Philip John Fleck Jr. is an American football coach and former wide receiver. He has served as the head coach for the Minnesota Golden Gophers football team since 2017.
The Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represents the University of Minnesota in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Founded in 1882, Minnesota has been a member of the Big Ten Conference since its inception in 1896 as the Western Conference. The Golden Gophers claim seven national championships: 1904, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1940, 1941, and 1960. Since 2009, the Golden Gophers have played all their home games at Huntington Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
The Minnesota–Wisconsin football rivalry is an American college football rivalry between the Minnesota Golden Gophers and Wisconsin Badgers. It is the most-played rivalry in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, with 133 meetings between the two teams. The winner of the game receives Paul Bunyan's Axe, a tradition that started in 1948 after the first trophy, the Slab of Bacon, disappeared after the 1943 game when the Badgers were supposed to turn it over to the Golden Gophers. Minnesota and Wisconsin first played in 1890 and have met every year since, except for 1906. Wisconsin leads the series 63–62–8 through 2023. Wisconsin took the series lead for the first time after defeating Minnesota 31–0 in the 2017 game; Minnesota had led the overall series since 1902, at times by as many as 20 games.
The 2020 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team represented the University of Nebraska in the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by third-year head coach Scott Frost and played their games at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska, as members of the West Division in the Big Ten Conference.
The 2015 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represented the University of Minnesota in the 2015 NCAA Division I FBS football season. They were led by fifth-year head coach Jerry Kill, who resigned on October 28, 2015 due to health reasons. Tracy Claeys replaced Kill on an interim basis and was named head coach two weeks later on November 11. The Gophers played their home games at TCF Bank Stadium. They were a member of the West Division of the Big Ten Conference. Minnesota finished the regular season with a record of 5–7, 2–6 in Big Ten play to finish in a tie for fifth place in the West Division. Despite finishing below .500, the Gophers were invited to the Quick Lane Bowl versus Central Michigan due to there not being enough bowl eligible teams and Minnesota's high Academic Performance Rating. Minnesota defeated Central Michigan 21–14 to finish the season 6–7.
The 2016 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represented the University of Minnesota in the 2016 NCAA Division I FBS football season. They were led by first-year head coach Tracy Claeys and played their home games at TCF Bank Stadium. They were a member of the West Division of the Big Ten Conference. They finished the season 9–4, 5–4 in conference play to finish in fourth place in the West Division. They were invited to the Holiday Bowl where they defeated Washington State.
The 2017 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represented the University of Minnesota during the 2017 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Gophers were led by first-year head coach P. J. Fleck and played their home games at TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Minnesota competed as a member of the West Division of the Big Ten Conference. They finished the season 5–7, 2–7 in Big Ten play to finish in sixth place in the West Division.
The 2018 Illinois Fighting Illini football team represented the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign as a member of the West Division of the Big Ten Conference during the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Led by third-year head coach Lovie Smith, the Fighting Illini compiled an overall record of 4–8 with a mark of 2–7 in conference play, placing last out of seven teams in the Big Ten's West Division. Illinois played home games at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois.
The 2018 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represented the University of Minnesota in the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Golden Gophers played their home games at TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota and competed in the West Division of the Big Ten Conference. They were led by second-year head coach P. J. Fleck.
The 2019 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represented the University of Minnesota in the 2019 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Golden Gophers played their home games at TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and competed in the West Division of the Big Ten Conference. They were led by third-year head coach P. J. Fleck.
The 2020 Outback Bowl was a college football bowl game played on January 1, 2020, with kickoff at 1:00 p.m. EST on ESPN. It was the 34th edition of the Outback Bowl, and was one of the 2019–20 bowl games concluding the 2019 FBS football season. The game was named after its title sponsor, Outback Steakhouse.
The 2020 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represented the University of Minnesota in the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Golden Gophers played their home games at TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and competed in the West Division of the Big Ten Conference. They were led by fourth-year head coach P. J. Fleck.
The 2020 Northwestern Wildcats football team represented Northwestern University during the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Wildcats played their home games at Ryan Field in Evanston, Illinois, and competed in the West Division of the Big Ten Conference. They were led by 15th-year head coach Pat Fitzgerald.
The 2021 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represented the University of Minnesota during the 2021 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Golden Gophers played their home games at Huntington Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and competed in the West Division of the Big Ten Conference. They were led by fifth-year head coach P. J. Fleck.
The 2022 Illinois Fighting Illini football team was an American football team that represents the University of Illinois in the West Division of the Big Ten Conference during the 2022 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Bret Bielema was in his second season as the team's head coach. The Fighting Illini played home games at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois.
The 2022 Northwestern Wildcats football team represented Northwestern University during the 2022 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Wildcats played their home games at Ryan Field in Evanston, Illinois, and competed as members of the Big Ten Conference. They were led by 17th-year head coach Pat Fitzgerald.
The 2022 Wisconsin Badgers football team represented the University of Wisconsin–Madison during the 2022 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Badgers played their home games at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin, and competed as members of the Big Ten Conference. They were led by head coach Paul Chryst, who was in his eighth season as head coach, until his dismissal on October 2. Defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard assumed interim head coaching duties after the dismissal of Chryst. The Badgers finished the season 7–6, 4–5 in Big Ten play to finish in fifth place in the West division. They received an invitation to the Guaranteed Rate Bowl where they defeated Oklahoma State.
The 2022 Pinstripe Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 29, 2022, at Yankee Stadium in The Bronx, New York. The 12th annual Pinstripe Bowl, the game featured the Syracuse Orange and the Minnesota Golden Gophers, teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference and the Big Ten Conference, respectively. The game began at 2:03 p.m. EST and was aired on ESPN. It was one of the 2022–23 bowl games concluding the 2022 FBS football season. Sponsored by lawn mower manufacturing company Bad Boy Mowers, the game was officially known as the Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl.
The 2023 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represented the University of Minnesota in the West Division of the Big Ten Conference during the 2023 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Golden Gophers were led by P. J. Fleck in his seventh year as head coach. They played their home games at Huntington Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. The team was originally ineligible for a bowl game due to a losing record; however, they were awarded a berth due to having the highest Academic Progress Rating among 5–7 teams.
The 2024 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team will represent the University of Minnesota in the West Division of the Big Ten Conference during the 2024 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Golden Gophers will be led by P. J. Fleck in his eighth year as head coach. They played their home games at Huntington Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.
