Markus Allen News - MinnesotaSportsFan https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/tag/markus-allen/ Minnesota sports, but different Thu, 08 Dec 2022 17:56:02 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9 https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=32,height=32,fit=crop,quality=80,format=auto,onerror=redirect,metadata=none/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/cropped-cropped-MSF-favicon-1.jpg Markus Allen News - MinnesotaSportsFan https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/tag/markus-allen/ 32 32 Markus Allen Pulls Verbal at Minnesota, Re-Commits to Wisconsin https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/gophers-football/markus-allen-minnesota-commit-wisconsin/ Thu, 08 Dec 2022 17:55:59 +0000 https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/?p=41270 Wide receiver, Markus Allen, left the University of Wisconsin football program and entered the transfer portal midseason, when Paul Chryst was fired as head coach. Last week, Allen committed to the Minnesota Gophers, who were desperate for an immediate boost in talent at the outside skill position.

That’s exactly what Markus would have brought to the table. But on Wednesday, he de-commited from Minnesota and announced his transfer portal recruitment as open. Then on Thursday, he re-committed to Wisconsin.

Markus Allen chose offense

Markus Allen’s midseason departure from Madison must’ve been greatly related to interim coach, Jim Leonard. Many thought Leonard would get the full time job this offseason but that’s not how it went.

Instead, the Badger athletic department had their sights set on Cincinnati’s Luke Fickell, who was announced as the new head coach at Wisconsin on November 28. A week later (yesterday), Fickell hired North Carolina offensive coordinator, Phil Longo, for the same position.

With Fickell and Longo in charge of the Badgers offense, it should look 300% more explosive than the power-run, control the clock, type football we’ve become accustomed to in the Big Ten West. And that, I’d imagine, is exactly why Markus Allen is heading back East to Madison.

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

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Thu, 08 Dec 2022 11:56:02 +0000 Minnesota Gophers Football
Badgers’ Receiver Commits to Gophers Out of Transfer Portal https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/gophers-football/wisconsin-badgers-wide-receiver-markus-allen-commits-to-gophers-out-of-transfer-portal/ Mon, 28 Nov 2022 19:14:28 +0000 https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/?p=41194 Former Wisconsin Badgers wide receiver, Markus Allen, — who received an offer from PJ Fleck & Co after his visit to Dinkytown earlier this month — has committed to the Minnesota Gophers. The former 4-star high school recruit announced his decision Monday, on Twitter.

Markus Allen Enters Transfer Portal Early

Allen comes in at 6-2, 190 lbs, according to 247Sports. The transfer portal doesn’t officially open for business until December 5. Markus was able to enter early because of a clause in portal rules allowing players whose coach has been fired mid-season to enter the portal immediately. Wisconsin head coach, Paul Chryst, was fired on October 2.

There’s no coincidence in the timing of this commitment. Clearly, Markus Allen wanted to make his commitment before the portal opened for everyone else. You can guarantee he saw PJ Fleck change his best offensively over the weekend when the Gophers rode QB Athan Kaliakmanis (319 yards, 2 TD) to a victory over Allen’s former teammates on national TV.

Who knows what will happen when the opening bell rings on the transfer portal next week but, as of now, the Gophers look like they’ll have some decent depth at wide receiver next season. Allen becomes the 2nd-highest recruit to enter the fold.

Gophers Wide Receiver Weapons

Dylan Wright is a former high-end 4-star and top-75 national recruit who transferred from Texas A&M. He and Daniel Jackson showed their potential vs Wisconsin. Both made phenomenal catches up, over and around defenders.

But the biggest boost to this passing attack could be the return of Chris Autman-Bell, who has already committed to returning for a 6th year, after being lost for the season with a leg injury in week 3 vs Colorado. Brevyn Spann-Ford appears more likely to stay, than not, as well.

We’ll see where Markus Allen slots into this receiving equation but he’ll clearly get every opportunity to contribute or he wouldn’t have committed to playing his college career out here. PJ had to convince him that he’d get target as well, meaning Athan will have to throw it around on a much more regular basis than what we’ve become accustomed to.

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

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Mon, 28 Nov 2022 13:14:34 +0000 Minnesota Gophers Football
Badgers Transfer WR Gets Offer from Gophers After Visiting Dinkytown https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/gophers-football/badgers-transfer-wr-markus-allen-gets-offer-from-gophers-after-visiting-dinkytown/ Wed, 16 Nov 2022 22:36:17 +0000 https://www.minnesotasportsfan.com/?p=41100 Markus Allen had offers from across the country coming out of high school in 2021. At one point, he was committed to Michigan, landing at the University of Wisconsin. But when the Badgers fired their head coach, Paul Chryst, earlier this season, Allen took his opportunity to enter the transfer portal.

And last weekend, the 6’2″, 190 lb former 4-star wide receiver recruit from of Clayton, OH could be found at the University of Minnesota. Clearly, something clicked while during his visit because Allen got an offer from PJ Fleck and Co on Wednesday.

After redshirting as a freshman, Markus Allen played 108 snaps for the Badgers in 2022, still good for 4th most on the team. Allen’s season ended with 6 games, 7 receptions and 91 yards after he announced his transfer and stopped playing for Wisconsin on October 16.

How interested is Markus Allen in Minnesota

He’s reportedly very interested in the Gophers and even paid his own way for the visit last weekend. Allen announced a visit to the University of Kansas next weekend. We’ll see if he takes it or if this offer can seal the deal before he leaves.

If Markus committed to Minnesota, he’d be immediately seen as a starter, across from 6th-year returnee, Chris Autman-Bell. If he doesn’t land in Dinkytown, you can expect PJ Fleck, Matt Simon and Kirk Ciarrocca to be on the prowl for a high-end transfer wide receiver throughout the offseason.

In the meantime, here is some background and high school highlights for Markus Allen.

Good overall size and length. Solid bulk and build to him already in high school. Will be a big, physical college receiver. Smooth and has good ball skills. Tracks it well in the air and will use his size to go up and win contested passes. Will adjust well to passes and shows good body control. No verified speed as far as a laser time or a track time. Can still get more straight-line explosive. Projects safely as a red-zone guy and productive short to intermediate receiver. Upside is higher especially if he is able to get to another gear top-end wise.

Allen Trieu (247Sports Lead Recruiting Analyst)

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

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Wed, 16 Nov 2022 16:36:21 +0000 Minnesota Gophers Football