Minnesota vs Iowa State 2009 Insight Bowl Picks, Predictions & Odds: The Minnesota Golden Gophers will face the Big 12's Iowa State Cyclones this evening at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona. The two teams are this year's participants in the Insight Bowl, which is scheduled to kickoff at 6:00pm ET on the NFL Network. 2009 Insight Bowl Picks, Predictions & Odds at online bookmaker Bodog.com have the Gophers listed as a -3 against the spread favorite.
The Golden Gophers certainly did not overpower anyone this year, but given their schedule, the team's 6-6 finish and 3-5 conference record were commendable enough. However, Minnesota, which placed eighth in the 11 team Big Ten Conference, won just two of its last six games. The Gophers beat Michigan State 42-34 and non-conference foe South Dakota State 16-13 amidst losses to Penn State, Ohio State, Illinois, and Iowa.
Minnesota played in the Insight Bowl last year, falling 21-42 to the Kansas Jayhawks. The Gophers also made the trip to Tempe in 2006 in which they lost to the Texas Tech Red Raiders 41-44 in overtime.
Iowa State, like Minnesota, did little overwhelming this season; however, for a program that had just nine wins over the three previous seasons and five wins over the last two, the Cyclones 6-6 record might as well have been 10-2. First year Head Coach Paul Rhoads got his team headed in the right direction quickly as it won three of its first four games. The Cyclones slid some, as expected, in conference play, going 3-5 against Big 12 opposition to finish fourth in the North Division.
Iowa State last played in a postseason contest in 2005, losing the Houston Bowl 24-27 as a +3 dog to TCU. The Cyclones, which are 2-7 all-time in bowl games, scored a 37-29 victory against Pitt in the 2000 Insight Bowl.
2009 Inisight Bowl Betting Trend: Iowa State is 0-10 straight up and 3-7 against the spread in its last 10 games as an underdog with a total between 47.5 and 51.
Bodog.com Minnesota vs Iowa State 2009 Insight Bowl Picks, Predictions & Odds:
Minnesota Golden Gophers -3 (+110), Over 48 (-115)
Iowa State Cyclones +3 (-130), Under 48 (-105)
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