Minnesota and Wisconsin are getting ready to play for the 132nd time this Saturday. With that I thought it’d be a good time to take a look at the history of the rivalry and look at how the Paul Bunyan’s axe came to be as well as what happened to that slab of bacon? I’ll also briefly talk about this year’s matchup and what to expect from the game on Saturday.
How It All Started
The rivalry between the two teams’ dates back to 1890 when they first played each other. It was Wisconsin’s fourth game and the Gophers routed them 63-0, starting one of the greatest rivalries in college football. Trophies for the series didn’t begin being awarded until 1930, starting with the infamous Slab of Bacon. The trophy was created by R.B. Fouch from Minnesota. The front side of the trophy is reversible. being able to display “M” for Minnesota or “W” for Wisconsin (genius really). On the back it records the scores from the game.
After a little over a decade of being awarded, the Slab of Bacon trophy mysteriously went missing in 1943. It was supposed to be given to Minnesota, but they never got it. It was found over 50 years later in 1994 in a storage room at the University of Wisconsin. Even with it being missing since 1943 it had scores from the games being played written on it up to 1970.
From Bacon To An Axe
With the mysterious disappearance of the Slab of Bacon in 1943, the Minneosota-Wisconsin rivalry went without a trophy for five years. In 1948, Paul Bunyan’s axe replaced the missing slab of bacon as the new trophy of the rivalry. The National W Club at the University of Wisconsin created it so the teams could still play for something after the bacon went missing in 43. The original axe was retired in 2000, due to running out of room on the handle to write the scores of the games on. Thus, was born the new six-foot version of Paul Bunyan’s axe.
Gophers Control The Rivalry Up To The Early 70’s
The Gophers kicked off the battle between these two in about as dominant of fashion as you could beating Wisconsin 63-0. The Gophers would win the first four before the Badgers got their first win in 1894. The Gophers’ longest win streak came during this stretch winning nine in a row from 1933-1941. During this 80-year period they went 49-30-8. Wisconsin’s longest win streak came from 1896-1899 where they won four in a row. During this period the Gophers saw win streaks of nine (1), four (4), three (3), and two (3).
Badger Dominance From The Late 70’s to Present
After not doing great for the first half of the rivalry, the Badgers flipped the script and began to dominate the series. During this stretch, Wisconsin went 32-12. The longest win streak during this and in the series altogether was from 2004-to-2017 with the Badgers winning 14 straight games. They’ve also seen win streaks of six (2) and two (2). Their largest margin of victory of the series came in 1983 were the Badgers won 56-17.
Stats And Other Fun Information and Moments
There’s a lot to talk about when you’re the most played rivalry in college football. First, let’s talk about tie games. After the two played in 1956 there was never a tie again in the series. The Gophers and Badgers have also had two different times where they tied in back-to-back years or more. The first was from 1923-1925 where they tied three straight years and then again from 1952-1953, they tied back-to-back again.
This rivalry has been played every year since 1890 except for one time in 1906. So, why didn’t these two play in 1906? Well, the game was canceled due to President Theodore Roosevelt’s suspension of college football games due to safety concerns for the players due injury concerns. Since then, they have played every year, making this the most played and longest uninterrupted rivalry in college football. The games have also always been played in either Minneapolis or Madison, no other city has hosted a Gopher-Badger football game.
You know what makes rivalries great? When you troll your rival when you win by stealing one of their traditions.
If you’re a Gopher fan you love it, a great moment for a great win to keep your rival out of the Big 10 championship game. Badger fans hope to exact revenge for this move, but for now it is one of the better moments by fans in the series. The all-time record in the series is a 62-61-8 lead by Wisconsin. The Gophers own the largest margin of victory in 1980 of 63-0.
A Look At This Year’s Matchup
This year’s matchup doesn’t hold any significance in terms of winning the Big 10 west. The Gophers (7-4) go to Madison to take on the Badgers (6-5). It should be an interesting game with both teams being somewhat inconsistent in their play. The biggest storyline is that Minnesota running back Mohamed Ibrahim is 127 yards shy of breaking the all-time Minnesota rushing record. He has a chance to do it against their biggest rival. Wisconsin is also looking to win back Paul Bunyan’s axe after losing it last year in a 23-13 loss to the Gophers in Minneapolis. The Gophers look to keep it and begin to get back at Wisconsin who held it for 14 years.
