Minnesota–Wisconsin football rivalry
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| First meeting | November 15, 1890 Minnesota 63, Wisconsin 0 |
|---|---|
| Latest meeting | November 26, 2016 Wisconsin 31, Minnesota 17 |
| Next meeting | November 25, 2017 |
| Trophy | Paul Bunyan's Axe (current) Slab of Bacon (former) |
| Statistics | |
| Meetings total | 126 |
| All-time series | Series tied, 59–59–8 (.500) |
| Largest victory | Minnesota, 63–0 (1890) |
| Longest win streak | Wisconsin, 13 (2004–present) |
| Current win streak | Wisconsin, 13 (2004–present) |
The Minnesota–Wisconsin football rivalry is an American college football rivalry between the Minnesota Golden Gophers and Wisconsin Badgers. It is the most-played rivalry in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, with 126 meetings between the two teams. The winner of the game receives Paul Bunyan's Axe, a tradition that started in 1948 after the first trophy, the Slab of Bacon, disappeared after the 1943 game when the Badgers were meant to turn it over to the Golden Gophers. Minnesota and Wisconsin first played in 1890 and have met every year since, except for 1906. The series is tied 59–59–8. Minnesota had led the overall series since 1902, by as many as 20 games, and Wisconsin has never led it.
The rivalry was first played in 1890 on Minnesota's campus, in Minneapolis, resulting in a 63–0 Minnesota victory. Theron Lyman led Wisconsin to its first win over Minnesota in 1894. The game became a conference rivalry with the creation of the Western Conference (later the Big Ten Conference) in 1896. In 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt suspended college football rivalry games for safety concerns, due to player injuries and fatalities on the field. It is, to date, the only time that the two teams have not played each other.
In the 2014 matchup the Badgers and Golden Gophers wore purple stickers on their helmets during the game to raise awareness for epilepsy. The 2014 game decided the Big Ten West champion; Wisconsin defeated Minnesota 34–24 to go to the 2014 Big Ten Football Championship Game against Ohio State. The last time the rivalry determined a Big Ten Conference champion was in 1962 when #3 Wisconsin defeated #5 Minnesota for a berth to the 1963 Rose Bowl.
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