2002 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team

The 2002 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represented the University of Minnesota as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 2002 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their sixth year under head coach Glen Mason, the Golden Gophers compiled an overall record of 8–5 with a mark of 3–5 in conference play, placing seventh in the Big Ten and outscored opponents 376 to 319. Minnesota was invited to the Music City Bowl, where the Golden Gophers defeated Arkansas. The team played home games at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis.

2002 Minnesota Golden Gophers football
Music City Bowl champion
Music City Bowl, W 29–14 vs. Arkansas
Conference	Big Ten Conference
Record	8–5 (3–5 Big Ten)
Head coach	Glen Mason (6th season)
Co-offensive coordinators	Mitch Browning (3rd season) Tony Petersen (3rd season)
Defensive coordinator	Moe Ankney (2nd season)
Captains	Asad Abdul-Khaliq Michael Lehan
Home stadium	Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome
Seasons ← 2001 2003 →

2002 Big Ten Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 1 Ohio State $#+		8	–	0					14	–	0
No. 8 Iowa %+		8	–	0					11	–	2
No. 9 Michigan		6	–	2					10	–	3
No. 16 Penn State		5	–	3					9	–	4
Purdue		4	–	4					7	–	6
Illinois		4	–	4					5	–	7
Minnesota		3	–	5					8	–	5
Wisconsin		2	–	6					8	–	6
Michigan State		2	–	6					4	–	8
Northwestern		1	–	7					3	–	9
Indiana		1	–	7					3	–	9
# – BCS National Champion $ – BCS representative as conference champion % – BCS at-large representative + – Conference co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

Redshirt freshman defensive end Brandon Hall was shot and killed on September 1, 2002 in downtown Minneapolis after a fight that involved teammates and other individuals. Hall's killer was convicted in his murder.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 31	6:00 pm	SW Texas State*		Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Minneapolis, MN		W 42–0	32,209
September 7	7:00 pm	at Louisiana–Lafayette*		Cajun Field Lafayette, LA	ESPN Plus	W 35–11	20,512
September 14	1:30 pm	Toledo*		Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Minneapolis, MN		W 31–21	36,640
September 21	1:30 pm	Buffalo*		Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Minneapolis, MN		W 42–17	34,294
September 28	5:00 pm	at Purdue		Ross–Ade Stadium West Lafayette, IN	ESPN2	L 15–28	56,839
October 3	7:00 pm	Illinois		Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Minneapolis, MN	ESPN2	W 31–10	32,663
October 10	7:00 pm	Northwestern		Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Minneapolis, MN		W 45–42	37,729
October 19	11:00 am	at Michigan State		Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI	ESPN Plus	W 28–7	74,232
November 2	2:30 pm	at No. 6 Ohio State	No. 23	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH	ABC	L 3–34	104,897
November 9	6:45 pm	No. 13 Michigan		Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Minneapolis, MN (Little Brown Jug)	ESPN	L 24–41	53,773
November 16	11:00 am	No. 6 Iowa		Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Minneapolis, MN (rivalry)	ESPN	L 21–45	65,184
November 23	11:00 am	at Wisconsin		Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI (rivalry)	ESPN	L 31–49	78,843
December 30	1:00 pm	vs. No. 25 Arkansas*		Adelphia Coliseum Nashville, TN (Music City Bowl)	ESPN	W 29–14	39,183
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

Roster

2002 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class QB 8 Asad Abdul-Khaliq Jr RB 21 Marion Barber III So G 68 Mark Setterstrom Fr TE 89 Matt Spaeth Fr FB 44 Thomas Tapeh Jr TE 82 Ben Utecht Jr	Defense Pos. # Name Class CB 39 Michael Lehan Sr DT 95 Anthony Montgomery Fr DT 51 Darrell Reid So SS 27 Eli Ward Jr LB 42 Eric Washington Fr LB 59 Ben West Jr DB 6 Quentin White Fr CB 35 Mike Wojciechowski So	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Glen Mason Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster

Team players in the NFL

Player	Position	Round	Pick	NFL club
Michael Lehan	Cornerback	5	152	Cleveland Browns