For the second afternoon in a row, the Gopher Football team has lost a player to the NCAA transfer portal. Yesterday, it was RS Senior Kiondre Thomas and today it is RS Sophomore, Mayan Ahanotu.
#Gophers redshirt sophomore DL Mayan Ahanotu entered his name into the NCAA Transfer Portal this afternoon, per a source.
— Ryan Burns (@RyanBurnsMN) February 4, 2020
Ahanotu was named Defensive Scout Team Player of the Year in 2018, and appeared in three games for Minnesota last fall. https://t.co/61zRF7qMVY pic.twitter.com/XrTD27Ok5N
Ahanotu was practice squad player of the year in 2018, according to Ryan Burns’ story, but hasn’t gotten much playing time early in his career.
It’s always interesting to think about what goes on behind closed doors in these scenarios. With most of the defensive line leaving due to graduation, it’s an interesting time for a backup DL to move on…
Other Quick Notes:
- National Signing Day is tomorrow but the Gophers have already signed a full class on Early National Signing Day last month so you probably won’t see any commitments for 2020.
- Dylan McGill, a WR recruit originally expected to join the class of 2020, will “Gray Shirt” instead, and hopes to sign with the 2021 class in January. A “Gray Shirt” essentially delays your freshman year of college, even though you’ve graduated high school. In Dylan’s case, he will be using that time to raise his SAT/ACT scores. He notes in an interview with 247Sports.com, that he is NCAA eligible, but is having issues getting cleared by the University of Minnesota
Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan