Last year, Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck had to sweat out the days leading up to the early signing period. Koi Perich, the top-ranked recruit in the state from Esko High School, was committed to Fleck and the Gophers, but Ohio State was making one last (and very convincing push) for the star safety’s signature.
Recap: Gophers 2025 football early signing day
Headlined by four-star recruits in edge rusher Emmanuel Karmo and quarterback Jackson Kollock, P.J. Fleck and the Gophers signed 20 players during the morning session of the early signing day period
The Minnesota Star Tribune
December 4, 2024 at 4:02PM
In the end, Perich stayed true to his home state and signed with Minnesota. A year later — and with Perich emerging as one of the top freshmen in the nation — Fleck had a similar situation play out with Robbinsdale Cooper star Emmanuel Karmo. A Gophers commit, Karmo was being recruited heavily by another prominent Big Ten school, and in the days leading up to Wednesday, largely stayed silent.
However, when it came time to put ink to paper, Karmo signed with Minnesota. His signature capped off a good day for Fleck and the Gophers as they signed the state’s top three prospects: Karmo, Ethan Stendel (Caledonia) and Abu Tarawallie (Heritage Christian) They also made significant strides in their West Coast pipeline, adding four-star quarterback Jackson Kollock from Laguna Beach, Calif.
To read more about Minnesota’s incoming class and to hear Fleck’s comments, click HERE.
Dawson Garcia’s 20 points and Femi Odukale’s 18 led Minnesota to its first victory at Carver-Hawkeye Arena since 2015.
