Rutgers 2016 Season Game 8: Minnesota

                                                                                                        (AP Photo)

WHO: Rutgers (2-5, 0-4 Big Ten) at Minnesota (4-2, 1-2 Big Ten)

WHEN: Saturday at noon ET

WHERE: TCF Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, Minnesota; ESPNU (TV); WOR 710AM, WCTC 1450AM, WENJ 97.3FM, WNJE 920AM, WRSU 88.7FM (Radio)

COACHES: Rutgers: Chris Ash (first season, 2-5); Minnesota: Tracy Claeys (second season, 6-6)

SERIES: This marks the first-ever meeting between the schools. Rutgers is 0-6 all-time against Big Ten West teams (Nebraska, Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois).

LAST WEEK: Rutgers lost on Homecoming to Illinois, 24-7. Minnesota won at Maryland, 31-10.

RUTGERS WINS IF: The Scarlet Knights hold onto the ball and turn a corner offensively under new starting quarterback Gio Rescigno. The redshirt sophomore passed for 120 yards and rushed for 37 more in the second half last week to provide a spark to an offense held scoreless for 11 straight quarters. Will that translate on the road? Five turnovers was the line of demarcation against Illinois. That obviously cannot happen again for Rutgers to have any chance in Minneapolis.

MINNESOTA WINS IF: The Gophers' ball-control offense subjects Rutgers' defense to another strenuous outing. Led by Rodney Smith, Minnesota rushed for 229 yards last week at Maryland, which yields 84.2 yards per game fewer than Rutgers. Oh, and Minnesota ranks fifth in the Big Ten in time of possession. Rutgers' banged up defense, particularly at linebacker, has to find a way to string together some three-and-outs.

EXTRA POINTS: Minnesota is the 11th different Big Ten opponent Rutgers will have faced in three seasons. Only Purdue and Northwestern remain. ... Rutgers is one of two Big Ten teams to be playing for an eighth straight week without a bye, the first time the program has done so since 2008. ... TCF Bank Stadium is the newest Big Ten stadium, opening in 2009 with a capacity of 50,805, nearly two thousand fewer seats than High Point Solutions Stadium. ... The Gophers have no players from New Jersey, Pennsylvania or New York on their roster. Safety Antoine Winfield Jr. is the son of former All-Pro NFL cornerback Antoine Winfield.

PREDICTION: Minnesota 34, Rutgers 10

Game week stories

Rutgers heads back on road to Minnesota with Gio Rescigno as new starting quarterback

Rutgers' Myles Nash on rough patch in new era: 'It's not on the coaches at all'

Gio Rescigno replaces Chris Laviano as Rutgers' starting quarterback

Got a comment or feedback? You can tweet me @gregp_j or email gjohnson@trentonian.com.

— Greg Johnson