Gopher Football Signs 20, Including LB Carter Coughlin
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO/AP) — It's a little like Draft Day in the NFL. On National Signing Day, the day high school seniors sign their letters of intent to accept Division I football scholarships, every team gets better.
The Gophers signed 20 prospects on Wednesday. There was an emphasis on offensive linemen to be sure, but Mike Max takes a look at some of the locals that stayed and got away.
There were the football family connections. Carter Coughlin from Eden Prairie will do what his father did: Play on the defensive side of the ball for the Gophers. He'll most likely be a linebacker.
Teammate J.D. Spielman, the son of Vikings General Manager Rick Spielman, is going to a different Big Ten school: Nebraska.
Robbinsdale Armstrong's Thomas Barber is following in the footsteps of his father and two brothers. He signed a letter of intent Wednesday to join the Gophers.
"It means a lot. I mean they've done a lot for us and it's just going to be fun just to be where they're at and try to do big things as they did," Barber said.
The Gophers landed a number of local quarterbacks, but the only one that may end up playing the position is Seth Green. He transferred from East Ridge to a Texas high school and is already enrolled at the University of Minnesota.
Burnsville's Kamal Martin will play another position. He has the skill sets of an athlete that can do many things, and that's why they wanted him.
It's the same situation with Minneapolis North's Tyler Johnson. He has been a dominant two-sport athlete at Minneapolis North in large part because he loves to compete.
Robbinsdale Cooper's Phillip Howard played some quarterback and some receiver. Again, another high-octane athlete who you just want in your program.
For Tracy Claeys, it was his first chance to be called on to close deals, although most were already in place. His first National Signing Day represents another step in his tenure as head coach.
"Our senior class had 28 wins, which is the most of a senior class in 10 years. So there's no question that with winning, you get bigger fans and kids would rather stay home. But to stay home, it's got to be worth staying home for," Claeys said. "And then I mean the commitment that's been made to the new facility, those kids know now that they're going to have as good of facilities to be in every day as they could if they go anywhere else."
Though the Gophers lost some their initial commitments, the encouragement of Coughlin and the determination of Claeys helped keep the class largely intact. The Gophers were ranked 50th in the FBS by Rivals.com (10th in the Big Ten), 46th by 247sports.com (ninth) and 42nd by Scout.com (eighth), their highest national scores of the Kill-Claeys regime that started in 2011.
"I was in a different airport every day, because you didn't want to leave anything to chance. You wanted to make sure you got into homes and those things were all solid, because change is a scary deal," Claeys said.
Other things to know:
Top 25 class: No
Best in class: Carter Coughlin, LB, Eden Prairie, Minn.
Best of the rest: QB Seth Green, Allen, Texas; Tyler Johnson, WR, Minneapolis North HS; Garrison Wright, OL, Butler CC (Kansas); Sam Schlueter, OL, Victoria (Minnesota)/Mayer Lutheran HS; Kamal Martin, LB, Burnsville (Minnesota) HS; Philip Howard, WR, Minneapolis/Robbinsdale Cooper HS; Coney Durr, CB, Geismar (Louisiana) Dutchtown HS; Thomas Barber, LB, Plymouth (Minnesota)/Robbinsdale Armstrong HS; Vincent Calhoun, OL, Southwest Mississippi CC; Merrick Jackson, DL, Iowa Western CC.
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