If the Gophers win their final two games, they will be 6-6 and will go to a bowl game for a fourth straight season. This is straightforward.
But if the Gophers split home games against Illinois on Saturday and Wisconsin on Nov. 28 and finish 5-7, they still might be invited despite not being officially bowl eligible.
This is where it gets convoluted.
With 80 teams needed to fill a record-high 40 bowl games, there could be a shortage of eligible teams. The NCAA has contingency plans, but Minnesota and Illinois will try to assist the governing body by further sorting it out on the field Saturday at TCF Bank Stadium.