Gophers add Western Michigan transfer WR Corey Crooms

By: Tony Liebert |
Dec. 11, 2022: Western Michigan transfer WR Corey Crooms committed to the Gophers Saturday, becoming the first official off-season addition from the transfer portal.

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Six days after the newly-implemented transfer portal officially opened the Gophers have landed their first commitment from former Western Michigan wide receiver Corey Crooms. His relationship with Gophers’ TE coach Greg Harbaugh Jr. from their time together with the Broncos played a major factor in his decision to come to Minnesota. After playing four seasons in Kalamazoo, the 5-foot-10 slot receiver will have at least two seasons of eligibility remaining.

Who is Corey Crooms Jr?:

Hailing from Country Club Hills, Illinois Corey Crooms was under-recruited out of high school. He held only four FBS offers and three FCS offers before settling on Western Michigan. While playing for the Broncos he totaled 115 catches for 1,766 yards and 12 touchdowns, most recently reeling in 57 balls for 814 yards and five touchdowns en route to second-team All-MAC honors in 2022.

  • Scouting Report:

Listed at 5-foot-11, 185 pounds, Crooms will likely slide into the starting slot position for the Gophers. He has very good route running and feel for the wide receiver position and he simply knows how to get open. He only got better throughout his four-year career with the Broncos and there is no reason why cannot continue to do the same in Dinkytown. He will give Athan Kaliakmanis another pass-catching option.

**Highlights: 

Instant Reaction:

The Gophers just went through a roller coaster ride having Wisconsin transfer Markus Allen committed for only nine days before he withdrew his name and returned to Madison. It seems like they might’ve dodged a bullet with that one. I believe that Crooms will slide into the starting slot role and he has a chance to carve out a serious role.

I still think it was interesting for the Gophers to be so eager to target a WR this early in the transfer portal process. While the position group certainly under-performed this season, I still think there are other positions on this roster that could use an upgrade in talent. I believe Minnesota’s eagerness to make sure they add a wide receiver from the portal tells me that the Gophers’ staff probably expects to lose one current WR to the portal. With, CrAB returning, Daniel Jackson developing and Le’Meke Brockington emerging; Dylan Wright or Michael Brown-Stephens seem like the most likely options to enter the portal. The wide receivers seemed to step us Saturday against Wisconsin, as Daniel Jackson and Dylan Wright turned in some of the best performances of the season and Le’Meke Brockington reeled in his first career touchdown. I believe the improved play from the position had a large impact on the outcome of the game.

What is next?:

As I mentioned earlier, the Gophers WR room now has a surplus of talent. With at least six players that can and should contribute at the FBS level. The transfer portal officially closes on January 18, so that would give 40 more days for any more Gophers players to put their name into the portal.

– WRx: Chris Autman-Bell
– WRy: Daniel Jackson
– Slot: Corey Crooms Jr.
– Dylan Wright
– Le’Meke Brockington
– Michael Brown-Stephens

With early national signing day only a few weeks away and the transfer portal chaos already underway the next month will likely have a lot of Gophers roster news to look out for.

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