Tracy Claeys did not appear on the Sports Huddle until just before 11:00 a.m. Most of the questions were recruiting-related.
1) Sid’s first question - as it has been most weeks since the end of the regular season – “how’s recruiting going?”
Claeys was brief in his remarks. He said, “Things are working out . . . A little finishing up to do in the next couple weeks.” Additionally, he acknowledged that a couple players had decommitted, but he didn’t sound overly concerned; you can expect some players to decommit during the recruiting process, according to Claeys, especially when there’s a change in direction with changes in the staff, and you can expect “changes here and there.”
2) Sid asked how many recruits does he expect to sign on National Signing Day:
Claeys said he expects the number to be around twenty-five: “Eight or nine more,” Claeys said. (Minnesota presently has 18 commitments. Might Claeys be expecting to lose a couple more commits, and that’s why he gave the 8 or 9 figures or is he possibly expecting to over sign in 2016? Are some of the early signees being credited to the 2015 class, making additional slots available?) Your thoughts (recruiting aficionados) might be helpful.
3) Without mentioning Seth Green’s name, Sid asked for Claeys impressions of the young quarterback, a first-year freshman, since Green is a part of the early signing group:
Claeys answered Sid’s query by saying that school doesn’t start until Tuesday and that winter workouts will commence next week. He went on to say, “I’ll be busy recruiting the next two weeks.”
4) Sid asked for an appraisal of this year’s class, thus far:
As expected, Claeys was quite general in his response. He said, “Talented class . . . Two or three will make us better (immediate impact – my guess – Carter Coughlin and JUCO players Vincent Calhoun and Merrick Jackson) . . . players (in this year’s class) have an upside.” He expects the other recruits will be contributing in two years after they’ve been redshirted.
5) Sid wanted to know if there were any other players who have announced that they’re leaving Minnesota:
“None that have already been reported,” Claeys replied.
On a positive note, Claeys concluded the question: “We have a great group of kids . . . we’ve gotten closer each year.” He also said you get better with players that want to be here.
6) Dave Mona inquired about team surgeries since the bowl game, especially quarterback Mitch Leidner:
Tracy Claeys sounded very positive when answering Dave’s question about Mitch Leidner. He expects him to be healthy and ready to go when fall practices resume in August.
Claeys has said in recent weeks that this team is the healthiest group going into spring drills since he’s been at Minnesota. In previous years, teams, reportedly, had a number of players who underwent surgeries that prohibited their participation when spring practices rolled around.
Go Gophers!!
1) Sid’s first question - as it has been most weeks since the end of the regular season – “how’s recruiting going?”
Claeys was brief in his remarks. He said, “Things are working out . . . A little finishing up to do in the next couple weeks.” Additionally, he acknowledged that a couple players had decommitted, but he didn’t sound overly concerned; you can expect some players to decommit during the recruiting process, according to Claeys, especially when there’s a change in direction with changes in the staff, and you can expect “changes here and there.”
2) Sid asked how many recruits does he expect to sign on National Signing Day:
Claeys said he expects the number to be around twenty-five: “Eight or nine more,” Claeys said. (Minnesota presently has 18 commitments. Might Claeys be expecting to lose a couple more commits, and that’s why he gave the 8 or 9 figures or is he possibly expecting to over sign in 2016? Are some of the early signees being credited to the 2015 class, making additional slots available?) Your thoughts (recruiting aficionados) might be helpful.
3) Without mentioning Seth Green’s name, Sid asked for Claeys impressions of the young quarterback, a first-year freshman, since Green is a part of the early signing group:
Claeys answered Sid’s query by saying that school doesn’t start until Tuesday and that winter workouts will commence next week. He went on to say, “I’ll be busy recruiting the next two weeks.”
4) Sid asked for an appraisal of this year’s class, thus far:
As expected, Claeys was quite general in his response. He said, “Talented class . . . Two or three will make us better (immediate impact – my guess – Carter Coughlin and JUCO players Vincent Calhoun and Merrick Jackson) . . . players (in this year’s class) have an upside.” He expects the other recruits will be contributing in two years after they’ve been redshirted.
5) Sid wanted to know if there were any other players who have announced that they’re leaving Minnesota:
“None that have already been reported,” Claeys replied.
On a positive note, Claeys concluded the question: “We have a great group of kids . . . we’ve gotten closer each year.” He also said you get better with players that want to be here.
6) Dave Mona inquired about team surgeries since the bowl game, especially quarterback Mitch Leidner:
Tracy Claeys sounded very positive when answering Dave’s question about Mitch Leidner. He expects him to be healthy and ready to go when fall practices resume in August.
Claeys has said in recent weeks that this team is the healthiest group going into spring drills since he’s been at Minnesota. In previous years, teams, reportedly, had a number of players who underwent surgeries that prohibited their participation when spring practices rolled around.
Go Gophers!!
