PJ Fleck and Minnesota Gophers football coaches have kept plenty busy this offseason, both on the recruiting trail and in the transfer portal. And it’s paid off because the high-caliber commitments continue to roll in. On Tuesday night, they casted out east and hooked two more out of the portal, including one of the highest ranked wide receivers in the country from the 2023 recruiting class.
Georgia redshirt freshman, Tyler Williams, was a 94-overall, 4-star (247Sports) recruit coming out of high school just one year ago and he lands in Dinkytown with four seasons of college eligibility remaining. Williams made a name for himself on the football field at Lakeland High School, in Florida. He stands at 6’3″, 205 pounds, and without a doubt, will immediately stand out as one of the most talented wide receivers PJ Fleck has on roster.
Minnesota Gophers land big time transfer portal talent, Tyler Williams
Williams ranked in the top-115 (111) of the 2023 class, according to 247Sports.com, and a top-20 (17) wide receiver. Like a lot of wide receivers at the college level, started his high school career as a quarterback, before eventually making the change to WR. Given what he put on tape as a pass catcher, I’d say he made a pretty good decision.
In his high school highlight film, Williams flaunts his insane speed, effortlessly and continuously, blowing past defenders as if they were in slow motion, which is probably why he had offers from all the southern helmet schools, outside of the Bulldogs, including Alabama, South Carolina, Clemson, Texas A&M. During his redshirt season in Georgia, Tyler found the field in just two games, making one catch for 4 yards.
With Williams, its now the 11th four-star talent on the Gophers roster, really speaking volumes about the team’s depth and potential. With PJ Fleck’s dedicated efforts in recruiting, the team is amassing an impressive array of skilled players. Now, the next step is to translate this recruitment success into strong performance on the field.
Gophers Also Land VA Tech QB Dylan Wittke
But Williams wasn’t the only commitment the Minnesota Gophers received with ties to Georgia on Tuesday night. They also snagged another transfer portal quarterback, Dylan Wittke, from Virginia Tech.
Wittke’s a former 3-star prospect out of Buford High School in Georgia, like his new WR teammate, redshirted his freshman season, just up the coast from Mitchell.
Wittke won’t step into the spotlight for Minnesota just yet, but his presence definitely strengthens the QB room. New Hampshire grad-transfer, Max Brosmer is this team’s QB1 in 2024. But he only has one season of eligibility remaining.
The addition of Wittke gives the Gophers’ depth chart two legitimate young quarterback (don’t forget about incoming freshman Drake Lindsey) talents to nurture this season, and learn from a veteran like Brosmer, whose leadership has already made a huge impact on the Minnesota roster, even in the short time that he’s been in campus.
PJ Fleck has certainly been putting in the work, utilizing the transfer portal to his advantage and making smart use of those NIL funds. It’s encouraging to see Fleck bolstering the roster with an influx of talent, setting the stage for what promises to be an exciting and competitive season.
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