Gophers recruit Nelson already on campus

MINNEAPOLIS For Philip Nelson, Wednesday's National Signing Day involved no pomp and circumstance, nor any suspense. The former Mankato West quarterback eliminated the need for drama long ago.Nelson, one of the top recruits in the state of Minnesota, gave his commitment to play for Gophers coach Jerry Kill not long after last season's signing day ended. In fact, he's already been enrolled at the university since the beginning of the winter semester last month.But Nelson's commitment to Minnesota became official Wednesday when he signed his National Letter of Intent as one of the Gophers' 31 additions this year."It's not really going to change much. I'm already there anyway," Nelson said Wednesday. "It's just like a little ceremony to kind of celebrate with the people who care about me and have supported me through this whole process. So it'll be nice to be able to celebrate with some people and kind of make this whole thing official."Perhaps Gophers fans are relieved that they didn't have to wait until the 11th hour of signing day to find out where the state's top quarterback would play. And Nelson said the decision to play for Minnesota was an easy one even though he had ties to the Gophers' rival to the east.Nelson grew up just outside of Madison, Wis., before moving to Mankato seven years ago. Both his parents attended the University of Wisconsin. Yet Nelson spurned the defending Big Ten champion Badgers to stay in the state of Minnesota."I took my visit to all these places. There was just no better fit for me than the Gophers," Nelson said.Because of that, Nelson ended his recruiting process earlier than most high school players. That allowed him to enjoy his senior season as he helped lead Mankato West to an 11-1 record and a section championship."We were able to shut off all the phone calls, and at this point in late February last year or March, whenever it was, we were getting quite a few phone calls and it was getting kind of busy around here," said Mankato West football coach Mark Esch. "Then he committed, and it really made it less stressful for everybody."Part of what drew Nelson to the Gophers was the ability to help revitalize a struggling program. Minnesota has posted back-to-back three-win seasons and remains stuck in the Big Ten's cellar. The Gophers have had just one winning season in the past five years and haven't won a Big Ten championship since 1960.Sure, the highly sought after Nelson could have played at schools with more recent success but that never appealed to him."You can go to any other place that's already been successful or average, but this is a different situation," he said. "All the recruits coming in this year realize that we need to be part of the change. That's what we're coming in to do."But Nelson was also impressed Kill and his coaching staff. Since Kill took over as Minnesota's coach in December 2010, he has placed on emphasis on keeping Minnesota's top talent within the state's borders.That included Nelson, the top-ranked quarterback in the state and the fourth-best overall recruit in Minnesota, according to Scout.com."I'd say it was a pretty easy decision once I met the coaching staff," Nelson said. "Right off the bat, they said that I'm the type of guy who they want. They've been really honest with me throughout the whole process. A big role in my decision was the people who I was going to be spending the next five years of my life around, which is all the coaching staff and the players."Nelson was a three-year varsity starter at Mankato West. Early on, coaches sensed he had something special, which is why he was the team's backup as a freshman and even made his first varsity start that year.As a senior at Mankato West, Nelson threw for 2,784 yards and 35 touchdowns while also racking up 1,243 rushing yards and an impressive 20 rushing touchdowns. Those staggering numbers helped him win the Minnesota Mr. Football award. Nelson was also named the ESPN Gatorade Player of the Year for Minnesota and Associated Press Minnesota Player of the Year, among many other accolades. "I think the things that set him apart are his work ethic, his attitude, and he's humble. Those things give him an advantage off the bat," Esch said. "But you match that with the skill level that he has, the athleticism that he has, the arm that he has, that's what makes him so dangerous."So while Nelson's status as the Scarlets' starting quarterback was never in question once he assumed the role, it will be much different at Minnesota. The Gophers return their starting quarterback from last season in MarQueis Gray. There should be plenty of other competition at that spot, including fellow incoming freshman Mitch Leidner of Lakeville South. As of Wednesday, the Gophers listed six quarterbacks on their roster although that could certainly change before the fall."He never really had competition, so that will be a fun part of being at the U," Esch said of Nelson. "He's going to have a lot of competition and they're going to bring kids in to push him."Nelson said he won't know whether he'll redshirt this year until after the spring practices are finished. In the meantime, he'll continue to battle as if he's gunning for the starting job."The coaches told me to come in to spring ball expecting to compete, but everyone should always be competing anyway," Nelson said. "That's just how it's going to be."Added Kill: "I think competition is good. All it can do is make you better. It's one of those things that I've told every kid that we have coming in is I want you to come in and play."Follow Tyler Mason on Twitter.