Air Force at Minnesota, 5 p.m. Saturday; TV: Big Ten Network
For the record:The Gophers opened their season with a 23-20 overtime victory at Syracuse.
Streaking: Senior wide receiver Eric Decker has at least one catch in 27 consecutive games, a streak that ranks sixth nationally.
Who’s hot: Junior kicker Eric Ellestad not only won the opener with a 35- yard field goal in overtime, his 26- yarder with 57 seconds left in regulation sent the game to overtime.
Who’s not: Junior quarterback Adam Weber completed just eight of his first 23 passes and finished 19-for-43.
Key stat: The Gophers won all three of their nonconference games last year, going undefeated outside the Big Ten for the first time since 2005.
FYI: Air Force will be the first opponent for Minnesota at the Gophers’ new TCF Bank Stadium.
Injury report: Cornerback Marcus Sherels (ankle) and offensive tackle Matt Stommes (ankle), day to day.
Coachspeak: “From a physical standpoint, their (Air Force) offensive linemen aren’t as big as some of the teams that you’re going to play against, so they really teach the chop technique. . . . (Air Force coach Troy Calhoun is) doing what is necessary to do at a service academy to be successful. He’s got some players. . . . There’s probably more skilled athletes at Air Force than there’s been in some years.” — Minnesota coach Tim Brewster
Irv Moss, The Denver Post
