War Room: 7/29 Offense

Matt Jessen-Howard · Jul 29, 2015

With most summer commitments out of the way, next up will be official visitors. Here's a recap of everything football recruiting to date. Some of the position breakdowns will sound a little repetitive, just because it's only been a month since the last war room.

As always, feel free to leave questions and comments below, and I'll address them.

Quarterback
After the staff saw Tony Poljan live at Sound Mind Sound Body, and again at camp, I think they're set at quarterback and happy with just Poljan.

Keon Howard is still an option moving forward, I just don't think an offer will come this summer. He hasn't heard from Minnesota for about two weeks now. Keon could still pick up an offer if (a) there's space available in the class this winter, (b) Keon kills it this fall, or (c) for whatever reason the staff decides they do want a second quarterback, which could certainly happen. For now though, I feel pretty confident saying Howard will not be a part of Minnesota's 2016 class. Howard gave a status update with GI a couple weeks ago.
There's another name to be familiar with, and that's Ellsworth CC dual-threat quarterback JuJuan Young-Battle. I don't anticipate Young-Battle receiving much Gopher interest moving forward, but here's the situation. He did pretty well at the big man/QB camp in June and afterwards talked with Zebrowski and Anderson. Then after camp, one of the coaches called him and told him that he's on their recruiting board, and that they'll be monitoring him. Young-Battle is a December grad and you can view his highlights here. Again, I'm not expecting much to happen here, but wanted to let you guys know what he told me.

Running Back
With Shannon Brooks, Jonathan Femi-Cole, and James Johannesson a class ahead, and Rodney Smith and Jeff Jones two classes ahead, there really is no need to take a running back in this class. However, if there's a running back that they really love that wants to be here, they'll without a doubt take him.

We can forget about Tre Bryant, as he told me that he won't be taking any visits other than to Kansas State.
Rakeem Boyd from Houston is the other running back with an offer, which he picked up earlier this month. Boyd has eleven power five offers, but his only "helmet school" offer is from Michigan. Boyd isn't doing interviews with media, but someone from Scout caught him live and he told them in a free article that he'll for sure be taking visits to Michigan and Arizona State. We also know that Boyd doesn't plan to make a decision for a long time. That's good for the Gophers because (a) they have time to catch up to schools who have been on him much longer, and (b) the staff can see who this class plays out numbers-wise, and will be able to determine how much they even want a running back.
Martell Pettaway was just offered today, and I'll have more on him later today when he gets off work. Pettaway is from the Detroit area, and was in the same conference that Dior Johnson and Ray Buford played in. The staff has been interested in Pettaway for a while, but he told me he hadn't heard from Minnesota before the last war room, so I think the communication itself is pretty recent.

Texas 2-star Kene Nwangwu has not heard from Minnesota recently, but I think he could be one to receive interest moving forward, depending on what happens with some of the other running backs on the board. You can watch his Hudl here.

Wide Receivers
This might be the most interesting position group to dissect. With Desmond Gant, Isaiah Gentry, Melvin Holland Jr., and Jeff Jones as redshirt freshman, and Hunter Register and Rashad Still as incoming freshman, there is really no need to bring in more than a couple of receivers. All along I've said two is the magic number, with three being a possibility if a can't miss guy like Dredrick Snelson wants to commit.

Robbinsdale Cooper's Phillip Howard is already committed. He was incredibly impressive in the slot at the latest Senior One Day Camp, and I really believe that's where he'll end up.
So now here's the tricky part. Howard is already committed in the slot, and there are two other slot receivers on the roster in Eric Carter and Jeff Jones, plus Berkley Edwards will likely find some time in the slot. Is there really a need to bring in a second slot receiver this class? Probably not, but I still believe that they'll take JD Spielman if he's available. I didn't think Spielman and Minnesota were a great match before, but word is that he really loved the BBQ and post-BBQ hangout at the Coughlins. Spielman's recruitment is too early to call, but I think Minnesota, Nebraska, and Michigan will be in it until the end.

If two slot receivers are committed, would the staff take a third receiver that's an X or Z? If it's Snelson, then yes. If not, then I don't know, and I don't think the staff will know until they're able to better see how this class shapes up number-wise.

Marquis McClain was the receiver that I hinted at as someone who had a lot of interest in Minnesota that most wouldn't expect. McClain told me that Minnesota was in his top three, along with Auburn and Mississippi State. He told me that he talked with Sawvel almost everyday, and that he would have visited by now if Minnesota was closer/he had more money. But after I made that teaser post, he committed to Auburn. I didn't think he had a committable offer there, but turns out he did. McClain told me that Minnesota was "a close second or third (place)" and that he'll still consider the Gophers moving forward. I'm not sure I believe that he'll still consider Minnesota, but I guess he's someone to keep in mind moving forward.
Dredrick Snelson is another big name that just made headlines by setting up an official for the Michigan game with buddies Elijah and Elisha Daniels. With his offer list, it will obviously be an uphill battle, but it helps that Elijah and Elisha are helping recruit him. Talking with guys around the Rivals network, it seems as if Virginia Tech and/or Miami could be favorites. I'm hoping to interview Snelson soon and will have more on him then.
It makes sense that DeAndre Huff didn't end up making the trip up. When I talked with his coach at the end of June, he told me that the Minnesota staff was telling Huff to take his time with his recruiting process, which can probably be translated as not being a top target. So it's not a huge deal that he committed to Miami (OH), but he's a guy to monitor moving forward to take an official visit if the staff is still looking for a receiver later in the process.
Bailey Edwards is another obvious option. To date, Edwards' only power offer is from Minnesota, in addition to seven MAC offers. Edwards was at the Senior One Day camp and spent the night with his brother. Since he didn't pull the trigger then, it will be interesting to see how his recruitment develops with Minnesota. At the moment, I believe he does have a committable offer and is a guy the staff wants, though. I wouldn't be surprised at all if he's a Gopher. But the longer he waits, the more likely he is to lose his spot. I spoke with Edwards last month here.

Listed above are all guys with offers who are real targets and possibilities. Below are other targets who don't have offers.

Drew Hmielewski is the obvious target without an offer. An offer could potentially come, especially if Edwards is taking awhile to make a decision. On the other hand, the staff has time here because Hmielewski didn't attend any other FBS camps, so he's unknown to most programs. I think if he were to pick up an offer, it wouldn't be until the fall when his senior film comes out. But know that he's close to an offer. Real, real close. He came with his mom, dad, and sister to campus July 18, and the staff spent a lot of time with him. You can read my early July article on Hmielewski here.
A new name to keep an eye on at receiver is McKinley (LA) athlete Jawun Ruffin from the Baton Rouge area. Ruffin could be a slot receiver or end up as a defensive back or maybe even running back. Ruffin told me that he hears from Coach Sawvel "almost everyday." You can watch his Hudl here.
Another name to keep an eye on is Missouri receiver Roddrick Bryant.
There was a tweet not too long ago with Bubba Ogbebor putting Minnesota in his top five, but I talked with Ogbebor a couple weeks ago, and he said that he hadn't heard from Minnesota in a while. So I think that interest may have come and gone, although that's not to say he couldn't hear from the staff again later.

Tight Ends
I think two is the magic number for tight ends, with one spot already taken by Burnsville athlete Kamal Martin, who I believe will start out as a tight end. Outside linebacker or maybe even defensive end are other options for Martin.

Albert Okwuegbunam might be the target on offense that the staff has been on the longest. I had an update with him a couple weeks ago, and the takeaway was positive. Here's what I wrote on the message board then: "Michigan State, Iowa, Iowa State, Indiana, and Missouri have all been on him hard; he's a Plan A for each of those schools I think. I've been hesitant to say the Gophers truly had some breathing room with him because he genuinely had some good things to say about all of those schools. His tone when talking about Minnesota this conversation was a little different and very upbeat. Thinking back to the Oseland recruitment, it seemed to kind of be in the fray but in the end the trust he had in his coaches about the Gopher staff won out. I think that the same situation could happen with Okwuegbunam. While other schools haven't let up, I do think Minnesota is the slight favorite right now. It would have been nice for him to come up to the BBQ, but it sounds like that won't be happening. Visiting Minnesota before making a decision will be something to monitor closely." Now, I'm thinking Okwuegbunam has a top three of Minnesota, Missouri, and Michigan State. The biggest and really only point of worry for Gopher fans is that Missouri is telling him he can be a receiver, and he really likes the role they're pitching to him. I still think Minnesota is the favorite, but the deciding factor for him I'm sure will be official visits.
Robert Tucker picked up an offer in late June, and I recapped it with him here. It's early in the process for him, as he doesn't plan to make a decision for a while. That's perfect for the Gophers because I think Okwuegbunam is probably the tight end they want most. Tucker told me he'd like to visit Minnesota officially in the fall, so there's definitely interest there and I think the timing with his recruitment could be perfect.
Corey Rau five days ago committed to SMU. He really, really liked SMU, almost telling me that Minnesota was his top school, but he'd always come back to something like: "my whole family is from Texas, and I don't really want to leave." Location won out for Rau, but I wouldn't be surprised if he takes an official this fall or winter, especially if Okwuegbunam heads elsewhere.
Another tight end who location won out for is Kyle Fourtenbary, a South Alabama commit. You can see what Fourtenbary told me two weeks ago here. He told me he's not sure what could make him flip to a school away from home, but he's talked with the Minnesota staff about coming up for an official in the fall, so I'd say this recruitment is not over if Minnesota doesn't want it to be.

Tight ends who the staff has talked to without offers include Amorama Noel, who I wrote about earlier this month, and Ko Kieft, who did well at the second Senior One Day Camp and has talked a bit with Coach Poore. I recapped his camp experience with him here.

Offensive Line
With four commits in Sean Foster, Matt Kegel, Conner Olson, and Sam Schlueter, the Gophers are set on the offensive line. The only way the staff would take a fifth is if it's a JUCO or early enrollee senior they love.

The single target on board that the staff wants is Southwest Mississippi CC tackle Vincent Calhoun, who loved his visit to Minnesota, has had Minnesota as his favorite for a while, and is a recruit that most expect to be a Gopher, myself included. Calhoun again reiterated to me that he's planning to take other visits and won't be committing soon. I spoke with Calhoun in late June here, and not much has changed. He's a December grad, by the way.
He's not currently a target, but a fun fact is that the staff watched Blinn CC tackle Avery Jordan, brother of DeAndre Jordan, this spring and talked to him briefly then.

Arnold_Babar · Jul 29, 2015