Brandon Fritts has an offer from the Gophers, and three others.
Brandon Fritts, a 6-foot-4, 215-pound from wide receiver/tight end from Mentor (OH) High, recently received a football offer from Minnesota. However, the two-sport standout has been rather busy helping lead the Cardinals to a 21-5 mark on the hardwood and a State Tournament bid.
Gopher Hole caught up with Fritts to learn the latest on his Golden Gopher offer.
Gopher Hole: How many offers are you up to right now?
Brandon Fritts: Four. (Akron, Bowling Green, Minnesota and Toledo)
Gopher Hole: How pleased are you with getting so many offers being only a junior?
Brandon Fritts: It’s great. It’s a humbling experience and hopefully, I’ll get a few more this upcoming spring and keep working.
Gopher Hole: I know with playing basketball, it is hard to get to many things. Have you been able to make it to any campuses or go to any Junior Days?
Brandon Fritts: I went to Michigan State’s Junior Day. That was all I was able to get to. It’s been really busy.
Gopher Hole: Did you get a chance to go to many college football camps last summer?
Brandon Fritts: I went down to Ohio State’s and Pittsburgh’s.
Gopher Hole: Have you thought about going to some camps this summer yet?
Brandon Fritts: I haven’t thought about it yet. I am going down to Columbus for a Nike camp in June. As of now, that is it. I’m not sure, I’ll probably plan some more once basketball season is done.
Gopher Hole: Do you play AAU basketball?
Brandon Fritts: No. I used to, but I don’t anymore.
Gopher Hole: Is your main focus on college football or would you look at basketball?
Brandon Fritts: I would definitely go for football. I like basketball. It keeps me in shape and it is fun, but that is about it. I’m probably not a Division I basketball player.
Gopher Hole: Your team is putting up a lot of points, scoring over 100 in several games. Does that make it more fun for you as a player?
Brandon Fritts: Yes. We press the whole game, so we really dictate tempo. We run a lot. We like scoring a lot of points. We like running the floor. We shoot the ball really well and we try to make teams play our tempo and play at our pace.
Gopher Hole: That has to make conditioning even more important when you are playing that style of basketball.
Brandon Fritts: Yes. We run a lot in practice. We always go over our presses and we spend a lot of time in practice working on that.
Gopher Hole: It is probably hard putting on weight during the basketball season, but what things are you going to be working on once basketball is over to continue to improve yourself as a football player?
Brandon Fritts: Once basketball season is done, we have a lifting class for school, so I’ll be working out every day and working on my speed and strength and agility with a trainer to work on my 40 time.
Gopher Hole: What would you like to get up to weight-wise?
Brandon Fritts: I want to be 6-4, 220 or 225 pounds. I don’t want to get too big because I am still going to be playing a lot of wide receiver, so I have to keep my speed. I am also going to be playing some tight end, so I have to put some weight on.
Gopher Hole: Are schools looking at you more as a tight end or more as a wide receiver or does it depend on the school?
Brandon Fritts: It really depends on the school. I think that Minnesota, which is recruiting me, is recruiting me as a tight end, A lot of schools are recruiting me as a tight end, but they can also flex out as a wide receiver.
Gopher Hole: Is that something you would prefer rather than be strictly a tight end and have that flexibility?
Brandon Fritts: Yes. I have never played tight end in our system, because we go five-wide (five wide receivers), but this year, we are going to run a little bit of formations with me as a tight end. I have not played tight end, but I wouldn’t mind it. I don’t really prefer one over the other.
Gopher Hole: You had a quarterback, Mitch Trubisky, who signed with North Carolina. Do you have another quarterback in the works that is going to be able to step in?
Brandon Fritts: We have another quarterback. He was a wide receiver this year and he’ll play quarterback. He played quarterback up until his freshman year and obviously switched to wide receiver, because of Trubisky. He has some experience. He is very athletic, so he can throw the ball and run, so it is a big plus for our offense.
Gopher Hole: So you are not really expecting much of a drop-off this season?
Brandon Fritts: No. I think that we will still be throwing the ball a lot, so not too much of a drop-off.
Gopher Hole: You put up some pretty big numbers this past season, right.
Brandon Fritts: I had 59 catches for 1187 yards and 17 touchdowns.
Gopher Hole: What do you see as your strengths as a wide receiver?
Brandon Fritts: I am not the fastest guy out there, but I feel that I run great routes. I get open and I am great at going up and catching the ball. Getting the jump balls and just getting open and finding the open spots on the field.
Gopher Hole: How far did you make it the playoffs last year?
Brandon Fritts: We made it to the Final Four. We lost to Toledo Whitmer (which had Nigel Hayes, a two-sport athlete who picked Wisconsin over Minnesota for basketball)
Gopher Hole: Do you think that playing basketball helps you with football in terms of football and staying in shape?
Brandon Fritts: Yes, I think so. I think that it helps with my athleticism and everything. It helps keep me agile.
Gopher Hole: What are you hearing from the Gophers?
Brandon Fritts: I haven’t really been in too much contact with them lately. They have been sending me stuff. I was trying to get in touch with Coach Z (Zembrowski). I just called the other day and he did not answer, so I have to give him a call back soon. They want me to come over there and visit and get a feel for the program. They are looking at me as a tight end that they can spread out and also play wide receiver.
Gopher Hole: Have you ever been to Minnesota?
Brandon Fritts: No. I have never been there.
Gopher Hole: Have you thought about trying to visit some schools after the basketball season is over?
Brandon Fritts: Yes. I am not sure which ones yet. I am going to have to sit down with my parents and talk about it when the basketball season is done.
Gopher Hole: You have the four offers right now. What other schools are you hearing from?
Brandon Fritts: I am hearing from Boston College, Iowa, Michigan State, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Duke and a couple of MAC (Mid-American Conference) schools
Gopher Hole: Have you even thought about when you might try to decide on picking a school or have you even thought that far yet?
Brandon Fritts: I hope to do it before my senior year, so hopefully sometime in the summer.
Gopher Hole: Are you going to try to go to some camps and get a little better feel for some of the schools?
Brandon Fritts: Yes. I think so.
Gopher Hole: Do you even have a favorite school yet or is still too early?
Brandon Fritts: I don’t really have any favorites yet.
Gopher Hole: The other schools that have offered you are MAC school that are nearby. What was it like to get that first Big Ten offer?
Brandon Fritts: It was really exciting. Coach Z seems like a really great coach. He just really talks about Minnesota. I was really excited. I have always wanted to play somewhere in the Big Ten. Minnesota seems like a really great place. I have heard a lot of good things about it, so I hope to get up there sometime this summer and check it out.
Gopher Hole: Do you come from an athletic family?
Brandon Fritts: I have a brother (Justin) who plays basketball. He plays at Wheeling Jesuit in West Virginia. He is a freshman there. He won Mr. Basketball in the state of Ohio last year. He won Freshman of the Year in his conference and started every game. He is doing really well.