Iowa football players are absorbing the hype for Saturday’s game with Minnesota while keeping their focus on the task at hand.

By Charlie Green | c[email protected].

Saturday at Kinnick Stadium will have a little bit of everything, ranging from daytime outdoor wrestling to cool new football uniforms.

Wearing those jerseys will be the No. 5 team in the country, playing for the Floyd of Rosedale under the lights in front of a blackout crowd.

For fans of Iowa sports, it’s going to be one hell of a day turned into one hell of a night.

“That environment’s going to be crazy,” junior corner Greg Mabin said. “I hear they have a wrestling meet before that, so the crowd’s already going to be amped for that as well as the night game at Kinnick, the blackout, new jerseys, it’s going to be a good show.”

Beneath the massive spectacle is an important game for the Hawkeyes as they look to advance to 10-0 for the first time in school history. The team is also trying to maintain its high standing with the College Football Playoff committee as the Big Ten regular season winds down.

For the players in the midst of the excitement, the challenge is absorbing the hype while maintaining the appropriate level of focus.

“It just puts it all into perspective, you walk out on that field and you’re playing for something a lot bigger than just yourselves,” tight end Henry Krieger Coble said. “There’s a lot you’re playing for, and it definitely motivates you.”

After finishing 8-4 in 2014, the Golden Gophers are 4-5 and just 1-4 in the Big Ten. The team has faced a brutal stretch recently, losing to No. 14 Michigan and No. 3 Ohio State in consecutive weeks leading up to Saturday’s game.

Minnesota also has a new coach, signing Tracy Claeys to a three-year contract after the resignation of Jerry Kill. It’s been a crazy few weeks for the Gophers, and on Saturday night, they’ll be in as hostile of an environment as any in the country.

In terms of what the Hawks are preparing for on the field, it starts with dual-threat quarterback Mitch Leidner and a group that likes to get physical.

“Offensively, they’ve got a veteran quarterback who’s a really good football player,” head coach Kirk Ferentz said. “They’re a big, physical group up front like they traditionally are. Good backs, good receivers, so that’s going to be a big challenge for our team.”

Defensively the Gophers play the pass better than the run, which may be good news for an Iowa offense that relies heavily on its ground game.

That said, the Hawks aren’t taking this team lightly, especially with the memory of last season’s 51-14 debacle in Minneapolis still in the back of their mind.

“Last year left a bad taste in our mouth,” tackle Boone Myers said. “You know everyone wants to win trophy games, so we’re definitely excited.”

The Gophers haven’t won in Iowa City since 1999, and they come into Saturday’s game as 11.5-point underdogs.

But Kirk Ferentz and Company have played down hype all season long and kept their focus on the game. This might be their biggest challenge in that department yet.

“We’ll have a great environment Saturday night,” Ferentz said. “There’s no doubt about that. But that being said, the fans can’t play the game, just like when we’re on the road, the opposing fans don’t decide the game.”

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