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

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MNVCGUY said:
Punter Brody Richter showed up on 247 transfer portal this morning so I added him. With Weston doing well and having multiple years left makes sense that some of the other punters are exploring their options.
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MNVCGUY said:
Punter Brody Richter showed up on 247 transfer portal this morning so I added him. With Weston doing well and having multiple years left makes sense that some of the other punters are exploring their options.
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Didn't appear in any games it looks like, so makes sense.
 

MNVCGUY said:
My point was if the standard is Johnson/Bateman it is going to be tough to come anywhere close to that. We have had some good receivers since then but not enough of them and it has been tough to get more then one at a time.

Hope that reply is up to your lofty standards?.....if not I sincerely apologize and will try and do better.
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I agree. The “standard” is not Johnson and Bateman (and Autman-Bell). That was IMHO a unicorn year. That was an tOSU level year. In 2019, our WR corps of Bateman, Johnson and Autman-Bell ranked as the numbers 1, 2 and 35 WRs in the B1G.

By comparison, this year’s dominant Ohio State receiving corp ranked as numbers 2, 5 and 34 among B1G receivers. This year’s undefeated Indiana receivers, taking throws from the Heisman QB, ranked as numbers 6, 12 and 26 in the B1G. The extremely good Oregon receiving corps, which ripped our D a new one, ranked as numbers 25, 28 and 35 in the B1G.

We need to improve our WR production big time. That is a given. This year, our top receiver threats, Brockington, Tracy and DT (a RB), ranked as the numbers 28, 36 snd 65 receivers in the B1G. This is clearly below standard for virtually all B1G teams. (It was just back in 2023 that Daniel Jackson ranked as the no. 4 receiver in the B1G.) But I don’t believe that the standard for MN had ever been having the No. 1 and No. 2 receivers in the B1G.
 

Gophergrandpa said:
I agree. The “standard” is not Johnson and Bateman (and Autman-Bell). That was IMHO a unicorn year. That was an tOSU level year. In 2019, our WR corps of Bateman, Johnson and Autman-Bell ranked as the numbers 1, 2 and 35 WRs in the B1G.

By comparison, this year’s dominant Ohio State receiving corp ranked as numbers 2, 5 and 34 among B1G receivers. This year’s undefeated Indiana receivers, taking throws from the Heisman QB, ranked as numbers 6, 12 and 26 in the B1G. The extremely good Oregon receiving corps, which ripped our D a new one, ranked as numbers 25, 28 and 35 in the B1G.

We need to improve our WR production big time. That is a given. This year, our top receiver threats, Brockington, Tracy and DT (a RB), ranked as the numbers 28, 36 snd 65 receivers in the B1G. This is clearly below standard for virtually all B1G teams. (It was just back in 2023 that Daniel Jackson ranked as the no. 4 receiver in the B1G.) But I don’t believe that the standard for MN had ever been having the No. 1 and No. 2 receivers in the B1G.
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2019 was special and could have been "specialer".
 



Gophergrandpa said:
I agree. The “standard” is not Johnson and Bateman (and Autman-Bell). That was IMHO a unicorn year. That was an tOSU level year. In 2019, our WR corps of Bateman, Johnson and Autman-Bell ranked as the numbers 1, 2 and 35 WRs in the B1G.
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I knew they were really good but I didn't know those rankings. I guess that's how Tanner threw for over 3,200 yards and was 4th nationally in yards per pass and passing efficiency rating but never approached those numbers again.
 

TwistingMyMelon said:
Finished 10th ranked. That's about as special as it gets for this program.
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I totally forgot that we ended the season ranked tenth with a win over Auburn! It helps when we had Ibrahim, Johnson, Bateman, Morgan, and Autman-Bell. Wow! We didn't realize how fortunate we were at the time. We also missed playing top 10 ranked Oregon and Ohio State that year and barely beat all three of our non-P5 opponents. Things really broke our way...except for losing both rivalry games to Iowa & Wisconsin for our two losses. Figures...of course, both of those teams ended the season ranked too so they weren't stiffs.
 


Gophergrandpa said:
I agree. The “standard” is not Johnson and Bateman (and Autman-Bell). That was IMHO a unicorn year. That was an tOSU level year. In 2019, our WR corps of Bateman, Johnson and Autman-Bell ranked as the numbers 1, 2 and 35 WRs in the B1G.

By comparison, this year’s dominant Ohio State receiving corp ranked as numbers 2, 5 and 34 among B1G receivers. This year’s undefeated Indiana receivers, taking throws from the Heisman QB, ranked as numbers 6, 12 and 26 in the B1G. The extremely good Oregon receiving corps, which ripped our D a new one, ranked as numbers 25, 28 and 35 in the B1G.

We need to improve our WR production big time. That is a given. This year, our top receiver threats, Brockington, Tracy and DT (a RB), ranked as the numbers 28, 36 snd 65 receivers in the B1G. This is clearly below standard for virtually all B1G teams. (It was just back in 2023 that Daniel Jackson ranked as the no. 4 receiver in the B1G.) But I don’t believe that the standard for MN had ever been having the No. 1 and No. 2 receivers in the B1G.
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100%. And I hope that posters didn't get the impression is that a Johnson/Bateman/Autman-Bell trio was ever going to be the perennial level of talent in the WR room ala tOSU. We just have to have a better set of players at the position the way the game is played now. Jackson was a very good receiver for us. Tough as nails and pretty good hands. Spencer was a decent complement, but there wasn't a guy with consistent deep speed to open things up even more. I imagine it was hoped Dylan Wright would be that guy but it was not to be.
 





gopherbadgerman said:
Jackson had an excellent career in my opinion.
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He did and when it's all said and done I feel like Smith and Tracy will have good careers, I also think Spencer had a nice bounce back year in 2024. Bateman and Johnson were first team all Big ten they were the Wr version of Barber and Maroney, once in a lifetime it's going to be that good
 




GophersInIowa said:
I honestly did not expect him to be back so just the fact that he's considering it is a good surprise.
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I thought he was 100% going pro (and still do) but it is interesting that he hasn't made a decision yet. Just hope that if he elects to stay in college another year he does it with us and not some other team.
 



MNVCGUY said:
I thought he was 100% going pro (and still do) but it is interesting that he hasn't made a decision yet. Just hope that if he elects to stay in college another year he does it with us and not some other team.
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he's probably waiting on his draft report. I think he'll be top 75 pick, but what do I know....


i also though MN should've drafted Winfield JR in the first instead of Jeff Gladney and boy did my homerism show
 


Jaykay said:
Sawyer Seidl is in the portal, how long until he commits here?
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One to monitor for sure but he is light compared to the other backs on our roster so will be interesting to see what kind of interest he gets from power 4 schools.
 

MNVCGUY said:
One to monitor for sure but he is light compared to the other backs on our roster so will be interesting to see what kind of interest he gets from power 4 schools.
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Could he be a slot receiver? No idea if he can catch.
 

MNVCGUY said:
One to monitor for sure but he is light compared to the other backs on our roster so will be interesting to see what kind of interest he gets from power 4 schools.
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Would he be that much of a get? I know nothing about him but his rushing numbers at UND are nice but not great by any means. Looks like he had a good 4 game stretch midseason but was otherwise pretty average.
 

Word said:
Could he be a slot receiver? No idea if he can catch.
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Never seen him play. Caught 19 passes last year but no idea how much they incorporate back into passing game. My assumption would be that if we express interest in him it will be as a RB but I guess anything is possible.
 

GophersInIowa said:
Would he be that much of a get? I know nothing about him but his rushing numbers at UND are nice but not great by any means. Looks like he had a good 4 game stretch midseason but was otherwise pretty average.
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My hunch is he is probably on the small side for power 4 football which is why he ended up at NDSU in the first place.

If we are interested would think having his brother on the roster helps our chances but no clue if we will have any interest in bringing him in.
 

salzie said:
he's probably waiting on his draft report. I think he'll be top 75 pick, but what do I know....


i also though MN should've drafted Winfield JR in the first instead of Jeff Gladney and boy did my homerism show
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I think it's all about his draft assessment. Hard to tell with DE/Edge guys. He projects as a DE in a 4-3 set, but is he a DE or Edge in a 3-4? He certainly has great size for any set. Speed/mobility tests will probably determine his draft ceiling.

He's been really good, but I thought he disappeared at times in 2025. Could have been my eyes being off.
 

50PoundHead said:
I think it's all about his draft assessment. Hard to tell with DE/Edge guys. He projects as a DE in a 4-3 set, but is he a DE or Edge in a 3-4? He certainly has great size for any set. Speed/mobility tests will probably determine his draft ceiling.

He's been really good, but I thought he disappeared at times in 2025. Could have been my eyes being off.
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I look at Smith a lot like Boye Mafe. He is a guy who was a good college player but isn't quite there yet. However he has the measurables that NFL teams love which is why if Smith does come out I think he will do really well at the combine and be drafted in the early rounds even if his play on the field in college doesn't quite justify a high selection.
 


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