Zahir Rainer, a safety from Trinity Episcopal School in Richmond, Va., announced Thursday on Twitter that he has committed to the Gophers football program for its 2024 recruiting class.
Virginia prep safety Zahir Rainer commits to Gophers football program
The three-star recruit picked Minnesota from a finalists list that included Duke, North Carolina, Stanford, Virginia, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest.
April 13, 2023 at 11:32PM
![Minnesota Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck leads the team onto the field before the start of an NCAA football game against the Northwestern Wildcats Saturday, Nov. 12, 2022 at Huntington Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minn.. ] AARON LAVINSKY • aaron.lavinsky@startribune.com](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/CTYVOEGUXN2RHS3CZKIJF7I6SE.jpg?&w=712)
Rainer, 5-10 and 185 pounds, is a three-star recruit who is ranked the 19th-best player in Virginia and the 66th-best safety nationally in the 2024 class by the 247Sports composite of major recruiting services. Rainer received scholarship offers from 24 other FBS programs, and he listed Duke, North Carolina, Stanford, Virginia, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest as his finalists, along with the Gophers. Minnesota offered him a scholarship on June 25, 2022, and he made an unofficial visit to campus on March 30.
Rainer helped lead Trinity Episcopal to the Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association Division I state championship last year. His father, Wali Rainer, is a former Virginia linebacker who played seven seasons in the NFL for Cleveland, Jacksonville and Detroit.
Rainer's commitment gives the Gophers nine players in their 2024 recruiting class.
The match was the first between Washington and the Gophers since Keegan Cook left the Huskies to coach Minnesota.
