College Football Week 8 Sets 2 Top-25 Showdowns as No. 6 Indiana Visits Michigan

Q: Beyond the rivalry, how does the dark 1930s history of the Floyd of Rosedale trophy shape the intensity of the Iowa-Minnesota matchup?

The Iowa-Minnesota game carries extra intensity because Floyd of Rosedale was created not as a novelty, but as a peace offering after a racially charged and violent chapter in the rivalry. The trophy traces to the 1934 game, when Iowa star Ozzie Simmons, one of the few Black players in major college football at the time, was subjected to brutal treatment by Minnesota defenders. Reports from the period say Simmons was hit late, punched and kicked, and left unconscious multiple times, with no penalties called. That inflamed anger in Iowa ahead of the 1935 rematch and raised fears that the rivalry could spill beyond football. To lower tensions, Minnesota Gov. Floyd Olson and Iowa Gov. Clyde Herring made a wager involving a prize hog. After Minnesota won, the hog from Iowa’s Rosedale Farms was named “Floyd,” and the bronze pig trophy eventually became the rivalry prize. That history gives the matchup a deeper emotional weight than a typical trophy game. Players and fans are not just competing for a quirky bronze pig or border-state bragging rights; they are participating in a tradition born from an attempt to prevent violence and answer a past injustice. The result is a rivalry that feels both celebratory and sobering. So when Iowa and Minnesota meet, the intensity is shaped by more than standings or recent form. The game carries memory, grievance, regional pride and a reminder of college football’s uglier past.

3 articles · Updated · CBS Sports · Oct 24

Saturday’s Week 8 slate is led by No. 6 Indiana at Michigan at noon ET on Fox and No. 7 Ole Miss at No. 19 Texas at 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC.
Indiana heads to Ann Arbor after a damaging loss to Ohio State, with quarterback Josh Hoover coming off a shoulder scare, while Michigan turns to freshman Tommy Carr against one of the Big Ten’s top teams.
Texas enters under pressure to stop a two-game skid against Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss, with Arch Manning still starting but KJ Lacey getting more first-team practice reps.
Other highlighted games include No. 18 LSU at Auburn at noon, No. 15 Iowa at Minnesota at 3:30 p.m., and No. 14 Houston at No. 10 Utah at 10:15 p.m. in one of the week’s two top-25 matchups.
The late window also features NDSU at New Mexico at 10 p.m., a Mountain West game with conference-title and playoff implications for the winner.