By The Associated Press undefined
No. 9 Auburn (9-3, SEC) vs. No. 16 Minnesota (10-2, Big Ten), Jan. 1, 1 p.m.
LOCATION: Tampa
TOP PLAYERS
Auburn: QB Bo Nix, 2,366 yards passing, 15 TDs.
Minnesota: WR Rashod Bateman, 1,170 yards receiving, 11 TDs.
NOTABLE
Auburn: The Tigers knocked rival Alabama out of the playoff with a 48-45 win in the Iron Bowl. Auburn’s only losses came to ranked opponents; Florida, Georgia and LSU.
Minnesota: The Gophers started 9-0 before losing to Iowa on the road, and Wisconsin throttled them 38-10 to steal the Big Ten West title on the last day of the regular season.
BOWL HISTORY
Auburn: This will be the Tigers’ 44th bowl trip. They had dropped three straight before pummeling Purdue 63-14 in last year’s Music City Bowl.
Minnesota: The Gophers are 8-12 in bowl games. But they’ve won three of them since 2015.
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