Minnesota Survives New Mexico in Overtime: 5 Rate Bowl Takeaways

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There weren’t a lot of points in the 2025 Rate Bowl, but it turned into the best bowl of the early part of the season as Minnesota’s Jalen Smith made a diving catch in overtime in a 20-17 overtime win over New Mexico.

New Mexico made the Big Ten team work.

It was tough, entertaining, and terrific late and into overtime for such a low scoring game. Here are five takeaways along with what’s next for both teams going into next year.

Minnesota vs New Mexico: Five Takeaways From a Fun Rate Sports Bowl

Dec 26, 2025; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Minnesota Gophers wide receiver Jalen Smith (8) catches the game-winning touchdown pass from quarterback against New Mexico Lobos safety Austin Brawley (21) during overtime of the Rate Bowl at Chase Field.</rewrite© Mark J&period; Rebilas-Imagn Images

5. FINALLY, a good bowl game

The Rate Bowl and Hawaii’s late thriller over Cal in the Hawaii Bowl are the two good ones. The Celebration Bowl is there, too, but it’s not among the FBS fun.

After all the blowouts and all of the wasted time, we got a terrific bowl, even with the lack of scoring.

Everyone tries in bowl games, but sometimes, teams really want to take things to another level. New Mexico gave it everything, Minnesota had to earn every play, and it came down to a thriller of a touchdown catch for the Gophers to get the walk-off win.

After all the team opt-outs from the Big 12, we couldn’t have had a more entertaining Rate Bowl.

4. This was New Mexico this season

Dec 26, 2025; Phoenix, AZ, USA; New Mexico Lobos defensive end Keyshawn James-Newby (1) and defensive tackle Brian Booker (92) react as they walk off the field after losing in overtime to the Minnesota Gophers during the Rate Bowl at Chase Field. © Mark J&period; Rebilas-Imagn Images

It’s a shame that more people didn’t watch the Mountain West this season, because it was a blast.

New Mexico got hosed out of a spot in the Mountain West Championship by some dopey computer metric, but it was still a wildly successful first season under head coach Jason Eck, and this performance showcased what this team was about.

The defense held up against a Big Ten team with Big Ten talent, the running game was able to grind enough to control the clock for stretches, and the Lobos hung punch for punch all game long.

3. Minnesota won another bowl game

Minnesota was a guaranteed bowl loser for a long, long time.

It was 2-5 all-time in bowl games, and then Glen Mason turned things around with three straight wins starting with the 2002 Music City Bowl. And then the fun stopped.

The Gophers lost seven in a row, and then everything kicked in with a win in the 2015 Quick Lane. PJ Fleck took over in 2017, won a Quick Lane in 2018, and hasn’t lost a bowl in his tenure.

The Gophers have won nine straight bowls over the last 11 years, Fleck is 7-0 at the gig, and now it’s five in five years after this. He gets his team ready for these.

2. What’s next for New Mexico going into the offseason?

The Lobos aren’t leaving for the Pac-12, and they should be one of the stars of the reconfigured Mountain West.

The transfer portal will be coming for several players, but head coach Jason Eck is signed to a five-year deal, and most of his players should stay around.

The quarterback situation is terrific, and at the moment, there’s a real chance that at least nine offensive starters from the Rate Bowl will be back.

Several big schools would love Jason’s kid, linebacker Jaxton Eck, but he should be the leader of another fantastic defense. If New Mexico could make this big jump in one year, the reloading on D shouldn’t be an issue.

1. What’s next for Minnesota going into the offseason?

Dec 26, 2025; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Minnesota Gophers wide receiver Jalen Smith (8) celebrates with teammate Logan Loya (17) after catching the game-winning touchdown pass against the New Mexico Lobos during overtime of the Rate Bowl at Chase Field. © Mark J&period; Rebilas-Imagn Images

The franchise revolves around Drake Lindsey.

PJ Fleck and his staff spent this year reworking the offense around its big-time freshman passer, and the results were mixed. The Gophers couldn’t run the ball like normal, but Darius Taylor and the ground game rumbled when it had to against the Lobos.

This was a bit of a rebuilding year. The line is young, most of the skill parts are underclassmen, and the depth is in place for plenty of good position battles in spring and fall camps.

The defense should be interesting. Can the Gophers keep star safety Koi Perich? The portal should take away a few veterans, but overall, it should once again be one of the Big Ten’s better defenses.

The defensive depth is strong, and Fleck needs to come up with a few new guys to fill in the gaps, but no matter what, Minnesota should be in good shape as long as Lindsey and the offense are more consistent.

This story was originally published by College Football News on Dec 27, 2025, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add College Football News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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