My thoughts on the portal so far.

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NoelarBear

NoelarBear

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I think if you are a Gopher fan, you have to be really happy with what Fleck has done so far in the portal.

Fleck has addressed every personal group that needs addressing heading into next season. I think he needs to add another DT, and it sounds like he is doing that right now. Another WR would be good for depth as well.

But with the pieces coming back next year on top of what is coming via portal, you have to like the position Minnesota is in right now. Especially compared to other teams in the country and in the conference. We especially have to count our blessings that we didn't have to get a starting QB in the portal. Those prices are insane right now.

The Koi Perich news is tough, especially since he is "one of us". There is definitely an emotional part to this that is hard; even my own kid was bummed. But with Koi leaving, that freed up a lot of money for Fleck to use elsewhere. No way of knowing, but who knows who else we could have gotten if Perich was on the team. I highly doubt we could've landed two SEC guys. Yes, Koi didn't have a great year last season, but the pass defense around him wasn't great either. He really benefited from having Walley and Robinson around him his freshman year. What bothered me the most was the amount of missed tackles he had. But I regress....

Fame Ijeboi is interesting. I would have thought he would have signed somewhere else by now, but he hasn't. I will tell you this right now: Agents are ruining many careers for some of these players. They are trying to squeeze every dollar for their client, and it's backfiring big time.

Anywho, just wanted to share some thoughts since I had a few minutes. Feel free to share what you agree with or disagree with.
 

Totally agree on the agent part. I have no doubt there are many players being steered in directions that might not be best for them but might be more lucrative for the people advising them.

As it stands right now this might be the strongest portal year the U has had, at least on paper. Losing Perich is unfortunate but the potential net gain is significantly higher then what has been lost to this point. Obviously it will all hinge on who pans out and who doesn't but tough not to be excited by a number of the players who are headed to the U of M for the 2026 season.

I also agree that it is great that we don't have to get involved in the QB sweepstakes. Has become a reality for a number of teams that they will just have to get a new QB basically every season. As long as that guy pans out all is good but if he doesn't it can derail your team really quickly. For example, Indiana has hit a HR with their transfer QB the past two years and they will be hoping to do it again this off season.
 





MNVCGUY said:
I also agree that it is great that we don't have to get involved in the QB sweepstakes. Has become a reality for a number of teams that they will just have to get a new QB basically every season. As long as that guy pans out all is good but if he doesn't it can derail your team really
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I don't disagree, but can't the same be said of developing your own QB?

Most of us feel pretty good about our QB going into next year. The price of that was starting a redshirt freshman this season who had no history at this level and could have been really bad. The offense was bad, but the supporting cast got much of the blame. Incidentally the best offense of the Harbaugh era has been the year we portalled for 5th year Brosmer (who probably wasn't that expensive).

If you are a team that expects to compete every year and spends the money to do so, you really can't afford to risk that investment by letting a QB learn on the job. All 4 teams left in the playoffs have experienced portal QBs, where a team like Ohio State had a first year starter and is sitting at home.
 






I don’t know or understand all of the portal rules. Is Koi definitely gone or can he decide to come back?
 








NoelarBear said:
I think if you are a Gopher fan, you have to be really happy with what Fleck has done so far in the portal.

Fleck has addressed every personal group that needs addressing heading into next season.
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Just a nitpick Noel but I think we're interested in Coach addressing "personnel" groups and should leave the personal ones to himself and...whomever...

Now you may have insights we ordinary GHers don't have...:p
 



gophmeister said:
Koi didn’t do much this year and he took up a lot of resources. Hopefully the freed up money is used wisely.
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Interesting that if he had left last year I would have been "devastated" as a Gopher fan. This year? Whatever. Will always remember that interception against the Trojans, but I'm also remembering him taking the totally wrong angle or just sort of being there but not making a play.
 



BilldGopher said:
Just a nitpick Noel but I think we're interested in Coach addressing "personnel" groups and should leave the personal ones to himself and...whomever...

Now you may have insights we ordinary GHers don't have...:p
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Ha!

Didn't even notice it till you said something. Grammarly missed it too.
 




Mulligan said:
Interesting that if he had left last year I would have been "devastated" as a Gopher fan. This year? Whatever. Will always remember that interception against the Trojans, but I'm also remembering him taking the totally wrong angle or just sort of being there but not making a play.
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How many times was he late getting over to a deep corner or fade in cover 2? Seems like opposing QBs killed the defense with throws in that location of the field.
 


MNVCGUY said:
Totally agree on the agent part. I have no doubt there are many players being steered in directions that might not be best for them but might be more lucrative for the people advising them.

As it stands right now this might be the strongest portal year the U has had, at least on paper. Losing Perich is unfortunate but the potential net gain is significantly higher then what has been lost to this point. Obviously it will all hinge on who pans out and who doesn't but tough not to be excited by a number of the players who are headed to the U of M for the 2026 season.

I also agree that it is great that we don't have to get involved in the QB sweepstakes. Has become a reality for a number of teams that they will just have to get a new QB basically every season. As long as that guy pans out all is good but if he doesn't it can derail your team really quickly. For example, Indiana has hit a HR with their transfer QB the past two years and they will be hoping to do it again this off season.
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Regarding the QB, just be smart about and go the Lane Kiffen route (ironic)
Was smart enough to recruit a low-rated D2 winner to be the backup at Ol Miss. QB1 gets injured and that backup D2 QB saved their season
 

GreasyGopher said:
How many times was he late getting over to a deep corner or fade in cover 2? Seems like opposing QBs killed the defense with throws in that location of the field.
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If they deducted $100 for every time he was out of position from his 2025 NIL total to arrive at his 2026 offer, that would explain the drop in what he expected. :LOL: (with a small kernel of truth in there - not overpaying for mediocre to below average performance)
 

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