P.J. Fleck couldn’t help but stare at Oklahoma transfer Marcus Major at times during fall camp, surprised how much he looked like “a bigger version” of former Gophers All-America Mo Ibrahim.
Of course, it helped Major wears the same No. 24 jersey as the program’s all-time leading rusher.
Major isn’t the next Ibrahim, but he won the Gophers starting job last week with leading returning rusher Darius Taylor still recovering from a leg injury. Major rushed 20 times for 73 yards and a touchdown for his Gophers debut in the 19-17 season-opening loss against North Carolina.
Major’s injury-plagued career continued with shoulder surgery that kept him out of spring practice after transferring, but he exceeded Fleck’s expectations during the running back competition this fall.
“I just knew I had to come in and step up,” said Major, who started five games in five years with the Sooners.
In seven games last year, Major had 78 carries for 308 rushing yards and a touchdown. His previous career high in rushing attempts was 19 carries for 66 yards vs. Iowa State in 2023. One of his best career games came in a victory against Florida in the 2020 Cotton Bowl, when he rushed for 110 yards on nine carries.
“I think there’s a lot of things he’s going to be able to improve on,” Fleck said on his weekly radio show. “Being out there in Game 1, you could tell he just got his style back. You watch his starts and how he played at Oklahoma, you saw flashes of that.”
In the second quarter vs. UNC, Major rushed for 46 of his 73 first-half yards. His 5-yard TD run tied the game 7-7. And the Gophers took a 14-10 lead at halftime with his 19-yard run setting up the score.