Multiple Ranked Matchups For Gophers This Weekend—How To Watch

It’s another weekend in January which means its anther super busy for the Minnesota Golden Gophers. Nine different athletic teams along with the Gopher Cheer and Dance Squads are in action this weekend with several matchups against top 5 ranked opponents in multiple sports. It should be an exciting weekend of competetion—so here are some quick previews of all the scheduled events and how you can catch all of the action!

Friday January 16th:

Women’s Indoor Track—Graduate Classic @ Nebraska 1PM

The Gopher women’s indoor track and field team heads to Lincoln this weekend for the Graduate Classic hosted by the Nebraska Cornhuskers. The two-day competition will see Minnesota compete alongside Nebraska, Northern Colorado, Omaha, Creighton and more. 

Last weekend Minnesota opened competition by hosting the Minnesota open and allready setting some personal bests. The Gopher throwers continued to show their national dominance as redshirt junior Hadley Streit secured her first lifetime best in the weight throw since February of 2025 (Gopher Classic) to finish second on Saturday behind only teammate Anthonett Nabwe (22.82m | 74-10 1/2). Streit, a 2025 weight throw First Team All-American, moved up from No. 5 all-time at Minnesota to No. 4 with the performance and now is No. 3 in the NCAA this season. Freshman Zeal Kuku Kuku was named the co-Big Ten Freshman of the Week after she won the 2026 Minnesota Open 400m in a lifetime best of 54.95. Kuku’s 400m time stands as the fastest by a Big Ten freshman this season and places her No. 2 overall among freshman in the NCAA.

Action on Friday is set for a 1PM start with a free live stream HERE.

Cheer @ UCA Nationals 4:08 PM

The Gopher Cheer team has advanced to the UCA Small Coed Gameday Cheer finals! They are set to take the stage at 4;08 Central where they will be competing against six other schools for a National Championship! The Gophers are the reigning National Champions in the event and had the high score in the Semifinals! The event can be streamed on Varsity TV for a fee.

Dance @ UDA Nationals 4:54 PM

The Gopher dance team opens their time at the UDA nationals in the Jazz Divison with the prelims set for 4:54 PM central on Friday. The Gophers will look to get back on top in the Jazz Division where they have finished in second place to Ohio State the past two seasons. Barring an absolute catastrophe, Minnesota will advance to Saturday afternoon’s semifinals. The event can be streamed on Varsity TV for a fee.

#3 Women’s Hockey @ Bemidji State 7 PM B1G+

The Gopher women’s team hits the road this weekend for a series in Bemidji against the Bemidji State Beavers. Minnesota is ranked #3 in the nation and comes in after a home and home weep of #12 Minnesota State last weekend. The Gophers cruised to an 11-3 victory Friday in Mankato before battling for a 4-3 win Saturday night back at Ridder Arena where Abbey Murphy blew up the hockey world with her insane assist to Bella Fanale in the first period. Murphy was named WCHA Forward of the Week and Fanale earned Rookie of the Week honors following Minnesota’s sweep of Minnesota State. Murphy totaled seven points (4g, 3a), including her fourth hat trick of the season, while Fanale recorded five points (3g, 2a), highlighted by the game-winning goal Saturday. Minnesota is comfortably in third place in the WCHA standings behind the two teams they trail behind in the national rankings as well in Wisconsin and Ohio State.

The climb up the Gopher record boards for Murphy is on this weekend. With likely only four regular season games left in Murphy’s Gopher career she has 245 career points which ranks her 4th all-time in program history. She could easily move to #2 on that list this weekend as she needs only one point to tie Natalie Darwitz at #3 all-time and currently ranks #3 at 246 and three to tie Amanda Kessel at #2 with 248. Murphy currently ranks #2 in goals all-time with 131. She is only eight back of #1 and current Ohio State head coach Nadine Muzerall with 139—so while she won’t catch her this weekend if she keeps on her electric scoring pace she could put herself in position to take a run at that record next weekend.

The Beavers are in the cellar of the WCHA with an overall record of 5-14-3, and just a 2-13-1 record in WCHA play. Sophomore forward Morgan Smith leads BSU with 15 points this season. Junior forwards Hailey Armstrong (13 points) and Kate Johnson (12 points) follow closely, while redshirt freshman Isa Goettl has also reached double digits with 10 points. Sophomore goaltender Kaitlin Groess has served as the Beavers’ primary netminder, posting a 3.37 goals-against average and a .892 save percentage with one shutout. 

Minnesota leads the all-time series against Bemidji State, 101-9-7. The Gophers have won 29 consecutive games over the Beavers with Bemidji’s last win coming in December of 2017. It’s the longest losing streak in the series between the two programs.

Faceoff on Friday is set for 7 PM and will stream on B1G+.

Men’s Hockey vs #1 Michigan Wolverines 7PM Fox 9/ B1G+

The Minnesota Gophers men’s hockey team returns home for the first time in 55 days when they host the #1 team in the nation in Michigan in a weekend series at 3M Arena at Mariucci. Minnesota will look to try and figure some things out after getting swept at Penn State last weekend to open 2026. Despite the sweep, the Gophers still remain in 5th place in the Big Ten Standings ahead of Ohio State and Notre Dame.

The Gophers are looking for answers to their scoring woes. Minnesota only scored a pair of goals in being swept last weekend and are averaging just 2.86 goals per game ranking them 36th in the nation. Brodie Ziemer leads the Gophers with 20 points in 21 games. Coupled with their scoring woes, Minnesota has been atrocious defensively. The Gophers are giving up 3.38 goals per game ranking them 45th in the nation. Neither goalie in Nathan Airey or Luca DiPasquo has been amazing, but Luca has been better and will likely get the start Friday.

Goaltending will be a major question mark this weekend as the Wolverines will bring in an untested goalie for his first starts. Michigan’s former starter and Canada’s World Juniors goalie Jack Ivankovic was injured in the series finale against Notre Dame last Saturday and will miss significant time. Freshman Stephen Peck took over the net for his first ever collegiate action allowing three goals in 37 minutes and will likely make his first collegiate starts this weekend in Minneapolis. Can the Gophers test him?

The Wolverines have had no issues scoring this season leading the nation at 4.91 goals per game. The team has three of the country’s top eight overall scorers, led by T.J. Hughes’ 31 points, while Michael Hage and Will Horcoff have added 30 and 29 points, respectively. So Minnesota will need to find ways to score against the untested goalie, and keep the puck out of their own net. Losing a game 6-5 counts the same as 2-1.

Friday’s face-off is set for 7 PM and will air live on Fox 9 in Minnesota and will stream on B1G+.

#7 Wrestling vs #6 Nebraska 8 PM BTN

It will be a huge ranked duel between a pair of Big Ten powers at the Pav on Friday when the #7 ranked Gophers face off against #6 Nebraska. Despite a higher team ranking, the Gophers do not matchup well against Nebraska and will have the favored wrestler in just two or three of the ten weight classes. The likely matchup’s for the meet with the Gophers listed first are:

125 #9 Jore Volk (14-2 Overall, 7-2 Dual, 1-0 B1G) va Alan Koehler (10-9 Overall, 2-5 Dual, 1-0 B1G)
133Brandon Morvari (1-6, 0-3, 0-1) orChris Cannon (3-6, 2-4, 0-0) vs #9 Jacob Van Dee (11-1, 8-0, 1-0)
141 #10 Vance VomBaur (12-3, 5-3, 1-0) vs #3 Brock Hardy (12-3, 8-3, 1-0)
149 #25 Drew Roberts (5-3, 3-1, 1-0) orJager Eisch (9-8, 0-4, 0-0) vs #14 Chance Lamer (12-1, 2-1, 1-0)
157 #19 Charlie Millard (13-3, 6-3, 1-0) vs #5 Antrell Taylor (12-2, 8-2, 1-0)
165 #11 Andrew Sparks (12-2, 6-1, 0-0) orBlaine Brenner (8-3, 0-2, 0-1) vs #8 LJ Araujo (9-4, 5-4, 0-1)
174 #22 Ethan Riddle (11-4, 5-3, 1-0) orClayton Whiting (11-6, 0-1,) vs #6 Christopher Minto (12-2, 9-2, 1-0)
184 #3 Max McEnelly (10-1, 8-1, 1-0) vs #9 Silas Allred (11-3, 7-3, 1-0)
197 #24 Gavin Nelson (6-7, 1-6, 0-1) orGabe Nagel (4-4, 0-2, 0-0) vs #12 Camden McDanel (11-4, 8-3, 1-0)
285 #10 Koy Hopke (16-3, 5-2, 1-0) orBennett Tabor (10-6, 1-1, 0-0) vs #4 AJ Ferrari (6-1, 6-1, 1-0) or
Cade Ziola (11-3, 2-1, 0-0)

Minnesota holds the all-time series lead over Nebraska with a record of 52-28 in a series that dates back to the 1921-22 season. The 80 all-time dual matches are the third-most in Minnesota history. The only other schools that the Golden Gophers have faced more are Iowa (111) and Wisconsin (107). This will mark the eighth straight season that Minnesota and Nebraska have faced each other, every year since 2019. The Huskers have won three straight in the series and eight of the past nine dating to 2016. The Gophers are looking for their first win in the series since a 19-13 home win in 2022.

Based on the probable starters and the latest rankings from InterMat, there are three ranked matchups scheduled for Friday with the possibility of eight total taking place. Three of the ranked foes will be rematches of previous bouts.

At 141 pounds, No. 11 Vance VomBaur is set to face third-ranked Brock Hardy for the fifth time in his career. Hardy has won all four previous matchups, including twice last year, first by decision in the regular season, and then by fall in the finals of the Big Ten Championships.

The matchup at 149 could feature No. 25 Drew Roberts and No. 14 Chance Lamer. The pair have one prior meeting with Lamer, who was then at Cal Poly, beating Roberts by decision in the opening round of the 2024 NCAA Championships.

At 184, No. 3 Max McEnelly and No. 9 Silas Allred are scheduled to meet for the second time in their careers. Last year, McEnelly won by major decision in the regular season dual.

Action is set for a 8 PM start live on Big Ten Network.

Saturday January 17th:

Cheer and Dance @ UCA/ UDA Nationals:-All Day

It will be a busy day for the Gopher cheer and dance teams as all will be in action in the semifinals and finals on Saturday at Walt Disney World in Orlando. The two-time defending NCAA Champion Gopher Dance Team in the Pom division kicks off the action in the Pom Semifinals at 8:24 AM. Next up will be the Cheer Squad in the Small Coed IA Cheer semifinals at 12:54 PM. The Dance Team Jazz Semifinals kick off at 2PM and run through 5 PM before Goldy Gopher takes the stage at 4:43 PM looking for the first Mascot National Championship since 2018. Goldy did finish in first place in the taped entry portion of the competition and will be taking on Hook Em from Texas, The Nittany Lion from Penn State, Boomer from Oklahoma, Big Al from Alabama, Cincy Bear Cat, Bucky Badger, Brutus Buckeye, and their toughest competition Smokey from Tennessee and Aubie from Auburn.

Women’s Indoor Track—Graduate Classic @ Nebraska 10 AM

The second day of the Graduate Classic in Lincoln kicks off at 10 AM Saturday morning. A free live stream will again be available HERE.

Swimming and Diving vs St Thomas/ SDSU 11 AM B1G+

Both the Gophers men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams return home for a tri-meet against St. Thomas and South Dakota State on Saturday. The Gopher divers come in off of a win in action last weekend over divers from Florida Atlantic, North Texas and Wagner in Noca Raton, FL last weekend. Drew Bennet led the way for the men, putting together a 375.85 performance to take the men’s 1-meter. Bennett went on to win the men’s 3-meter as well, collecting a score of 368.80. Vivi Del Angel led the way for the women in today’s competition, picking up the first place finishes in both events with scores of 309.65 in the 1-meter and 339.85 in the 3-meter.

Action starts at 11 in the Jean K Freeman Natatorium pool and will stream on B1G+.

Men’s Basketball @ #13 Illinois 11 AM BTN

The Gopher basketball team heads to Champaign for an early Saturday tilt against a ranked Illinois squad. Minnesota is trying to bounce back after back to back close losses to USC and Wisconsin. A full preview of the game is HERE.

Tip is set for 11 AM and will air on Big Ten Network.

#3 Women’s Hockey @ Bemidji State 3:30 PM B1G+

Game two of the series between the Gophers and Beavers is set for a 3:30 puck drop streaming on B1G+.

#20 Gymnastics vs #5 Michigan 4PM B1G+

The Gopher gymnastics team will make it back to back home meets against top 10 opponents when #5 Michigan comes to town on Saturday. Minnesota opened up the home portion of their schedule last Saturday with an upset win over #10 Arkansas 196.775-196.700. The Gophers posted scores of 49.075 on vault, 49.025 on bars, 49.425 on beam and 49.250 on the floor. Arkansas outscored Minnesota on vault (49.250) and bars (49.100) but the ‘U’ had higher scores than the Gymbacks did on beam (49.175) and floor (49.175). Their overall score of 196.775 is the 10th best in the nation this season.

Despite the win, the Gophers average scores dropped them to a #20 nationally ranking overall headed into the weekend. Minnesota ranks #12 on beam, #17 on floor, #26 on vault and #29 on bars.

Michigan comes in an a perfect 3-0 this season. The Wolverines are the No. 1 beam team in the country. They also rank inside the top five on the uneven bars, coming in at No. 4 — while ranking 18th on floor and 19th on vault.

Action begins at 4 PM on Saturday and will stream on B1G+.

Men’s Hockey vs #1 Michigan Wolverines 6 PM Fox 9+/ B1G+

Game two between the Gophers and Wolverines on the ice is set for a 6 PM faceoff on Fox 9+ and B1g+.

Sunday January 18th:

Cheer and Dance @ UCA/ UDA Nationals:-All Day

It’s Dance Finals day on Sunday. The Gopher Dance team will compete in the Jazz Finals kicking off at 7 AM and continuing through 9:15. The Pom Finals kick off at 9:04 and will run through 12:07. The Small Coed IA Cheer Finals kick off at 3:15 PM running through 4:27. The Dance awards are handed out at 4 PM when we find out if the Gophers can keep their National Champion streak alive, with the Cheer awards handed out at 9PM.

Women’s Basketball @ Washington 5 PM BTN

The Gopher women’s basketball team heads to the Pacific Northwest for their first of two road games on Sunday in Seattle. Minnesota will take on the Washington Huskies at 5 Pm Sunday live on Big Ten Network.

On paper its a fairly even matchup. The Gophers enter Sunday’s tilt with a 12-5 overall record and a 3-3 record in Big Ten play. Washington is 13-4 overall and also 3-3 in conference play. The teams have mutual wins over Indiana and Northwestern while Washington upset #6 Michigan at home and the Gophers upset #21 USC at home. Minnesota’s losses have been to Michigan, #3 UCLA and #7 Maryland, while the Huskies have lost to USC, Michigan State, and Purdue.

Minnesota will be out for a bit of revenge after a pair of Washington wins over the Gophers down the stretch of last season helped to keep them out of the NCAA Tournament. Minnesota lost at home to the Huskies in the second to last regular season game 72-62 before falling in the opener of the Big Ten Tournament just 10 days later 79-65. The Gophers did a poor job of shutting down Washington star Elle Ladine who went for 26 and 21 over Minnesota in those two games. She returns this season for Washington and is heading up scoring 19 in the win at Indiana earlier this week. She is one of three Huskies averaging in double figures this season led by Sayvia Sellers at 18.1 ppg. All three top scorers for Washington are deadly from beyond the arc with Sellers being the worst shooter at 38%. The Huskies do not have a true offensive threat in the paint00so the Gophers will need to make sure they do not get sucked in and allow free shotting form the outside.

The status of sophomore guard Tori McKinney for this weekend is unknown after she missed the game against UCLA with concussion related symptoms. She suffered a concussion back in November, and it is unknown if this is a new one, or recurrence of symptoms from the previous one. Her defensive skills would be a huge loss for the game at Washington is she is not available.

Tip is set for 5 PM and the game will air live on Big Ten Network.