Fact or Fiction: Minnesota is becoming a force in recruiting
National recruiting director Mike Farrell and national recruiting analyst Adam Gorney tackle three topics daily and determine whether they believe the statements or not.
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CLASS OF 2021 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State
CLASS OF 2022: Top 100
1. Minnesota is becoming a force in recruiting.
Farrell’s take: FACT. I’m not saying they are on Ohio State’s level or even Michigan or Penn State, but P.J. Fleck has things rolling for the Gophers and is recruiting very well nationally. Landing Steven Ortiz from Arizona and Avantae Dickerson from Nebraska is huge as both are four-stars with a ton of options.
However, Minnesota is also landing key prospects in Georgia and Texas, and are doing well in Florida when it comes to being mentioned by recruits. This is in addition to hitting the Midwest hard. Minnesota should remain very dangerous.
Gorney’s take: FACT. Minnesota had its most wins last season since, get this, 1904. Yeah, the Golden Gophers are definitely becoming a juggernaut in the Big Ten West and it’s directly correlated to Fleck’s ability to recruit. Ortiz and Dickerson are two four-star prospects in this class, but there are also five three-stars right on the cusp of four-star status in this class.
On top of that, Minnesota did especially well in its 2018 recruiting class and built upon that the last few cycles. Is a Big Ten title around the corner? Maybe not. But Fleck is doing a great job at Minnesota and is building a program that’s tough to beat.
2. NCAA is making the right moves academically for recruits.
Farrell’s take: FACT. The NCAA has taken many measures recently to help student-athletes, including a recent measure of waiving standardized test scores for incoming freshmen. They have also lessened the core requirements for current recruits and have adapted well to the Pass/Fail environment we are living in with the coronavirus pandemic. The NCAA gets a lot of negative attention, so it’s important to point out the positive when they make excellent changes and adapt in real time.
Gorney’s take: FACT. This is a really positive step and one that was necessary as everyone involved tries to navigate through these uncertain times. Schools are closed, scheduled standardized tests are being canceled and some prospects have been left in the lurch as they try to finalize the academic requirements to get into school and play football. There are a lot of massive decisions the NCAA will have a hand in making in the coming months - including whether there will even be a college football season in the fall - and they got this one right.
3. USC is back on the right track.
Farrell’s take: FICTION. USC is reeling in four-star prospects again after an awful recruiting year in 2020, but are the Trojans back on the right track? Not yet. I’m used to the days of Pete Carroll and, yes, even Lane Kiffin and Steve Sarkisian, where numerous five-stars were in play and would end up in the class. USC is still far from that level. Things are going much better and recent commits like Anthony Beavers and Calen Bullock are great, but there is still work to be done.
Gorney’s take: FACT. The 2020 recruiting class for USC was a disaster and the Trojans let so many high-end local players go someplace else. That was a huge problem. But the page has been turned to 2021, some new outstanding assistant coaches have come in who can recruit and there’s a new energy around the program.
Four-star defensive back Calen Bullock is really talented and reminds me of Marvell Tell. Massive offensive lineman Maximus Gibbs could be a force on the offensive line. Four-star quarterback Jake Garcia is really talented and could have a bright future.