Koi Perich and Drake Lindsey's budding friendship leads Gophers into new era

Originally posted on Minnesota Golden Gophers on SI
By Tony Liebert | Last updated Jul 16, 2025 2:24 PM ET

Picture via: @tonyliebert (X)

Koi Perich and Drake Lindsey signed with Minnesota in the same high school recruiting class back in 2024. Now heading into year two with the program, a budding friendship between both players leads Gophers football into a new era.

Perich established himself as a superstar as a true freshman last season. Lindsey's opportunity to introduce himself to the college football world will come in 2025, as he's Minnesota's projected starting quarterback. They are now arguably the two most important players for the future of Gophers football.

"That's one of my best friends, and we've developed a really good relationship," Lindsey said. "I took him down to Arkansas in May, and we just hung out, and played some golf, but got to talk about football as well. He's a very special person, it's unreal. He can do a lot of different things on the football field that not a lot of people can do. It's going to be awesome to see what he can add to our offense."

.@Drakelindsey5 doesn’t need the putter #RTB #SkiUMah #Gophers pic.twitter.com/419FbsYBjj
— Minnesota Football (@GopherFootball) May 29, 2025

All signs point towards Perich having an expanded two-way role in 2025, but his golf game might be his true second calling. He posted a scorecard in May earlier this year, with a 77 on Black Bear Golf Course in Cloquet, Minnesota, but that's still apparently not enough to beat Lindsey.

70 club pic.twitter.com/Rds5ErNRul
— Koi Perich (@koiperich3) May 14, 2025

"Me and Drake go way back, a lot of competition. I haven't beat him in golf this year, I am very dissapointed in that. I've got a lot of work to do, especially in the golf game," Perich said. "Me and Drake are great friends."

Minnesota is loaded with NFL-level talent across its roster, with players like Darius Taylor, Anthony Smith and Kerry Brown. But the true ceiling of the program over the next two seasons will likely be determined by the performance of Lindsey and Perich, who seem to be really good friends.