Official 2022 Gophers Football Recruiting Thread: Links, Tweets, Videos, Rumors

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The factors that don't appear on 247 and may be hard to tease out: 1) the desire of the recruit to "get out of Minnesota, for once in my life", and 2) if they grew up in a household, or has a coach, that have held onto views that "the Gophers stink" since the 80's, or some such.

The latter might be a bit of a reach, but you never know what can influence a recruit.
 
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Tommyboy said:
I could put together a competitive team with the majority being from Minnesota. No sh--, you have to recruit nationally. In the distant past kids would attend SJU instead of the University, because of their record, you have kids at NDSU that had offers with the gophers, TE from Crosby. I think you have more top end players from Minnesota on the Wisconsin team. The point is you have to get these kids to stay home and create a similar atmosphere in Minnesota. With the amount of Red Bull Fleck has drank and being a young coach, he should be getting players from all over.
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Sure anybody could "put together" a MN team. Question is, would all these players that you are "putting together" actually commit to play for your team?
 

MplsGopher said:
Benhart in particular has looked just silly, against us. We may have dodged a bullet there.
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Maybe there are some regrets
A_Slab_of_Bacon said:
It goes both ways ... imagine the team without ... all the other guys?

MN isn't getting better because of just locals, and by the time they dominate local recruiting ... it will be because they're doing so well they won't need most of them.

Getting all caught up on recruiting one area that is not rich in talent is not going to get this team better.

Recruiting has changed since Murry...
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The secret sauce is still the same. You fill your roster with under recruited and under the radar kids from MN. PWOs and some scholies. You get replacements elsewhere for your top State talent that leave. They may even be better than the instate kids you lose.
 

GopherWeatherGuy said:
I have been somewhat surprised and disappointed that Fleck hasn't been able to land more high end talent from Minnesota since he arrived here, especially along the OL. Callahan has proven to be a very good OL coach, and several of their current lineman will play in the NFL.

So far it hasn't burned them and it's not surprising that a kid would want to attend Stanford over Minnesota. But losing kids to Iowa St, Nebraska, Wisconsin, and Iowa is bothersome.
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Maybe it will change once Gopher OLs start getting drafted. Building a good program is a process. Building a great program is a long process.
 




hungan1 said:
Maybe it will change once Gopher OLs start getting drafted. Building a good program is a process. Building a great program is a long process.
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Well said. People need to slow down and take a long-term view of things. People freak out because we were good in 2019, not so good in 2020, lose this and that recruit etc. Just relax and let things play out a bit. Ferentz and Alvarez didn't build their programs overnight, the same will be the case here.
 

hungan1 said:
The secret sauce is still the same. You fill your roster with under recruited and under the radar kids from MN. PWOs and some scholies. You get replacements elsewhere for your top State talent that leave. They may even be better than the instate kids you lose.
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I think Luther McCoy vs Devin Townley is a good example of this. I know Townley was a 4* and McCoy just a .84 3*, but McCoy was playing in Florida for crying out loud. Imagine what a guy like that does against MN high school competition. I think we got the better of the two.
 

MplsGopher said:
Would guess though, a fair number of their great OL are in-state? That's a wild guess, but would be curious to know.
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while probably true, they aren't just selecting to stay home because they cannot live outside WI, it's because that system puts guys in the NFL in what I'd assume is a fun system for OL to play in (we're going to destroy the guys across from us, run for 250+ yards, and destroy their will)
 



laazrakit said:
I'll take a Daniel Faalele over each of 'em, every time.

Would it be nice if MN kids wanted to play here? Yeah, it'd be awesome... but I'm over it. They want to go elsewhere, so go.

I'll take Faalele and Bateman and Jacob Knuth and whoever else wants to "Row The Boat."
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At the moment, I'd take Ersery over Carroll, Benhart & Mahlman. Best athlete of the group. Highest upside (at the moment).
 

MplsGopher said:
The factors that don't appear on 247 and may be hard to tease out: 1) the desire of the recruit to "get out of Minnesota, for once in my life", and 2) if they grew up in a household, or has a coach, that have held onto views that "the Gophers stink" since the 80's, or some such.

The latter might be a bit of a reach, but you never know what can influence a recruit.
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I think #2 is still very prevalent in some households and programs ... takes time to break an opinion reinforced for 40+ years.
 

Tommyboy said:
If you gave him truth serum instead of Red Bull, its about the money. He has no ties to the state. It is the PJ Fleck show, you need coaches like NW, who played at the school and is invested long term, Frost is the same thing. Iowa, the coach has been invested for decades. Fleck is a used car salesman.
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The defamation in your first sentence is protected by the First Amendment, but it is entirely baseless, unsupported by a shred of evidence. The illogic of the balance of your post is equally stunning. Irascible Kirk Ferentz, the Iowa HC who, to demonstrate his long term commitment to Iowa, was born and raised in Pittsburgh and played his college ball at the University of Connecticut, had the following record in his first three years at Iowa (following Hayden Fry): 1-10; 3-9; 7-5 (total 11-24, 0.314). Scott Frost, who is geographically invested in Nebraska in the way your tortured logic apparently desires, has lost many of the top Nebraska recruits during his tenure. Frost's record for his first three years at Nebraska: 4-8; 5-7; 3-5 (total 12-20, 0.375). PJ's record for his first three years at Minnesota: 5-7; 7-6; 11-2 (total 23-15, 0.605). I'll take PJ's first three years over those of Ferentz or Frost anytime. And I'd take PJ over "dumpster fire" Frost anytime, anywhere.
 
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Iowa and Wisconsin just aren’t good at developing olinemen. They are two of the best in the nation and have been for years. Start putting olinemen in the nfl and the kids will stay. Just like how you don’t see Iowa and Wisconsin beating us for WR and QB recruits lately.
 



MplsGopher_fan said:
I think Luther McCoy vs Devin Townley is a good example of this. I know Townley was a 4* and McCoy just a .84 3*, but McCoy was playing in Florida for crying out loud. Imagine what a guy like that does against MN high school competition. I think we got the better of the two.
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Luther McCoy is enrolled in school and is listed at 6'5" and 305 lbs on the Gophers 2021 roster. Davon Townley is listed at 6'6" 220 lbs (a DE weight room project) per 247. He signed with Penn State, but at the moment is not on Penn State's 2021 roster nor is he enrolled in school (academic issues?). At the moment, we are clearly way, way better off with McCoy than Townley (future may be different, of course). I really, really want PJ to sign the best Minnesota players because it will be proof that Minnesota is now accepted as a top program by local coaches, parents and players (who remember the last 50 years of futility). It would be great affirmation for the program. It is not at all, however, a necessity that PJ sign every, or even most, top-rated Minnesota players (or any Minnesota players) in order to "win." Given how few Minnesota players typically inhabit the list of top 1000 HS players, the odds of winning go up if PJ casts a broad net outside of Minnesota to states that are football hotbeds. Also, given how kids develop over time, PJ might actually be getting some of the best Minnesota players with guys like Cody Lindenberg--Fleck has an eye for under-rated talent. So, until the Gophers have the luxury of acceptance by all local coaches and parents (it takes TIME), I myself am totally satisfied if PJ takes the best of the Minnesota kids who absolutely, totally want to play for the Gophers, who bleed maroon & gold. These kids (and their parents and coaches) are the life blood of the program. I wish the best to the local kids who don't want to play for the Gophers (despite being offered early and courted shamelessly), but I won't miss a single one of them for a minute.
 
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On the most part the rating system is very biased and screwed. It like picking up a People's Magazine, just look where all the guys end up. Fleck like many coaches chase the stars, in reality you need coaches that can see talent. Purcell has never went to a football camp in his life, he has not been tested in HS, he was the lightest guy on his HS line this year. What he has is size, most P5 programs chase size, they believe they can build the guy to their specs. Look at Green, TE Ford-S. Two great athletes that did not get much playing time. Cody Lindenberg was not the best LB on his HS team, Anoka, his team won about 5 games in four years. Fleck had him starting last year. Kids in Minnesota on the most part do not buy in to the Gophers and Fleck will pick a few guys per year from the state and put his energy elsewhere. Wisconsin was the same way until they brought in the right coach a few decades ago and look at their program now. We all want our state programs to be great.
 

hungan1 said:
Maybe there are some regrets

The secret sauce is still the same. You fill your roster with under recruited and under the radar kids from MN. PWOs and some scholies. You get replacements elsewhere for your top State talent that leave. They may even be better than the instate kids you lose.
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Recruiting is national now, the odds of getting a good volume of under-recruited guys from MN ... aren't that different than getting a good volume of under-recruited from Georgia.

Except for the fact ... that the talent pool just isn't as high in MN as other place.
 

Tommyboy said:
On the most part the rating system is very biased and screwed. It like picking up a People's Magazine, just look where all the guys end up. Fleck like many coaches chase the stars, in reality you need coaches that can see talent. Purcell has never went to a football camp in his life, he has not been tested in HS, he was the lightest guy on his HS line this year. What he has is size, most P5 programs chase size, they believe they can build the guy to their specs. Look at Green, TE Ford-S. Two great athletes that did not get much playing time. Cody Lindenberg was not the best LB on his HS team, Anoka, his team won about 5 games in four years. Fleck had him starting last year. Kids in Minnesota on the most part do not buy in to the Gophers and Fleck will pick a few guys per year from the state and put his energy elsewhere. Wisconsin was the same way until they brought in the right coach a few decades ago and look at their program now. We all want our state programs to be great.
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the stuff you say is so out of both sides of your mouth it is baffling. as for the bold part, this is gross misrepresentation and massively depends on where in the state you're talking to kids and is biased by where you grew up yourself and thus who you interact with.
 


Gophergrandpa said:
At the moment, I'd take Ersery over Carroll, Benhart & Mahlman. Best athlete of the group. Highest upside (at the moment).
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Once they indicate that they're going elsewhere, I'm done with 'em... pretty much forever. I still hold it against Joe Mauer for his signing a letter of intent to play football at FSU. Even his possible HOF career with the Twins couldn't/didn't change my feelings about him. Just the way it is, I guess.

Maybe if they come back to the U as a transfer, I can get past their leaving. Otherwise, even if any of these ( or someone like Frank Ragnow etc.) play for the Minnesota professional team, I'm never going to be a fan of theirs. Then again, pro football sucks...
 

upnorthkid said:
the stuff you say is so out of both sides of your mouth it is baffling. as for the bold part, this is gross misrepresentation and massively depends on where in the state you're talking to kids and is biased by where you grew up yourself and thus who you interact with.
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All this bla, bla stuff, is he a great QB is he not? Is he a great coach is he not? If you have to asked and question all this they are not at this stage and levels of their career. Everybody will agree and shut up once they consistency beat good teams. Until then all this babble will continue.
 

Tommyboy said:
On the most part the rating system is very biased and screwed. It like picking up a People's Magazine, just look where all the guys end up. Fleck like many coaches chase the stars, in reality you need coaches that can see talent. Purcell has never went to a football camp in his life, he has not been tested in HS, he was the lightest guy on his HS line this year. What he has is size, most P5 programs chase size, they believe they can build the guy to their specs. Look at Green, TE Ford-S. Two great athletes that did not get much playing time. Cody Lindenberg was not the best LB on his HS team, Anoka, his team won about 5 games in four years. Fleck had him starting last year. Kids in Minnesota on the most part do not buy in to the Gophers and Fleck will pick a few guys per year from the state and put his energy elsewhere. Wisconsin was the same way until they brought in the right coach a few decades ago and look at their program now. We all want our state programs to be great.
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So how many more instate kids does Wisconsin take compared to Fleck? Pretty sure it’s roughly the same amount. Please let use know which instate kids we need to get since you want so many more, yet bash the ones that Fleck does take.
 


Tommyboy said:
On the most part the rating system is very biased and screwed. It like picking up a People's Magazine, just look where all the guys end up. Fleck like many coaches chase the stars, in reality you need coaches that can see talent. Purcell has never went to a football camp in his life, he has not been tested in HS, he was the lightest guy on his HS line this year. What he has is size, most P5 programs chase size, they believe they can build the guy to their specs. Look at Green, TE Ford-S. Two great athletes that did not get much playing time. Cody Lindenberg was not the best LB on his HS team, Anoka, his team won about 5 games in four years. Fleck had him starting last year. Kids in Minnesota on the most part do not buy in to the Gophers and Fleck will pick a few guys per year from the state and put his energy elsewhere. Wisconsin was the same way until they brought in the right coach a few decades ago and look at their program now. We all want our state programs to be great.
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hungan1 said:
Maybe it will change once Gopher OLs start getting drafted. Building a good program is a process. Building a great program is a long process.
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Think we would all love to see high rated OL jump on board but it is still the one position where I will contend that the recruiting rankings mean the least overall. Schluter, Olson, and JMS were all rated .86 and lower.

OL is all about development. You can find quality O-Lineman that are lower rated out of high school, bring them in and have them ready to compete within a few years.
 

MNVCGUY said:
Think we would all love to see high rated OL jump on board but it is still the one position where I will contend that the recruiting rankings mean the least overall. Schluter, Olson, and JMS were all rated .86 and lower.

OL is all about development. You can find quality O-Lineman that are lower rated out of high school, bring them in and have them ready to compete within a few years.
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Yeah for whatever reason the 'bring rando guy on and play OL well enough, or better' is a very doable thing.

DL, just don't get the same results.
 

A_Slab_of_Bacon said:
Recruiting is national now, the odds of getting a good volume of under-recruited guys from MN ... aren't that different than getting a good volume of under-recruited from Georgia.

Except for the fact ... that the talent pool just isn't as high in MN as other place.
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Sentimentally, it is great to have many players from here. However, the focus is to win. You therefore want to get the best players that fit the program.
 

btowngopher said:
So how many more instate kids does Wisconsin take compared to Fleck? Pretty sure it’s roughly the same amount. Please let use know which instate kids we need to get since you want so many more, yet bash the ones that Fleck does take.
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I was holding out hope that when his boy went to St. Thomas Tommyboy would find his way over to their fan forums and his BS here would stop. No such luck.....oh well.
 

A_Slab_of_Bacon said:
Recruiting is national now, the odds of getting a good volume of under-recruited guys from MN ... aren't that different than getting a good volume of under-recruited from Georgia.

Except for the fact ... that the talent pool just isn't as high in MN as other place.
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Exactly. Do the math ...
 

A_Slab_of_Bacon said:
Yeah for whatever reason the 'bring rando guy on and play OL well enough, or better' is a very doable thing.

DL, just don't get the same results.
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OL is so technique based in everything they do. Yes there is a talent component but if a kid has good size/agility and can master technique they can develop into a good/great offensive lineman. You can that unassuming under the radar kid who had a late growth spurt and make them into a player with the right coaching.

DL on the other hand requires a certain level of drive and aggressivness that is much easier to see in high school players and much harder to teach if it isn't there. You will find D-Lineman that develop and come out of nowhere but I would bet it is far less common than it is with offensive lineman.

That said, we may have an example of a developmental DL player becoming a star in Boye Mafe.
 

A_Slab_of_Bacon said:
Yeah for whatever reason the 'bring rando guy on and play OL well enough, or better' is a very doable thing.

DL, just don't get the same results.
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I agree with mnvcguy and you on the o-line. I think it's because they know the play and blocking scheme in advance. Trying to stop an o-lineman from doing what he wants is what takes talent.
 

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