Ky Thomas enters portal

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Some Day...Maybe said:
I don't think this is a smart move at all for him. Grass ain't always greener. I honestly think his best option is here. He'd be 2nd or 3rd next year.
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Depends... I bet he would get significant run with Sandford Jr in colorado
 

Gophers_4life said:
3rd, behind Mo and Potts.

If not, why would he transfer? Do you think being #2 to Mo is enough to do it?
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Probably because people reached out wanting him. Maybe he wasn't happy and thought he should have been on the field sooner. Maybe he was Sanford's guy and he winked at him out the door.
 

I had noticed I was seeing a lot of interviews with Irving and not Thomas. May be overfitting the data in hindsight, but could have been a sign.
 

Bob_Loblaw said:
I think the people are questioning this part.

If I put the over/under at 200 carries, would you bet the over or under on the total number of carries that Potts and Mo make for the Gophers for the rest of their career (combined)?
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It is a little tough to make this guess without knowing what happened to Potts and if it is something that is likely to happen again. But assuming it isn't, and he is back in good shape then I would go with Over 200 and I don't think it will even be that close. A healthy Mo will do that on his own next year and even if limited due to recovery he will still rack up a good chunk of those carries.
 


howeda7 said:
Sucks but not surprising. RB's are a commodity in both college and the pros. I'd want to be somewhere I'll be featured and then go pro after a sophomore or junior season if that's in the cards.
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And there are few to none Power 5 schools that don't have several good backs already. Doubt anyone will guarantee Ky or anyone else the lead back role before he arrives.
 


Some guy said:
Any coach who is good at all will have a sit down at the end of every season. Many high school programs even do that
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I think you're correct the staff sits down with each player but coaches are not likely to say in January that you will be No. 1, 3, or 5 on the depth chart. That is the point of having off-season conditioning followed by spring practice and fall camp.
 

Bucky is more exciting/explosive imo, but I think Ky is a much better fit in Kirk’s offense. Kirk wants his RBs to block, run inside zone, and run outside zone. Ky is a great blocker and inside zone runner, and Bucky might get the edge on outside zone running. I agree that Ky was in line for a lot of playing time in Kirk’s offense, so this is definitely surprising.

I am curious if NIL could be playing a role? Ky has enough on tape to transfer up. If his goal is to make the league though, I don’t think many programs can put him in a better position than Minnesota.
 



short ornery norwegian said:
reading between the lines - Thomas wants to be the #1 RB. Assuming he has met with the coaches, he came away believing that he will not be the #1 RB next year.

and if that is not the issue, then Thomas has some other type of issue with the school or the coaches, beyond playing time or # of carries.

happy players don't leave. guys leave because they are looking for something they do not think they can get in their current situation.

final thought - Fleck hinted that there would be more departures. Did he know this was coming? Did he suspect?

and long term - the kid coming in from TX had better be good.
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Bucky was plugged into games early in the season before Thomas, IIRC. Given Ky’s more pronounced (IMO) feature back qualities -at least this year - that hints maybe there was something in the attitude, social, academic, row the boat HOW realm that wasn’t sitting perfectly with PJF at least early on.

Like others I’d like to actually see Ibrahim back to 95% and Potts actually practice again before feeling comfortable they will be available or effective.

If things aren’t going well in the spring or summer workouts the transfer portal is always there, for cast offs from the blue bloods or late bloomers from G5 or FCS.
 

CurveballJesus said:
Rodney was an ACL, one that most RB's come back from. I think it was posted around the time of the injury, but I don't think a RB in college or the NFL has ever come all the way back from an Achilles.
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Maybe Mo is super human, anything is possible. The good thing is that he was hurt in the first game of the season.
 


Mo was the best RB in all of college in 2020.... If he didn't get injured who knows... But I'd stake alot on the premise mo is back and he IS the #1 featured back here... I Personally believe bucko will be ahead of Potts. As the #2 back...
 



MNVCGUY said:
It is a little tough to make this guess without knowing what happened to Potts and if it is something that is likely to happen again. But assuming it isn't, and he is back in good shape then I would go with Over 200 and I don't think it will even be that close. A healthy Mo will do that on his own next year and even if limited due to recovery he will still rack up a good chunk of those carries.
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Yeah, I think that's what makes it a tough call.

I wish this wasn't the case, but with what I know now, I'd bet the under. I think most of the people you see talking about Ky like he was #1 on the depth chart would bet the under if they had to bet now with what we know now.
 

Bob_Loblaw said:
Yeah, I think that's what makes it a tough call.

I wish this wasn't the case, but with what I know now, I'd bet the under. I think most of the people you see talking about Ky like he was #1 on the depth chart would bet the under if they had to bet now with what we know now.
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If Mo is 85-90% of what he was he still gets more than 200 carries this upcoming season....
 

Damn. That really sucks. At the same time....I kind of figured that the running back position would be a problem. With Ky and Bucky getting so much playing time this year.....and showing that they both were more than capable RIGHT NOW....I can see why a guy like Ky might have some reservations with two guys who were ahead of him on the depth chart to start the 2021 season coming back. Has to be a tough pill to swallow knowing that he'll be going back to being a third/fourth option in his third year.

Hope that Bucky sees that he's in line to be a featured back when Mo is gone. Still only going into his second year. And considering how dynamic he is with the ball in his hand....he'll see third down play and plenty of return duty.

Still....major bummer. Ky is a great running back. Wish him the best of luck assuming he doesn't go to a B10 opponent.
 

Spaulding!No! said:
He was the best we had this year.
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No he wasn't. Mo was the best back we had this year and Potts looked pretty dang good as well.

Thomas and Irving were forced into action and did a fantastic job. Thomas may have been the best back standing at the end of the season by a slim margin over Irving but if you gave me all 5 backs that saw significant action, fully healthy, I would have a hard time putting Thomas above the #3 spot behind Mo and Potts.

And on top of that, while Ky is a very good back, it just feels like Irving is going to do something special when he touches the ball.

Don't get me wrong, it is a bummer that Ky is transferring. But there are some very good options left for 2022 and beyond. We should be just fine at RB.
 

btowngopher said:
They aren't making the depth chart for next fall in December or January.
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Yes they are in a way. All coaches meet with players who have these questions of next year. Who knows about this case but a kid can ask if they come out in 3 months as the spring starter. They make a decision then based on what the coach says.

Maybe his family had a hard time traveling to games, homesick, girlfriend or maybe Fleck said Mo #1, you and the rest compete for #2. Based on the year he had I would think about leaving too. It is MO who should be earning his spot back.
 


gopherjay said:
Yes they are in a way. All coaches meet with players who have these questions of next year. Who knows about this case but a kid can ask if they come out in 3 months as the spring starter. They make a decision then based on what the coach says.

Maybe his family had a hard time traveling to games, homesick, girlfriend or maybe Fleck said Mo #1, you and the rest compete for #2. Based on the year he had I would think about leaving too. It is MO who should be earning his spot back.
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So now we are going to just assume that Mo and Tanner are guaranteed starting spots with no chance for competition? :)
 

MNVCGUY said:
No he wasn't. Mo was the best back we had this year and Potts looked pretty dang good as well.

Thomas and Irving were forced into action and did a fantastic job. Thomas may have been the best back standing at the end of the season by a slim margin over Irving but if you gave me all 5 backs that saw significant action, fully healthy, I would have a hard time putting Thomas above the #3 spot behind Mo and Potts.

And on top of that, while Ky is a very good back, it just feels like Irving is going to do something special when he touches the ball.

Don't get me wrong, it is a bummer that Ky is transferring. But there are some very good options left for 2022 and beyond. We should be just fine at RB.
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Let me recheck the stats this year. BRB
 


Spaulding!No! said:
Let me recheck the stats this year. BRB
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Will do it for you.

Mo and Irving had a higher YPC average
Mo and Potts had a higher yards per game average
Mo, Potts and Williams all had a longer longest carry of the season
Potts and Ky had the same # of TD with 6 but Potts played in 4 fewer games.

Again, Ky was/is a very good back. But he was not heads and shoulders above the other guys on the roster either. He was the best of the guys left at the end of the year by a very slim margin over Irving.
 




Maybe unpopular take, but If I saw correctly Potts is coming back....I'd rather have Thomas.
And with the unknown with the extent of his injury, i'd rather have Mo go pro then lost Thomas to the portal. Kid was not just our future, he was the now.
 


OK - 2021 Gopher FB Stats - Rushing by RB's

Ky Thomas -- 9gms - 166 att - 824 yds - 5.0 per carry - 6 TD
Bucky Irving -- 12gms- 133 att - 699 yds - 5.3 per carry - 4 TD
Trey Potts -- 5 gms -112 att - 552 yds - 4.9 per carry - 6 TD
Bryce Williams -- 8gms - 37 att - 186 yds - 5.0 per carry - 3TD
Mo Ibrahim -- 1 gm - 30 att - 163 yds - 5.3 per carry - 2 TD
Cam Wiley -- 2gms - 6 att - 4 yds - 0.7 per carry - 0 TD
LeCaptain -- 4 gms- 3 att - 31 yds- 10.3 per att - 1 TD

(T Morgan 59 att - (-9) yds - 2TD)
(C Kramer 36 att - 165 yds - 4.6 - 2TD)

So, for the RB's there were 487 carries.

Let's go atts per game:
Ky 18.4
Bucky 11.1
Trey 22.4
Bryce 4.6
Mo 30.0
 

Out of the entire RB room currently, Ky is the last one that I'd want to enter the portal.

I'd value his 3 remaining years as more valuable than whatever any of the rest of them have left. He's a prototype back. He can play all downs, pick up blitzes with authority, and he's big enough to move the pile when needed.

Bucky can can do some things in space with his agility and elusiveness that are impressive. But Bucky isn't the type that can lower his head and move the pile on 3rd & 1 or 4th & 1. And because of his size he isn't as strong in pass protection.

We don't know on Mo or Potts, but this has to mean that at least one of them is expected to be healthy and ready to roll next year.

Regardless, this is disappointing news.
 

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