Minnesota vs. California Picks and Prediction for Saturday, September 13, 2025
Minnesota Golden Gophers (2-0) vs. California Golden Bears (2-0)
The Minnesota Golden Gophers head to California Memorial Stadium in Berkeley, CA, on Saturday night to face off against the California Golden Bears in a non-conference showdown with the kick-off at 10:30 PM ET, and we’ve got the Minnesota vs. California prediction along with the latest odds update.
Minnesota meets California for the first time since 2009, when the Golden Bears beat the Golden Gophers 35-21 as 13.5-point road favorites. California is a slight 1.5-point home underdog this time around, while the total sits at 42.5 points.
Read more about this Minnesota vs. Cal prediction, one of our NCAAF picks for Week 3 of the 2025 college football season.
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Minnesota had an easy job in Week 2
The Minnesota Golden Gophers opened the season with a 23-10 home victory over the Buffalo Bulls. The Golden Gophers controlled the flow of the game, outgaining the Bulls 443-151 in total yards, but they ultimately failed to cover a 16.5-point spread.
Last week, the Gophers dismantled the FCS Northwestern State Demons 66-0, covering a 42.5-point spread at home with ease. Minnesota gained 484 total yards and gave up just 42 in return. The Gophers had six third-down attempts, which tells you how dominant their offense was. The game ended with 6:15 left in the fourth quarter due to severe weather.
“We knew it was about us this afternoon. We knew we had to start fast, accelerate in the middle, and finish strong. Our players accomplished that,” Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck said.
Redshirt freshman QB Drake Lindsey completed just 19 of his 35 passing attempts in Week 1, throwing for 290 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. He went 8-of-9 for 139 yards and a touchdown in Week 2. Lindsey scored once on his own against Northwestern State, while sophomore QB Max Shikenjanski threw for 80 yards and a touchdown while rushing twice for zero yards and a TD.
The Golden Gophers went 8-5 overall and 5-4 in the Big Ten last season. They beat Virginia Tech 24-10 in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl. Minnesota ranked 79th in the country in scoring offense (26.2 points per game) and ninth in scoring defense (16.9).
California is coming off a comfortable win, too
The California Golden Bears started their 2025 campaign with a 34-15 road victory against the Oregon State Beavers. The Bears won the first quarter 14-0 and never looked back, covering a 2.5-point spread with ease. California outgained Oregon State 356-313 in total yards and won the turnover battle 2-0.
Last week, the Bears had an easy job at home. They beat the FCS Texas Southern Tigers 35-3, but couldn’t cover a massive 44.5-point spread. The Bears outgained the Tigers 467-192 in total yards. However, they lost the turnover battle 2-1 and committed seven penalties for 81 yards.
“If you keep the other team from scoring a touchdown, that’s really good,” California coach Justin Wilcox said. “However, there were just a lot of things we’re going to need to improve on. We need to be competing against what we’re capable of, so there’s a lot of areas we can improve on that are on defense.”
True freshman QB Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele impressed on his debut, throwing for 234 yards and three touchdowns in a huge win over Oregon State. Against Texas Southern, Sagapolutele went 27-of-38 for 267 yards and an interception while rushing four times for seven yards and a touchdown.
Last year, the Bears went 6-7 overall and 2-6 in ACC play. California suffered a 24-13 defeat to UNLV in the LA Bowl. The Bears were scoring 25.1 points per game (90th in the country) while surrendering 22.3 points in return (36th).
Minnesota vs. California Pick
| # | Handicapper | Profit |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Earle Sports Bets | +2,298.00 |
| 2 |  Ross Benjamin | +1,840.00 |
| 3 |  Rob Vincilleti | +1,757.00 |
| 4 |  David Hess | +1,745.00 |
| 5 |  Dan Kaiser | +987.00 |
Spread Pick for Minnesota vs. California
- Minnesota -1.5 (5 units)
The bookies expect a tight battle, and I cannot argue about it. We’ll see a couple of inexperienced quarterbacks, and both teams are capable of playing tough defense.
Frankly, this game could easily go either way. I’m going with the Golden Gophers because I think that their defense is slightly better than the Golden Bears’. Also, Minnesota has a top-notch running back in Darius Taylor, who’s rushed for 161 yards over the last two weeks. Last season, Taylor had 1,336 yards from scrimmage and 12 touchdowns.
The Gophers are 9-2 ATS in their last 11 games overall and 4-1 ATS in their previous five outings on the road. On the other side, the Bears are 1-5 ATS in their last six contests overall and 1-4 ATS in their previous five showings at home.
Over/Under Pick for Minnesota vs. California
- Under 42.5 (5 units)
I’m not going to overthink the total. As I said, these two teams lean on a sturdy defense and have a freshman under center. Both offensive lines will be under huge pressure, and the teams will struggle to move the chains. Give me the under.
Minnesota has allowed just 27 points over its previous four games overall. Three of those four contests have gone under. California has given up 24 or fewer points in four of its last five games overall, and four of those five tilts have gone under the total.
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