MN Gophers Land Former Top 100 Recruit Out of Transfer Portal

While the Vikings were playing their final game of the 2025 NFL season, the Minnesota Gophers football team — which just defeated New Mexico in the Rate Bowl two weeks ago — was busy signing new players out of the transfer portal for the future.

Minnesota Gophers land HUGE Tennessee transfer

PJ Fleck’s first transfer commitment of the day came via the SEC, (OT) Bennett Warren, who’s 247Sports page confirms was never considering Dinkytown when he left high school out of Sugar Land, TX two years ago as a 96-overall four-star football recruit.

That’s because back then, the 2024 top 100 national recruit and eventual University of Tennessee commit was dealing mostly with blue bloods that pay freak athletes like the 6’7″ 325 pound offensive tackle more money walking on campus than the Minnesota Gophers can pay most of their best players.

Tennessee signee Bennett Warren is a MOUNTAIN😳@adamgorney | @RivalsFriedman | @JohnGarcia_Jr | @gregsmithrivals | @RivalsCorey | @TennesseeRivals pic.twitter.com/P9EM3898jt

— Rivals High School (@RivalsHS) January 2, 2024

But even if the grass is technically “greener” out in Knoxville, it isn’t always kind to talented prospects that don’t immediately blossom into great power four college football players. And that appears to be the story with young Bennett Warren.

Bennett Warren struggled to find way at Tennessee

In his two seasons as a Volunteer, Warren played in 18 games, eight of which saw him take snaps on Tennessee’s offensive line. The rest were via special teams. In fact, Warren comes to Minnesota with just 116 snaps of underwhelming collegiate o-line experience (according to PFF).

During Bennett Warren’s true freshman season at Tennessee, the former four-star played in only four regular season games, which gives him three remaining seasons of college eligibility. He also played 3 snaps on special teams in the Vol’s bowl game that year, per PFF.

Can the Minnesota Gophers o-line coaches pull the talent out of Warren and put him back on a path to the NFL? The have plenty of evidence to show it’s possible and they need all the help they can get up front, on both sides of the ball.

Related: Gophers Get Full Commitment From Edge Rushing Group

Of course, they spent money bringing in help in the trenches last offseason too, and a lot of that went unused, after those transfer portal additions were either outplayed our injured for much of the season.

That’s not something PJ Fleck & Co can have happen again in 2026. Not if they want to climb back up the Big Ten rankings and flirt with the College Football Playoff.