No current Gophers players or coaches have played at Ohio Stadium, and interim head coach Tracy Claeys talked Thursday about possibly acclimating to the Horseshoe before playing in front of more than 100,000 fans on Saturday night.
Minnesota last played at the Horseshoe in 2009, a 38-7 Ohio State win.
“I think you try to take away the wow factor,” Claeys said on the weekly KFXN-FM radio show.
Minnesota (4-4, 1-3 Big Ten) eventually decided against a walk-through or early visit to the stadium on Friday or Saturday morning before the 7 p.m. kickoff against the Buckeyes.The Gophers haven’t done a walk through on the road since 2012 at Nevada-Las Vegas.
The Gophers will be able to get their bearings in early warmups when they peruse the stadium in sweatsuits and casually throw the ball around hours before the game.
Once the game begins, it will be tough sledding as Minnesota has lost nine consecutive games against the Buckeyes. The last Minnesota win, 29-17, came in 2000.
Senior center Brian Bobek, who is out with an undisclosed injury, transferred from Ohio State after the 2011 season. He told linebacker Jack Lynn about what the ‘Shoe is all about.
“(Bobek) says the environment is great there,” Lynn said. “It seems like the Big House (at Michigan), that type of environment, so it will be fun.”
Gophers senior safety Antonio Johnson, of Cleveland, has played in the ‘Shoe, but that was for a North-South high school all-star game. He will have more than 20 family and friends in attendance Saturday night.
“I’m excited because it’s in Ohio and I’m going to have a lot of my friends and family there — probably the most I’ve had all season,” Johnson said.
In 2014, Ohio State led the NCAA in attendance, with an average of 106,296 per game and a total of 744,075 across seven games.
The Gophers won twice last season in hostile environments. Before 102,926 at Michigan Stadium, Minnesota beat the Wolverines 30-14 on Sept. 27. In front of 91,186 at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Neb., Minnesota beat the Cornhuskers 28-24 on Nov. 22.
For the Gophers on Saturday, playing well in the first quarter, where they’ve been outscored 54-13, will help keep the crowd out of the game.
-- Andy Greder
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