Gophers have Seth Green back in their QB recruiting mix

In the fall of 2014, Seth Green was a standout junior quarterback at East Ridge when he committed to play for Oregon over his two other finalists: Minnesota and Michigan State.

Now, Green is exploring his options again, and the Gophers are heavily in the mix.

Green transferred from East Ridge and is playing his senior season for Allen High School, a Texas powerhouse that will take a 57-game winning streak into Saturday's 6A state semifinals.

Green actually is splitting time in a QB platoon with Mitchell Jonke, a junior who has outperformed the Woodbury transplant statistically. Meanwhile, Oregon's interest in Green has cooled. He made an official visit to Minnesota this past weekend.

According to sources, the Gophers would welcome Green as part of their 2016 recruiting class, but they also don't want him to think his decision will make or break them.

That hasn't stopped other members of their recruiting class — namely Eden Prairie linebacker Carter Coughlin and Fort Lauderdale, Fla., defensive back Elijah Daniels — from tweeting their excitement about Green potentially playing for the Gophers.

Scout.com ranks Green as the nation's 19th-best quarterback recruit in the Class of 2016. 247Sports.com ranks Green as the nation's No. 11 dual threat QB.

Green and his father, Bryan, who played running back for the Gophers in the early 1990s, have not commented publicly and did not respond to messages from the Star Tribune.

The 6-4, 225-pound Green is scheduled to graduate from high school this month, which will set him up to enroll in college in January and participate in spring practice.

Green transferred to Allen in time for spring practice this year but found himself behind Jonke on the depth chart. Jonke has yet to receive a Division I scholarship offer, but he came through the Allen system, winning every game he started for the freshman and JV team, and now for the varsity.

Allen plays its home games in 18,000-seat Eagle Stadium, which opened in 2012 and cost $60 million.

"Allen is not just the kind of place you come in right away and start," said Jason Howell, a Texas recruiting analyst for Rivals.com. "I think [Green's] had some success. It's probably been an eye-opening year for him, not just with the talent level, but with the schemes. He's done well at times."

For the season, Jonke has completed 60 percent of his passes for 1,809 yards, with 32 combined touchdowns (rushing and passing) and five interceptions. Green has completed 56 percent of his passes with 28 combined touchdowns and seven interceptions.

Green is the team's second-leading rusher with 869 yards. Jonke ranks third on the team with 744 rushing yards.

Last week, the Gophers parted ways with Tony Poljan, a quarterback commit from Lansing, Mich. Green would be a notable replacement. His star isn't shining quite as bright as it was before he left for Texas, but the Gophers still would love to see him come home.

Joe Christensen joe.christensen@startribune.com