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It has been a tumultuous few weeks for the Gophers, but they have just landed their highest-ranked commitment of the 2024 recruiting cycle. North Dakota’s No. 1 ranked player Riley Sunram pledged to the Maroon & Gold Tuesday afternoon. Listed at 6-foot-4, 265 pounds, Sunram stars on both the offensive and defensive lines for Kindred High School. He held notable top offers from Miami (FL), Nebraska and Kansas State before settling on Minnesota.
COMMITTED!! 〽️ 🛶 #RTB #SkiUMah #GoGophers #DOJO pic.twitter.com/Vqf2KDnBA7
— Riley Sunram (@sunram_riley) April 12, 2023
Who is Riley Sunram?:
Riley Sunram is a talented three-sport athlete out of Kindred, North Dakota. Kindred is a small town near Fargo with a population of fewer than 1,000 people. While he’s not dominating the gridiron, he finished second at the North Dakota State Track & Field competition with a 54’4″ in the shot put as a sophomore, he qualified for state in the discus and posted 151’4″. He played both sides of the ball as a junior for Kindred High School at offensive and defensive tackle. The Gophers were one of his first offers in July, top schools like Kansas, Duke, Iowa State, Nebraska, Missouri, Kansas State and Miami (FL) all came flowing in throughout the fall/winter. After visiting Dinkytown in January and April, he eventually settled on the Maroon & Gold.
- Scouting Report:
Listed at 6-foot-4, 265 pounds Sunram is an incredibly versatile player. Having experience playing on both sides of the ball, he could legitimately do either at the next level. He would likely play on the interior of either the offensive or defensive line, but it’s wherever the Gophers want him. He has tremendous strength and skill for someone his size and could contribute fairly early in his Gophers career.
**High School Football Hudl Highlights:
Instant Reaction:
Riley Sunram is the type of player that can be a building block for the Gophers’ 2024 recruiting class. 247sports ranks him as the No. 481 player in the country, which puts him nearly the four-star prospect range. He now sits as the highest-ranked player in the Gophers class and it’s rightfully so. He currently has “@GopherFootball DL” in his Twitter bio, so it would be fair to assume that he will play on the defensive side of the ball, but that could certainly change. Overall, this is a player Minnesota football fans should be excited about. He clearly wants to play here and has serious long-term potential to be a serious contributor for this program.
What is next?:
After top QB recruit Aaron Philo de-committed earlier this week, the Gophers still have eight commitments for the 2024 class. 247sports ranks the group as 18th-best in the country, but we all know that is relatively meaningless at this part of the process. With that being said, there are a lot of fun players currently committed. Jide Abasiri and Riley Sunram are both very talented linemen that have tremendous upside. Offensive weapons, Corey Smith, Dallas Sims and Jaydon Wright all have fun potential. This is a pretty good start to a class that looks to fit somewhere in the average of an average Fleck-constructed group.
Full 2024 class:
- LB Mason Carrier
- LB Brady Pretzlaff
- RB Jaydon Wright
- ATH Simon Seidl
- WR Corey Smith
- WR Dallas Sims
- DL Jide Abasiri
- OL/DL Riley Sunram