Gophers Land Former All-American in Portal

With the departure of Koi Perich in the transfer portal, the Minnesota Gophers have an influx of NIL funds to hand out. P.J. Fleck has been busy grabbing commitments left and right.

His biggest get of the cycle thus far is four-star wide receiver Perry Thompson from Auburn. Minnesota has kept the pedal down when adding across the roster though. Now they’re bringing in former freshman All-American T.J. Bush Jr.

TJ Bush Jr signing with Minnesota Gophers

Danny Collins saw cracks in his defense at times during his first year leading the unit for the Minnesota Gophers. More pressure on the quarterback could help to alleviate some of those issues. P.J. Fleck just addressed that idea with the addition of T.J. Bush Jr.

After a standout season as a freshman for the Liberty Flames, Bush only has continued his excellence. This season with Cal, he played in 13 games and racked up 40 tackles. He had 10.5 tackles for loss, and 5.5 sacks with the Golden Bears.

In the game against the Gophers, where Perich flopped and Minnesota fell short, Bush picked up three tackles, one for loss, and a sack of quarterback Drew Lindsey. Now he will be teammates with the guys he beat that night.

Fleck and Collins could opt to use Bush in a multitude of different roles. He started with Liberty as a traditional defensive end, and worked as an outside linebacker with Cal. The Minnesota Gophers are returning their top three edge rushers, and Bush gives them an embarrassment of riches.

Bush should spell Anthony Smith some, and there’s a possibility he could rotate in with Karter Menz and Jaxon Howard as well. It’s hardly a bad thing to have a bunch of good defensive lineman that get after the quarterback. Bush excelled with Cal, and can now add to the Gophers mix in the Big Ten.