The Gophers close out the 2024 regular season searching for Paul Bunyan’s Axe

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Minnesota celebrates its 23-16 victory over Wisconsin by chopping the goal post with Paul Bunyan’s ax after a college football game between the University of Wisconsin Badgers and the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers on November 26 and 20 ((Photo by Lawrence Iles/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images))

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) – The University of Minnesota football team concludes its 2024 regular season on Friday against Wisconsin at Camp Randall Stadium.

The Gophers are 6-5 this season and 4-4 in Big Ten play heading into the annual Battle for Paul Bunyan’s Ax.

Why it matters

PJ Fleck is 3-4 in his seven games against the Badgers as Minnesota’s head coach. The Gophers want to finish the season 7-5 and can improve their bowl situation with a win. With a win, they can also eliminate Wisconsin from bowl contention. The Badgers enter the final at 5-6. It is the longest-running rivalry in major college football, with Friday marking the 134th meeting between the two programs. Wisconsin currently has a 63-62-8 lead.

The Gophers will be making their sixth bowl game under Fleck and are 5-0 in the postseason. Incidentally, Friday is also Fleck’s 44th birthday.

Injury report

Safeties Aidan Gousby and Darius Green will miss Friday’s game. Both struggled with injuries throughout the season. Tyler Cooper is listed as questionable. He returned last week after missing two games due to a concussion.