tight end Jameson Geers right in front of an erupting student section.
As the game ended, Gopher players ran to grab the Axe from the back of the west end zone as fans—mostly those elated students—rushed the field to accompany the Axe parade. Cheerleaders and others made snow angels on the field. And after the band finished playing The Rouser, it was a replay of the 2021 game’s aftermath: the music shifted to Jump Around by House of Pain—the anthem for Badger fans after the third quarter of their home games.
“I thought our guys played their hearts out,” Fleck said in his post-game press conference. “The Axe stays in Minneapolis, and I’m proud to say that.” Fleck recalled that when he was hired nine years ago, he had the chance to ask fans, donors, boosters, and administrators what they wanted most. Their answer? “Just beat Wisconsin,” Fleck said.
For the fourth time in the last five years, mission accomplished. And now the 7-5 Gophers await their bowl game destiny, which will be announced on Sunday after the various conference championship games.
Fun facts about the Gophers and the Minnesota-Wisconsin series
- Saturday’s victory closed out the first undefeated season for the Gophers at home (7-0) since 1967 (6-0). However, the Gophers finished 0-5 on the road.
- The last time the Gophers finished 7-0 at home was in 1931. They beat the Badgers 14-0 at home that year and also lost all three of their road games.
- Minnesota has now won four of its last five meetings against Wisconsin, and PJ Fleck is 5-4 against the Badgers in his nine years as head coach.
- Wisconsin won 14 years in a row from 2004-17.
- The two teams played to a tie in three consecutive years from 1923-25.
- The all-time series now stands at 64-63-8 in favor of Minnesota.
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