Official 2026 Roster Movement Thread - Who's In and Who's Out?

[MNVCGUY]

This could be true, but Ky Thomas had a conditioning issue. He was in Fleck's doghouse for not being in shape and I believe it impacted him at other stops. It's not so much about the baby fat as much as it says about his discipline.

Fame has never had those whispers.

I thought he was our best back last year, even when everyone was healthy. He runs hard.

Maxy nailed it in an earlier post comparing Ijeboi and Taylor.....there may be an argument that Ijeboi is the better pure rusher of the two.....but as a receiving option out of the backfield it isn't even close.

DT's ability to catch the ball out of the backfield sets him apart from a lot of RB out there. Unfortunately he also has trouble staying on the field which sucks because we are a much better team when he is in there then we are when he isn't.

 

[topos]

I might be totally wrong, but I don’t think he’s anywhere near Bucky

I didn't think Ijeboi was anywhere near Ky. Ky outperformed Bucky when they were playing together.

The run blocking was insane that year. Some of us posters could have had a few 100-yard games, lol.

 

[gopherbadgerman]

I didn't think he was anywhere near Ky. Ky outperformed Bucky when they were playing together.

The run blocking was insane that year. Some of us posters could have had a few 100-yard games, lol.

At least, in my opinion, I thought Bucky looked special when you watched him play.

 

[btowngopher]

Ijeboi will be lucky to land a better role than he has here at a P4 school.

 

[btowngopher]

I didn't think he was anywhere near Ky. Ky outperformed Bucky when they were playing together.

The run blocking was insane that year. Some of us posters could have had a few 100-yard games, lol.

Crazy take.

 

[The Deliberate Stranger]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but it sounds like our transfer NIL checkbook is very slim, most of the NIL is reserved for recruits. If that's the case, it will be tough to recreate 2019 with guys like St. Juste and Williamson.

I've always assumed we have prioritized roster retention with NIL compared to recruits

 

[LeftofThaDial]

I thought it was closer to 10M for football. Men's hoops was ~ 6M.

Football gets 70-75% of the 20 mill rev share. The rest is split between M&W Basketball, Hockey and Volleyball

 

[Gopherchase]

Sucks, but I hate to say running backs are a dime a dozen. They will find someone in the portal as good if not better. Kids always think the grass is greener. Now if he gets himself more NIL money somewhere more power to the kid.

Dime a dozen in the pros – – college not so much.

 

[jonnyganas]

Gotta play Estrada. Derek Burns mentioned how the Gophers switched to more outside zone to find success running at the end of the season and Estrada is more suited for that scheme. Maybe Fame didn't quite fit for his price tag?

Didn't Fleck say AJ Turner was the greatest outside zone runner he has ever seen and it's a shame we didn't get to see him this year due to injury? Guessing he will be our outside zone guy

 

[MonikerSchmoniker45]

Didn't Fleck say AJ Turner was the greatest outside zone runner he has ever seen and it's a shame we didn't get to see him this year due to injury? Guessing he will be our outside zone guy

Hopefully. Tough to say if he'll be the same after injury.

 

[Breakin' The Plane]

Boo. Igeboi ran hard and finished runs strong. Little bit of Shannon Brooks with a little less "oomph".

 

[btowngopher]

Just remember, winning is all about coaching, money isn’t a factor…

 

[Gophers7NatTitlesBadgers0]

Football gets 70-75% of the 20 mill rev share. The rest is split between M&W Basketball, Hockey and Volleyball

Gotcha.

 

[topos]

Crazy take.

That Ijeboi wasn't as good as Ky? Look at their stats...

 

[btowngopher]

That Ijeboi wasn't as good as Ky? Look at their stats...

Oh I agree with you, I thought you meant Bucky wasn’t as good as Ky.

 

[Word]

Hopefully. Tough to say if he'll be the same after injury.

What was the injury? Do we know?

 

[Word]

I might be totally wrong, but I don’t think he’s anywhere near Bucky

But you agree with my statement?

 

[TwistingMyMelon]

Crazy take.

He's not wrong about the run blocking that year.

 

[60's Guy]

The football team isn't getting 20M from the university. That money gets distributed to the whole athletic department.

Yes, I'm adding NIL to get to $20 plus.

 

[gopherbadgerman]

But you agree with my statement?

Yeah I was not a big Thomas guy. I’d take Fame over him.

 

[SJUgopher]

At least, in my opinion, I thought Bucky looked special when you watched him play.

Same

 

[matt]

That Ijeboi wasn't as good as Ky? Look at their stats...

Look at the OLs they were each running behind.

 

[nitramnaed]

Sometimes it's obvious when I guy packs his bags and moves on, but with Fame, I don't get it. Here's a kid that has certainly shown his ability on the field and should be an important part of the Gopher lineup next year. Unless he's looking to move down to be a starting RB for some program.
Man, God forbid, say this isn't about money.
I don't remember. Was he a "3 Star" recruit?

 

[50PoundHead]

I'm a little bummed about Ijeboi. He runs hard between the tackles and with Taylor gave us a solid 1-2 punch (would have been better with more effective blocking up front). That said, Ijeboi probably wants to be the workhorse starting next year and if Taylor returns, that's not going to happen here.

 

[swede2]

The football team isn't getting 20M from the university. That money gets distributed to the whole athletic department.

FB gets 70% (even though it accounts for 75% of dept revenue).

 

[nitramnaed]

I'm a little bummed about Ijeboi. He runs hard between the tackles and with Taylor gave us a solid 1-2 punch (would have been better with more effective blocking up front). That said, Ijeboi probably wants to be the workhorse starting next year and if Taylor returns, that's not going to happen here.

Unless he moves down. Don't think he will.
After my last post I did do a little more research on him. "3-Star" recruit. Offers from Harvard, Dartmouth, Columbia and Northwestern. Assuming with offers like this he must be quite a bright young man. Maybe he decided to go the academic route?
Anyway. I wish him luck.

 

[Some guy]

Hopefully, Stevens’ track speed (10.38) being more significant than Hoskins’ (11.02) translates to the field as they seem to be the same size and we saw how much Hoskins struggled to see the field.

11.02 is not track fast.
It’s high school track fast

I think Kane Rob was being a little over the top calling Fame a freak athlete and predicting a Bucky Irving like rise for him.

He did a solid job filling in for Taylor but he never struck me as a game breaker the way Bucky showed flashes of being.

Would have liked to see him come back but not shocked to see him transfer if he wants to go somewhere to try and be the feature back next year. Will be interesting to see where he ends up.

not a little over the top

The guy was good but Irving is a major contributor in the nfl
Very over the top

 

[Stuff]

Ky Thomas was a below average running back that an elite Minnesota offensive line made him look serviceable.

I think Fame ran for some really tough yards behind a not so great run blocking line this year.

 

[SJUgopher]

Fame ran hard, but he wasn’t anything special. We will miss him, because his familiarity and not starting over, but also not the end of the world. He didn’t possess any skills you can acquire in this free agent college football world.

 

[Tech Machine]

60%-We cooled on him.
40%- Oh god NOO!
The other 20% - somewhere in the middle

Me-Thought he was good, am disappointed.