The Gophers made one of the biggest recruiting moves in recent memory when they managed to land four-star Illinois defensive end Jason Bargy. He chose the Gophers over offers from Iowa State, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan State, Notre Dame and Wisconsin. With all of those majors offers, it’s clear how talent evaluators viewed Bargy’s skill-set. He was one of the top players in Illinois – a state P.J. Fleck has recruited heavily since becoming the Gophers’ head coach last year. According to 24/7 Sports’ Kyle Goblirsch, Bargy is the highest-rated defensive end to commit to Minnesota during the internet era. The Fighting Illini wanted Bargy badly, losing a top-three in-state recruit they rolled out the red carpet for. It’s a major development for the Gophers to land a player with this type of ability and promise.
When you watch his film, it’s really no surprise many top programs were interested in Jason Bargy’s talent.
He possesses length and a growing frame to go along with unique athletic traits. On tape, you see a player with an explosive first step, excellent bend and a plethora of quick-twitch. When evaluators are searching for prototype pass rushers, they want a player who has the fast-acting muscle fibers and the flexibility to bend off the edge. Bargy has the lower body strength and hips to take an angle and bend. His skill-set features all of the above traits to go along with 6-foot-5 length and a frame which has room for growth. When he arrives to campus for the 2019 season, he will likely have checked many of the boxes physically. The Gophers don’t typically land a player with this type of unique skill-set, especially on the defensive line.
Bargy has improved physically, gaining 25 pounds since the early stages of his high school career. At just over 250 pounds, there’s room for him to gain more weight. Bargy could play as a five-technique defense end and possibly project as an “R” rusher in the 3-4 hybrid defense. It wouldn’t be surprising if he could move around in pressure sub-packages as well. In high school, he has experience standing up, inside and flexing all over the field because of his athletic gifts. When he develops more pass rushing moves to pair with his traits, the final product has the chance to be impressive. Right now, you see him winning off a swim move and pure speed. However, the real important attribute is how he’s using his hands. As you see in the clips below, he is able to shed and hand fight to free himself. He has enough speed to power right now to adequately cause disruptions. Bargy then uses his speed to chase quarterbacks all over the field.
Working on a breakdown of #Gophers commit Jason Bargy. This guy is an insane athlete. Fantastic first step, bend, and so much quick-twitch (also played RB). Uses his hands well to fight through blocks and closes on plays. So many unique traits and room to grow w/ pass rush moves. pic.twitter.com/oNKhowINTp
— Daniel House (@DanielHouseNFL) May 21, 2018
He also often sprints down the field to chase long running plays, catching up with running backs in the third level of the defense. The motor and pursuit skills are on another level with Bargy.
It is clear to see how much short-range quickness he has at his disposal. Bargy runs track in high school and recently took first place, finishing with a 11.44 in the 100-meter at 250 pounds. His athletic testing would be very impressive in a variety of key testing measures, including the, 40-yard dash, broad/vertical jumps and three-cone drills. Pair all of those athletic numbers with the wingspan, and you have an exciting prospect. If Bargy can develop at the correct trajectory, he certainly has the chance to be an NFL-caliber prospect by the end of his career.
Even more impressive is the fact Bargy played running back and rushed for more than 2,000 yards in his first three seasons. When you watch him explode through tight creases like in clip one, you see the straight line speed and acceleration he features. As you’ll see in the second clip be below, Bargy shows off his light feet and balance. He is very tough to bring down because you can’t simply throw your shoulder into him. Even a small hit isn’t enough to knock him off balance.
I’d love to see Bargy’s athletic testing numbers. His track numbers are really impressive. Watch him accelerate and get downhill as a RB in the first clip. Not every day you see a future DE with feet and balance like you see in the second run. Going to be fun to watch him grow. pic.twitter.com/pvtpsRaxi4
— Daniel House (@DanielHouseNFL) May 21, 2018
Those are two excellent traits to have as a pass rusher as well. He has the light feet to pair with the athleticism and developing power. When he can refine his pass rushing moves, Bargy will blend all of his strengths together and use the untapped potential. You can’t teach what he can provide athletically, which is every coach’s dream.
This is a major recruiting move by the Gophers, who managed to fend off numerous rivals and quality programs to land a very talented player. Not only that, but the coaching staff continues to stress the importance of adding talent on the defensive line. Bargy will team up with Di’von Harris, Chris Daniels and Keonte Schad to create a much-needed talent injection on the Gophers’ defensive line for 2019. This position was previously under recruited and it has impacted the ability to field a serviceable rotation up front.
The goal should always be to find edge rushers with this type of athletic profile and physical makeup. With the correct coaching, those are the type of blue-chip players the Gophers need to make a mark in the Big Ten.