Minnesota Golden Gophers football statistical leaders
The Minnesota Golden Gophers football statistical leaders are individual statistical leaders of the Minnesota Golden Gophers football program in various categories,[1] including passing, rushing, receiving, total offense, defensive stats, and kicking. Within those areas, the lists identify single-game, single-season, and career leaders. The Golden Gophers represent the University of Minnesota in the NCAA's Big Ten Conference.
Although Minnesota began competing in intercollegiate football in 1882,[1] the school's official record book considers the "modern era" to have begun in 1945. Records from before this year are often incomplete and inconsistent, and they are sometimes not included in these lists.
These lists are dominated by more recent players for several reasons:
Since 1945, seasons have increased from 10 games to 11 and then 12 games in length.
The NCAA didn't allow freshmen to play varsity football until 1972 (with the exception of the World War II years), allowing players to have four-year careers.
Bowl games only began counting toward single-season and career statistics in 2002.[2] The Gophers have played in 12 bowl games since then, giving recent players an extra game to accumulate statistics.
These lists are updated through Week 1 of the 2021 season.
^"Penn State vs. Minnesota Box Score". ESPN.com. November 9, 2019. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
^"Two long TD passes get Gophers going". ESPN.com. 2003-10-04.
^"Paulus loses Syracuse debut after tossing interception in OT". ESPN.com. 2009-09-05.
^"Payne hauls in 4 TDs; Temple loses 62–0 for second straight week". ESPN.com. 2006-09-16.
^"Official 2007 NCAA Division I Football Record Book" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association. August 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-12-01. Retrieved 2008-01-03.
^"Gilreath, Brown give Wisconsin boost over Minnesota". ESPN.com. 2009-11-17.
^"Northwestern upsets Minnesota with late pick for touchdown". ESPN.com. 2008-11-01.