Register for the Nov. 1 Buttonhook Social

The Goal Line Club, which is the official booster club of Minnesota Golden Gopher Football, will be hosting a Buttonhook Social from 5:30-7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 1, in the Indoor Club Room at TCF Bank Stadium.

The two-hour social event will be highlighted by a visit and speech from Coach Kill, who will preview the Michigan game and share insight about the current state of the team. Former Gophers are also scheduled to attend the emceed event, which will also feature heavy appetizers and a cash bar.

Those wishing to attend can register here. The cost for attending is free for Goal Line Club Gold members and $20 for Maroon members. The fee for non-members to attend is $25.

Attendees may enter TCF Bank Stadium through the Benton County doors. Parking is available next to TCF Bank Stadium in the Maroon Lot or in the Gopher Lot at regular rates.

Names of registered attendees will be placed on a guest list when you register online. Tickets will not be distributed for the event.

Gophers move forward with freshman (AP)

Kill previews Purdue game (GopherSports)

Five things you need to know about Purdue at Minnesota (GopherSports)

Rallis among 60 Gophers who will be shaving their heads (Star Tribune)

Donate to support Gopher football as players shave heads for charity (St. Baldrick's)

Hair today, gone tomorrow (Minnesota Daily)

Nelson's home debut adds spice to Saturday's contest (Pioneer Press)

U football did not appeal to Nelson until Kill was hired (Pioneer Press)


Bowl is still the goal (Star Tribune)

Nelson provides hope this year and beyond (FBT)

Gophers move forward with Nelson at QB, Gray at WR (ESPN.com)

Image No. 4 features Paul Giel after a long run (FoxNews)

Coach Kill met with the media today to preview this weekend's game against Purdue. You can read a few of the highlights from his press conference below. You can also read a transcript of his entire press conference here.

On Purdue...
"Coach said at the beginning of the year this is going to be a very, very good football team, his best football team. I don't think he's telling anybody not the truth, that's for sure.
   
I think everybody that watched the game at Ohio State, you just kind of go, I mean, they had that game, toe to toe to Notre Dame. They're a very good football team.

"I think up front, their front four is tremendous. Their two defensive tackles are guys that are going to be drafted. I think they're very, very good up front in the defensive line. They're very athletic in the secondary. They're very skillful. We found that out a year ago. We played them two years ago at Northern Illinois. All those kids were young then, and now they've all grown up.

We're both in similar situations. We both need a win."

On if Philip Nelson will continue to play quarterback...
"We wouldn't pull a redshirt off a youngster if we weren't going to play him."

On the process of pulling the redshirt off Nelson...
"You don't want to have to be with the situation (like we had with) Max coming out of the game at Northwestern (with an injury), and you don't want to have to play KJ Maye for five games. That's not fair to the senior kids that want to win right now and try to get the bowl game, all those things." 

On the play of Nelson last Saturday...
"He got himself out of some very difficult plays on Saturday and made some plays with his feet and his arm. I think, again, we're going to continue to move our program forward. I think him having the opportunity to play will help us be a better football team a year from now."

On his defense against the Wisconsin running game...
"I went back and watched film, no matter what anybody wants to say about the University of Wisconsin, Montee Ball is the real deal. Third down and long, third down and 11, it wasn't anything but Montee Ball knocked three people back and we didn't tackle him.

"Sometimes it wasn't the perfect execution. It was Montee Ball and the other young man, they're just pretty good football players, they really are. They made some cuts and some creases that make you look pretty bad, they really did. So I got to give them some credit, too."

On the state of his team...
"I think we've tried to educate our kids as much as we can, where we're at, what we need to do. It's just like anything else. When things don't go perfect, those kind of things, we're 4-3 right now, we have a huge game against Purdue, we still have some goals that we can reach.
   
"We got some seniors that have been tremendous through this process that have been through a tremendous amount of coaching change, different philosophies, different things. I'm proud of the way they've handled themselves.

"Our goal is to try to get them to a bowl game. That's what we need to do. Our young people know that."

On Minnesota's running game...
"We certainly want to run the ball. My background in coaching is I like running the ball. But right now there's some things that physically we're still struggling with a little bit.  Doesn't mean we can't, but we got to take a look at how."
 
On redshirting other players...
"I think we feel good about where we're at. The kids, we're redshirting over 20 players. This is our first true recruiting class. I think we're redshirting over 20 players and we're playing about eight or nine freshmen and they're all playing quite a bit in different roles."

On injuries...
"The biggest thing that kills you in football is that you have to be able to stay healthy to be successful.  It don't matter if it's in the NFL or college football.  With our deal, yeah, we came out 4 0, but we came out of that thing beat up, then we went right into the Big Ten and have struggled since."

Heads will be shaved, money will be raised. You can donate now! (GopherSports)

Nelson expected to start from here on out (Minnesota Daily)

Kill: "There are some good things going on here." (Star Tribune)

The future is now (Pioneer Press)

Kill made the right move in removing Nelson's redshirt (Star Tribune)

Gray back to wide receiver and he is fine with it (Pioneer Press)

Sandell breaking down the game film from Saturday (1500 ESPN)

Jerry Kill responds to an emailer who called him a freak because he has epilepsy (Yahoo!)

Kill: "Do we want to do this the whole time we're here? No." (Star Tribune)

Five thoughts on tomorrow's game (FSN)

Rivalry games stick with you (Star Tribune)

Gophers need to grind to win the Axe (ESPN.com)

The Gophers play at Wisconsin tomorrow in the battle for Paul Bunyan's Axe. We chatted with Mike Fiammetta of Bucky's5thQuarter.com about the Badgers. You can follow Mike on Twitter @mikefiammetta.

GopherSports: Mike, thanks for taking the time to talk with us. Can you give us a brief scouting report on the Badgers?

Mike Fiammetta: After a close Week 1 win over Northern Illinois and a loss at Oregon State the following Saturday, Wisconsin faced much more early-season adversity than it likely could've expected. But with improved play from quarterback Joel Stave, the apparent revival of running back Montee Ball and the coalescing of the offensive line, the Badgers' offense seems to be rounding into shape.

On the other side of the ball, the Badgers rank fifth in the Big Ten in both scoring defense and total defense, and they are third in the league in rushing defense. They don't force a whole bunch of turnovers (minus-3 turnover margin is 9th in the conference), but as always, they are a "bend-but-don't break" unit that has been solid.

GS: You mentioned the early struggles at the beginning of the year, but Wisconsin seems to be rolling now. What was the turning point for them?

MF: If anything, the turning point might've been the loss at Nebraska. Wisconsin led 27-10 in the third quarter before collapsing in the rest of the second half, amounting to an understandably crushing loss in the conference opener. Since then, the Badgers have won two games in resounding fashion, are getting healthier by the week and do indeed appear to be rolling pretty well right now.

GS: Everyone knows about Montee Ball, but tell us about an under-the-radar player that Gopher fans should keep an eye on Saturday.

MF: Stave, a redshirt freshman, is still facing some growing pains. But should the passing game get going (I see the Gophers do have the Big Ten's second-ranked pass defense), wide receiver Jared Abbrederis has emerged as perhaps the best player on this team. Abbrederis missed the Week 3 game against Utah State after suffering a concussion early in the Oregon State game the week before, but he is as legitimate a big-play threat as you can have. His 18.0 yards per reception are fourth in the conference while he has also scored five touchdowns, tied for third.

GS: Wisconsin does have two defeats this year. What is the key to beating the Badgers this year?

MF: The key to beating the Badgers this year has been limiting their production on the ground while taking advantage of a few costly miscues. Again, the defense has been fairly solid, but the offense has been prone to periods of turnovers and an inability to move the ball.

GS: Want to give us a prediction?

MF: Since these two teams look to be heading in different directions, I see Wisconsin taking this one easily, 41-17.

Minnesota head football coach Jerry Kill discussed his health and upcoming schedule changes during his weekly radio show on KFAN today. You can listen to the entire show here.

Kill, who is a cancer survivor, said he has epileptic seizures and has had seizures for more than 10 years. He addresses his health condition head-on in the following audio clips.

There has also been a lot of talk recently about Minnesota's decision to cancel an upcoming home-and-home series against North Carolina. Kill discussed his decision and said right now he is trying to build a program at Minnesota. When the Gophers are on stable footing, Kill said his scheduling philosophy will change.

Kill's record speaks for itself. While at Southern Illinois, he beat Indiana on the road. While at Northern Illinois he beat Purdue and the Gophers on the road. He has won everywhere he has been and has successfully turned programs around before. His plan to build a program has been tested and proven to work. 

Buy Tickets Now

Minnesota has three home Big Ten games remaining in the 2012 schedule. The Gophers welcome Purdue to TCF Bank Stadium on Oct. 27. They then play Michigan on Nov. 3 before ending the regular season at home against Michigan State on Nov. 24.

There are great seats available at affordable prices for all three games. Gopher fans can purchase tickets to the Purdue and Michigan State games for as little as $20, while tickets for the Michigan game are available for $30. Fans can order tickets online at MyGopherSports.com. They can also purchase them over the phone at 612-624-8080 (toll free 1-800-U-GOPHER) or in person at the Mariucci Arena box office.

Minnesota is 33-32-3 all-time against Purdue. The Gophers have lost two straight to the Boilermakers, but both of those games were on the road. The last time Purdue visited TCF Bank Stadium ended in a 35-20 win for the Gophers in 2009.

Michigan makes its first trip to Minnesota's new on-campus stadium this season when the teams battle for the Little Brown Jug. The Wolverines have won four straight in the series, as the Gophers last had possession of the jug after a 23-20 road win in 2005. The last time Minnesota beat Michigan at home was a 16-0 win in 1977.

The Gophers close the regular season with a game against Michigan State. Like Purdue, the Spartans have beaten the Gophers two straight times, but those games were also on the road. Michigan State's only appearance at TCF Bank Stadium was a 42-34 win for the Gophers in 2009.

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'Sota Social planned for Friday in Madison (Gophers)

A look at the Gophers (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Williams, Plsek earned playing time as true freshman (Star Tribune)

Williams getting a chance (1500 ESPN)

Putting the season in perspective (Daily Gopher)

Gray = Gifted Athlete (Pioneer Press, Pioneer Press and Star Tribune)

Wisconsin doesn't want to let go of the Axe (Madison.com)

Run defense will be key for the U (Minnesota Daily)

Great prices on tickets to upcoming Big Ten home games (Gophers)

A loot at Minnesota schedule changes (Daily Gopher)

Follow Golden Gopher Football:

Follow @GopherFootball

The Gophers are headed to Madison, Wis., this weekend for a game against the rival Badgers. If you are planning on making the trip then be sure to stop by the 'Sota Social on Friday night.

The event, which is free to attend, is from 8-10 p.m. in the Superior room at the Madison Marriott West (1313 John Q Hammons Drive Middleton, Wisconsin 53562).

In addition to socializing with fellow Gopher fans there will be light appetizers, music, prize drawings and a cash bar. There will also be special guest speakers and Goldy and the spirit squad will also make an appearance.  

There is no need to RSVP for this event.