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Minnesota will attempt to halt an early-season slide Friday night when the Minnesota Golden Gophers meet the Santa Clara Broncos in the third-place game of the Acrisure Invitational in Palm Desert, Calif. Santa Clara enters at 6-1 after suffering its first loss of the season, a narrow 71-70 defeat to Saint Louis. Minnesota, now 4-3, is searching for stability after back-to-back losses to San Francisco and Stanford. Santa Clara coach Herb Sendek emphasized positivity and perspective following Thursday’s one-point loss, noting that the weekend’s opportunities outweigh the frustration of a single-possession defeat. Sendek credited his team’s heart and competitiveness, reflecting a start that includes wins built on efficiency and late-game execution. Minnesota fought hard in its 72-68 loss to Stanford

The Penn State Nittany Lions and Rutgers Scarlet Knights enter Saturday’s regular season finale in Piscataway with identical goals and identical records. Both are 5-6 (2-6 Big Ten), both are one win away from bowl eligibility, and both are treating this like a must-win playoff game. Penn State comes in hot, winning back-to-back games convincingly against Michigan State and Nebraska. Kaytron Allen has carried the offense, putting together two straight monster performances, and breaking the school’s all-time rushing record in the process. Rutgers, meanwhile, is trying to end a difficult second half to the season, having dropped six of its last eight. Head coach Greg Schiano’s team was overwhelmed by Ohio State last week but will be hoping home-field energy

The Florida State Seminoles travel to Gainesville to face the Florida Gators in one of college football’s premier in-state rivalries. While the stakes may be different than last year’s 31-11 Florida blowout, both teams still have plenty to play for in this Week 14 showdown. Florida State (5-6, 3-5 ACC) needs one more win to become bowl eligible. They’ve dropped six of their last eight but still have enough offensive firepower to pull off a road win. Coach Mike Norvell was officially retained for another season, signaling program stability during a tough stretch. Florida (3-8, 2-6 SEC) is playing for pride after a disappointing season. A win would hand Florida State its seventh loss and cap a miserable campaign for

LSU steps outside Baton Rouge for the first time this season as the LSU Tigers face the Drake Bulldogs on Friday night in the Emerald Coast Classic at Raider Arena in Destin, Fla. The Tigers sit at 5-0 after another explosive offensive outing, while Drake enters at 4-2, gearing up for its first matchup of the season against a power-conference opponent. LSU’s 99-73 win over Omaha last Friday extended its streak of scoring 90-plus points in every game this season, a testament to the aggressive, early-attack offense Matt McMahon has emphasized. Max Mackinnon snapped the team’s brief shooting slump by hitting six threes, confirming McMahon’s belief that the Tigers are a better perimeter team than recent percentages suggested. Despite the