New WR Signee for 2014: Desmond Gant gains support in all the right places w/ Gophers

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highwayman said:
The coaches know more than we do.

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"I could just scream..."
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It's old Leadbottom.
 

Gant is the type of raw athlete that the staff likes to develop, nothing more, nothing less. With a couple of the incoming WRs, projected as earning playing time, it leaves a depth gap for the future. He's the type of guy, we'll forget about while he redshirts and then explode on special teams, he's a program type player that will take time.
 

Reminds me of the year we took a flyer on every quarterback in the midwest.
 

I remember Gant's name being brought up at the end of the recruiting cycle. I believe he came up for an OV too. I'm excited, he looks like a great athlete who was on a terrible team at a high school with a large majority of students coming from low income families. It's tough to imagine a true diamond in the rough these days but I can see how Gant would be underexposed, given the circumstances.
 

GopherinPhilly said:
Can't have too many athletes stockpiled. Needs a redshirt year plus to work on route running and getting stronger. Hopefully not the next Vic Kiese.
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Based on what? How do you know he needs a redshirt year?
 


Ozzy&Ray said:
Based on what? How do you know he needs a redshirt year?
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Some people think there is no such thing as a stupid question...I am not one of those people. And you just proved me right. Thank you.
 

Ozzy&Ray said:
Based on what? How do you know he needs a redshirt year?
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Well he is more raw than Holland, Gentry and Krizancic and frankly just worse than the other 3 so i doubt they would burns all 4 RSs plus he does look closer to 190 than 225 and probably needs a year in the weight room.
 

die hard gopher said:
Well he is more raw than Holland, Gentry and Krizancic and frankly just worse than the other 3 so i doubt they would burns all 4 RSs plus he does look closer to 190 than 225 and probably needs a year in the weight room.
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I was just asking the question because I think it is funny how confident so many posters are regarding who will redshirt and who won't, when they have never seen them play. How do any of us know he is not as good as the other three. He could be better for all we know, just had significant academic concerns.
 

Ozzy&Ray said:
I was just asking the question because I think it is funny how confident so many posters are regarding who will redshirt and who won't, when they have never seen them play. How do any of us know he is not as good as the other three. He could be better for all we know, just had significant academic concerns.
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Watch all 4 of their films and try telling me he is the best of the 4.
 



Ozzy&Ray said:
I was just asking the question because I think it is funny how confident so many posters are regarding who will redshirt and who won't, when they have never seen them play. How do any of us know he is not as good as the other three. He could be better for all we know, just had significant academic concerns.
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Sometimes it is simply size. Gentry may end up being the best of the group (my $ on MHjr), but pretty obvious to me he'll have to RS just due to needing a year to get bigger/stronger.
 

die hard gopher said:
Watch all 4 of their films and try telling me he is the best of the 4.
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Not saying you are wrong in this particular case but be very careful about making assumptions based on a kids highlight tape as to how good a player they are. Every player that gets recruited at this level has a great highlight video, doesn't mean they are going to be able to do the same things in college.

Gant strikes me as a low risk flyer. Sometimes those guys pan out typically they don't but in the end it didn't hurt anything to take a shot. Ozzy&Ray is right though in saying at this point none of us has any idea how good any of these WR are going to be or what order they will shake out in because none of them have taken the field for the Gophers yet.
 

MNVCGUY said:
Not saying you are wrong in this particular case but be very careful about making assumptions based on a kids highlight tape as to how good a player they are. Every player that gets recruited at this level has a great highlight video, doesn't mean they are going to be able to do the same things in college.

Gant strikes me as a low risk flyer. Sometimes those guys pan out typically they don't but in the end it didn't hurt anything to take a shot. Ozzy&Ray is right though in saying at this point none of us has any idea how good any of these WR are going to be or what order they will shake out in because none of them have taken the field for the Gophers yet.
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Well if you know what to look for and aren't new to it combined with a look at their measurables than you typically can evaluate what type of abilities and what skill level recruits are at compared to others by watching film on them despite "everybody looking good on film." Krizancic, Holland and Gentry were also more productive playing against better teams than Gant.
 

die hard gopher said:
Well if you know what to look for and aren't new to it combined with a look at their measurables than you typically can evaluate what type of abilities and what skill level recruits are at compared to others by watching film on them despite "everybody looking good on film." Krizancic, Holland and Gentry were also more productive playing against better teams than Gant.
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Like I said, I don't disagree with you on this one, and you certainly can make educated guesses on how good a player is going to be based on all the factors you mentioned. That still doesn't change the fact that it is still nothing more than a guess until the player gets on campus, takes the field, and proves he belongs. There are lots of guys that look great on film and on paper yet can't cut it.
 



Gobie linked to his gopher camp video and he doesn't look 190. If anything he needs to cut down and do some speed work. He moves like the titanic trying to avoid the iceberg at 225.

6' 3" 190 is lanky and he ain't. At least in that video.

Just my opinion but he looks like a project but he has size and some speed. Could he be better tha "frechte" in a few years, it's possible. As of now I'm more excited about the other 3 guys we brought in,

That said, I hope he works hard and earns his spot down the road.
 

Not sure, but

Pompous Elitist said:
Gobie linked to his gopher camp video and he doesn't look 190. If anything he needs to cut down and do some speed work. He moves like the titanic trying to avoid the iceberg at 225.

6' 3" 190 is lanky and he ain't. At least in that video.

Just my opinion but he looks like a project but he has size and some speed. Could he be better tha "frechte" in a few years, it's possible. As of now I'm more excited about the other 3 guys we brought in,

That said, I hope he works hard and earns his spot down the road.
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He looks impressive to me. He did recently run a 10.9 100 meters in a high school track meet. That is not Titanic like imo
 

Was referring more to his "quicks" or change of direction rather than straight line speed. For a comparison, Jeff Jones isn't the fastest RB but he has great lateral moves.

Don't get me wrong, I think he can be a player. I just don't think he's 190. He looks a little big boned to me. Not Duke A -like, but I bet he has trouble keeping the weight off.
 

Ozzy&Ray said:
I was just asking the question because I think it is funny how confident so many posters are regarding who will redshirt and who won't, when they have never seen them play. How do any of us know he is not as good as the other three. He could be better for all we know, just had significant academic concerns.
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Not only am I certain that he wont see the field in 2014 as a WR, I don't think he will ever see the field as a WR. I am confident that 3 years from now he is going to be in the defensive two deeps as an outside linebacker with a filled out frame at 6'4 250#.
 

die hard gopher said:
Well if you know what to look for and aren't new to it combined with a look at their measurables than you typically can evaluate what type of abilities and what skill level recruits are at compared to others by watching film on them despite "everybody looking good on film."
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This is funny considering even our coaches talk (repeatedly), about how they need to see the guys in camp and in person to know what they are really getting. Film is good, but just a start.
 

For every good legitimately great prospect with great highlight videos, there is a possibility of a Hayo Carpenter lurking.

Kill & company prefer to see kids live at camp or to go observe them play as he has stated many times.

They cannot afford too many mistakes at this stage of the program as the four & five stars mostly are not there for the Gopher's picking. Brick by brick, they want to build team depth by developing zero star/two star players into three-four star caliber players in order to move up to the upper echelons of the B1G.

You get lucky - you get the Cedric Thompsons & Eric Murrays of this world. Guess wrong, and you will have a dud of a player taking up a valuable scholie or possibly washing out of the football program.

Desmond Gant seem like a great kid. The type that can go either offense or defense who will thrive in the Gophers developmental program. If he has great attitude and desire to win in the field and in the classroom, you will be hearing his number called.
 

Spoofin said:
This is funny considering even our coaches talk (repeatedly), about how they need to see the guys in camp and in person to know what they are really getting. Film is good, but just a start.
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Who said the kid wasn't good or worthy of a scholarship? I started this line of questioning by stating the kid was a crappy route runner and was going to need to redshirt. I stand by my statement and I am 100% confident he doesn't see the field in 2014. But then I expect 80% of the incoming class to redshirt so not a big surprise that the the 4th WR in this class and the 8 in the last 2 classes would be one of them.

Further, I don't think he will even be a WR on this team...but that is a much larger stretch and will be decided after his redshirt year.
 


I think gopherinphilly is right, he likely ends up on defense. We have no idea what the coaches have in store for him, maybe they aren't sure yet. His highlights were all offense but he had 41 tackles last season. Clearly he'd rather play WR but beggars can't be choosers.
 

I think he ends up playing the position that best fits the team's needs. Might be offense or defense. I think the decision will be made before the season starts, likely during fall camp. It's looking more and more that the decision will be made by the coaching staff. I'm sure it will affect the team's depth at [your position of choice here].

As for the scholarship, I'm pretty sure that we will be at 85 or less soon. I'm thinking that a player will be leaving or has left, and a scholarship will/has opened up. The player who leaves is graduating early, is transferring to another school, has not qualified academically, or will have his scholarship "pulled". Whatever happens, Gant's weight, speed, and red shirt status will be in dispute. That's the most likely result.

Now, this is just my opinion, but one of my inside sources has confirmed the above. I hope recruits don't read this thread, because it will likely affect whether or not they decide come to Minnesota.

The season cannot come too soon. Happy Father's Day Eve.
 

GopherinPhilly said:
Who said the kid wasn't good or worthy of a scholarship? I started this line of questioning by stating the kid was a crappy route runner and was going to need to redshirt. I stand by my statement and I am 100% confident he doesn't see the field in 2014. But then I expect 80% of the incoming class to redshirt so not a big surprise that the the 4th WR in this class and the 8 in the last 2 classes would be one of them.

Further, I don't think he will even be a WR on this team...but that is a much larger stretch and will be decided after his redshirt year.
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Huh? When did I talk about being non-worthy of a scholarship? My post wasn't written to you. Check the quoted text above my post GIP. I agree with everything you just said. I was questioning die hard's statement that a trained eye can tell all they need to from a highlight reel. Your post confuses me. Maybe you quoted the wrong one?
 

highwayman said:
I think he ends up playing the position that best fits the team's needs. Might be offense or defense. I think the decision will be made before the season starts, likely during fall camp. It's looking more and more that the decision will be made by the coaching staff. I'm sure it will affect the team's depth at [your position of choice here].

As for the scholarship, I'm pretty sure that we will be at 85 or less soon. I'm thinking that a player will be leaving or has left, and a scholarship will/has opened up. The player who leaves is graduating early, is transferring to another school, has not qualified academically, or will have his scholarship "pulled". Whatever happens, Gant's weight, speed, and red shirt status will be in dispute. That's the most likely result.

Now, this is just my opinion, but one of my inside sources has confirmed the above. I hope recruits don't read this thread, because it will likely affect whether or not they decide come to Minnesota.

The season cannot come too soon. Happy Father's Day Eve.
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I expect you are probably right. I wouldn't be surprised if they get their information from Ryan Burns.:rolleyes:
 

highwayman said:
I think he ends up playing the position that best fits the team's needs. Might be offense or defense. I think the decision will be made before the season starts, likely during fall camp. It's looking more and more that the decision will be made by the coaching staff. I'm sure it will affect the team's depth at [your position of choice here].

As for the scholarship, I'm pretty sure that we will be at 85 or less soon. I'm thinking that a player will be leaving or has left, and a scholarship will/has opened up. The player who leaves is graduating early, is transferring to another school, has not qualified academically, or will have his scholarship "pulled". Whatever happens, Gant's weight, speed, and red shirt status will be in dispute. That's the most likely result.

Now, this is just my opinion, but one of my inside sources has confirmed the above. I hope recruits don't read this thread, because it will likely affect whether or not they decide come to Minnesota.

The season cannot come too soon. Happy Father's Day Eve.
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You must be a real hoot to sit and have a conversation with. were you raised by wolves?

This is a discussion board.

You and the Dr. don should get together sometime and talk about...nothing. Have fun.
 

Pompous Elitist said:
You must be a real hoot to sit and have a conversation with. were you raised by wolves?

This is a discussion board.

You and the Dr. don should get together sometime and talk about...nothing. Have fun.
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he he...made me laugh.
 

Spoofin said:
Huh? When did I talk about being non-worthy of a scholarship? My post wasn't written to you. Check the quoted text above my post GIP. I agree with everything you just said. I was questioning die hard's statement that a trained eye can tell all they need to from a highlight reel. Your post confuses me. Maybe you quoted the wrong one?
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yeah, sorry Spoofin. Missed the post I wanted to quote and got you instead.
 


FWIW, Kyle Goblirsch of 247 confirmed Gant will be a WR, or at least that's what the staff told him. Of course that could change, but I don't think the staff would have to tell him that just to get him to sign and switch him later, considering he didn't have other offers. This isn't another Donovahn Jones situation. We'll see what happens once fall camp starts.
 

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