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When the transfer portal re-opened this spring, the Gophers clearly determined that they had a need for cornerback depth. Georgia Southern transfer Tyler Bride is the last DB to commit to the Maroon & Gold. After entering the portal on April 11, Bride took visits to Memphis and Rice while receiving interest from Arizona, Baylor and Louisivile among others. He visited Dinkytown over the weekend before becoming the fourth defensive back to commit to Minnesota.
Time to be LEGENDARY 🏡🛶
#RTB pic.twitter.com/PjJaou1usK— TB ⁴ (@TylerBride2) May 13, 2023
Who is Tyler Bride?:
Hailing from Norcross, Georgia, Tyler Bride attended Greater Atlanta Christian School, one of the biggest high schools in the Atlanta area. Playing RB and CB. He earned nearly 15 Division I scholarship offers highlighted by Coastal Carolina, Toledo and Akron before he ultimately settled on his home-state school Georgia Southern. While playing in the Sun Belt conference, Bride accumulated over 1,000 defensive snaps, appearing in 26 games across three seasons recording 81 tackles, 2 INTs and 16 PBUs. He now comes to Minnesota with a plethora of experience and two seasons of eligibility remaining.
- Scouting Report:
Listed at 5-foot-10, 180 pounds, Bride has pretty standard size for his position. He has impressive ball skils and great athleticism. What stands out most to me is his tackling ability at the corner position. Defensive backs need to have a lot of versatility in Joe Rossi’s system and Bride certainly fits that discription.
**Highlights**
Imagine if I stopped when they told me I couldn’t..
*I don’t own copyrights to this music* pic.twitter.com/xd1ih68Cye
— TB ⁴ (@TylerBride2) January 20, 2023
Instant Reaction:
The Gophers’ spring mission of completely transforming their secondary took another big step forward Saturday. Jack Henderson (SE Louisiana) and Craig McDonald (Auburn) will both likely play nickel cornerback and safety, so they had a need for another outside option alongside Justin Walley and Tre’Von Jones (Elon). Bride will not compete with Jones to see who slots into the No. 2 outside CB role next to Walley. Both players will have a role on this team next season, but the Gophers will not have flexibility and depth at a position that seriously lacked both.
What is next?:
I believe that the recent spring additions of Zolman, Jones, McDonald and now Bride go a long way in the outlook of this portal window for the Gophers. They lost 16 scholarship players, but have now gained 10. Every team in the country is losing players to the portal and only the good coaches will find a way to adapt and find someone new that fits their system; that is college sports in 2023. P.J. Fleck understands that and Tyler Bride’s commitment is more evidence.
- Western Michigan, WR, Corey Crooms Jr.
- Western Michigan, LB, Ryan Selig
- Charlotte, WR, Elijah Spencer
- SE Louisiana, DB, Jack Henderson
- UNC, EDGE, Chris Collins
- Western Michigan, RB, Sean Tyler
- Miami (OH), LB/S, Rowan Zolman
- Elon, DB, Tre’Von Jones
- Auburn, DB, Craig McDonald
- Georgia Southern, CB, Tyler Bride