Q&A: Lakeville North Junior Bryce Benhart on Gophers: "I like them a lot."

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Q&A: Lakeville North Junior Bryce Benhart on Gophers: "I like them a lot."

Q&A: Lakeville North Junior Bryce Benhart on Gophers: "I like them a lot."
By Chris Monter

http://www.gopherhole.com/news_article/show/855539?referrer_id=331171

Bryce Benhart, a 6-foot-9. 295-pound junior offensive tackle from Lakeville (MN) North, is considered the top line prospect in the state in the Class of 2019.

Gopher Hole recently caught up with Benhart after the Panthers’ 42-14 first round playoff win over Buffalo to learn the latest on his junior season and recruitment.

Gopher Hole: Obviously, the strength of your team is the offensive line. How pleased are you with how well you have done this season. The running back situation is different this year with the loss of Mr. Football Wade Sullivan, but it seems like you guys are really clicking offensively at the right time.

Bryce Benhart: We have great running backs. We are just clicking as an O line. We are taking steps forward. That is all we need right now, be more physical.

Gopher Hole: How many college games have you gotten a chance to go to so far this year?

Bryce Benhart: I’ve been to a few. I went down to Iowa State, Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Gopher Hole: What do you gain from those experiences? I know that you are only a junior, but you are starting that recruitment early. What do you learn from those types of visits?

Bryce Benhart: I’m just thankful. I couldn’t explain that I was going to do this one year. It started so early.

Gopher Hole: Does that get you even more excited seeing the campus, seeing the crowds and the atmosphere?

Bryce Benhart: Yes.

Gopher Hole: How many offers are you up to right now? Five?

Bryce Benhart: I’m still at 5. (Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa State, UCLA and Northwestern)

Gopher Hole: What other schools are you hearing from besides those five?

Bryce Benhart: That’s nothing right now. Same schools right now.

Gopher Hole: What things are you really focused on to not only continue to improve yourself as a high school player, but to keep your eye on that high school game?

Bryce Benhart: Right now, I’m just focusing high school. Just to get my high school stuff good and my high school team going and college will come later. Right now, I am focused on high school.

Gopher Hole: Your dad played at Western Illinois and in the NFL for the Colts and was a college coach as well. How much has that had an impact on you?

Bryce Benhart: It’s great. He says that he stayed there for a year. He made it, but didn’t get enough to stay there.

Gopher Hole: How much has he had an influence on you playing the game? Is that where you got that love of the game?

Bryce Benhart: Yes, because my brother plays soccer. I’m the only one playing football in the family and I am just trying to carry it on with him.

Gopher Hole: What will it mean to play college football?

Bryce Benhart: It would be crazy. I can’t explain.

Gopher Hole: I know that the Gophers have made you a big priority in the Junior class and your teammate, Nathaniel Boe, has already committed there and they are committed to keeping the top in-state players. What are your feelings about Minnesota so far?

Bryce Benhart: I like them. I like them a lot. They are still up there.

Gopher Hole: I saw that you were recently named as one of the captains for the wrestling team. How much do you think that helps you as a lineman?

Bryce Benhart: Wrestling helps me so much. My dad took me out of basketball when I was young. Didn’t like the basketball program, so he got me into wrestling in third grade and it has just helped me keep my foot work and stay low and flexibility and all that stuff.

Gopher Hole: Obviously, there is a very good wrestler who is going to Minnesota next year, Gable Steveson of Apple Valley, who is in the same conference as you. What is it like to wrestle him?

Bryce Benhart: He’s an animal. He’s a monster. There is no one who can stop him.

Gopher Hole: Have you even thought about football camps for next year yet?

Bryce Benhart: No. Not at all. I’m just focusing on this.

Gopher Hole: What camps did you go to this past year?

Bryce Benhart: I went Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa State.
 

Q&A: Lakeville North Junior Bryce Benhart on Gophers: "I like them a lot."
By Chris Monter

http://www.gopherhole.com/news_article/show/855539?referrer_id=331171

Bryce Benhart, a 6-foot-9. 295-pound junior offensive tackle from Lakeville (MN) North, is considered the top line prospect in the state in the Class of 2019.

Gopher Hole recently caught up with Benhart after the Panthers’ 42-14 first round playoff win over Buffalo to learn the latest on his junior season and recruitment.

Gopher Hole: Obviously, the strength of your team is the offensive line. How pleased are you with how well you have done this season. The running back situation is different this year with the loss of Mr. Football Wade Sullivan, but it seems like you guys are really clicking offensively at the right time.

Bryce Benhart: We have great running backs. We are just clicking as an O line. We are taking steps forward. That is all we need right now, be more physical.

Gopher Hole: How many college games have you gotten a chance to go to so far this year?

Bryce Benhart: I’ve been to a few. I went down to Iowa State, Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Gopher Hole: What do you gain from those experiences? I know that you are only a junior, but you are starting that recruitment early. What do you learn from those types of visits?

Bryce Benhart: I’m just thankful. I couldn’t explain that I was going to do this one year. It started so early.

Gopher Hole: Does that get you even more excited seeing the campus, seeing the crowds and the atmosphere?

Bryce Benhart: Yes.

Gopher Hole: How many offers are you up to right now? Five?

Bryce Benhart: I’m still at 5. (Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa State, UCLA and Northwestern)

Gopher Hole: What other schools are you hearing from besides those five?

Bryce Benhart: That’s nothing right now. Same schools right now.

Gopher Hole: What things are you really focused on to not only continue to improve yourself as a high school player, but to keep your eye on that high school game?

Bryce Benhart: Right now, I’m just focusing high school. Just to get my high school stuff good and my high school team going and college will come later. Right now, I am focused on high school.

Gopher Hole: Your dad played at Western Illinois and in the NFL for the Colts and was a college coach as well. How much has that had an impact on you?

Bryce Benhart: It’s great. He says that he stayed there for a year. He made it, but didn’t get enough to stay there.

Gopher Hole: How much has he had an influence on you playing the game? Is that where you got that love of the game?

Bryce Benhart: Yes, because my brother plays soccer. I’m the only one playing football in the family and I am just trying to carry it on with him.

Gopher Hole: What will it mean to play college football?

Bryce Benhart: It would be crazy. I can’t explain.

Gopher Hole: I know that the Gophers have made you a big priority in the Junior class and your teammate, Nathaniel Boe, has already committed there and they are committed to keeping the top in-state players. What are your feelings about Minnesota so far?

Bryce Benhart: I like them. I like them a lot. They are still up there.

Gopher Hole: I saw that you were recently named as one of the captains for the wrestling team. How much do you think that helps you as a lineman?

Bryce Benhart: Wrestling helps me so much. My dad took me out of basketball when I was young. Didn’t like the basketball program, so he got me into wrestling in third grade and it has just helped me keep my foot work and stay low and flexibility and all that stuff.

Gopher Hole: Obviously, there is a very good wrestler who is going to Minnesota next year, Gable Steveson of Apple Valley, who is in the same conference as you. What is it like to wrestle him?

Bryce Benhart: He’s an animal. He’s a monster. There is no one who can stop him.

Gopher Hole: Have you even thought about football camps for next year yet?

Bryce Benhart: No. Not at all. I’m just focusing on this.

Gopher Hole: What camps did you go to this past year?

Bryce Benhart: I went Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa State.

He gone
 


If Bryce likes MN, then I like Bryce.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 



Bryce Benhart, a 6-foot-9. 295-pound junior offensive tackle from Lakeville (MN) North, is considered the top line prospect in the state in the Class of 2019.

I liked the interview, but no one (except maybe Benhart's mom) considers him the top line prospect in the state in the Class of 2019.
 

6-9 295 ... he certainly passes the eye test, on paper.
 

Anyone have insight as to why his Crystal Ball is Wisconsin? Or is it because of the painfully obvious?
 

I liked the interview, but no one (except maybe Benhart's mom) considers him the top line prospect in the state in the Class of 2019.

Until he goes to WI and continues to dominate us in the next 4 axe games.
 




Anyone have insight as to why his Crystal Ball is Wisconsin? Or is it because of the painfully obvious?
Being close to the high school team it sounds like Wisconsin is #1 right now.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 






Being close to the high school team it sounds like Wisconsin is #1 right now.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

I'm hearing the same thing, yet he's no where near a commitment to anyone. I, also, heard some hints at annoyance about the staff last spring when he was feeling pressured to commit after getting offered. "C'mon...what are you waiting for?"...type of stuff.

I wouldn't consider myself close to LNHS, yet 24 years of coaching has built relationships around the state.

dpod: thus, I have no link for my Iowa State comment; however, it's a strong source.
 

I liked the interview, but no one (except maybe Benhart's mom) considers him the top line prospect in the state in the Class of 2019.

Why dont you provide The Dolly top 5 linemen in MN , claSS OF 2019.
 

Why dont you provide The Dolly top 5 linemen in MN , claSS OF 2019.

Not sure how deep his knowledge of OL prospects goes, but I'm pretty sure he could provide you his opinion on #1. First name starts with a Q and rhymes with Win.

Now whether that's true or not remains to be seen. That said, it seems the majority of D1 coaches and recruiting services around the nation agree with that assessment...ISU notwithstanding according to a poster here.
 

It could also be that ISU realizes they don't have a shot at QC and have made Benhart their top priority at OL.
 

Anyone have insight as to why his Crystal Ball is Wisconsin? Or is it because of the painfully obvious?

Depends which painfully obvious, I guess. Could be that they're the #1 team in the Big Ten and likely to be this year's version of last year Washington. Or could be the incredible culture and party atmosphere in Madison. Or the incredible stadium and gameday atmosphere.

Hey I'm still a Gopher fan, but I'm not blind either.
 

or the number of NFL lineman they have produced, or maybe it's that Paul Bunyan's axe is becoming simply a rumor here:(
 

I, also, heard some hints at annoyance about the staff last spring when he was feeling pressured to commit after getting offered. "C'mon...what are you waiting for?"...type of stuff.

Whose staff? Ours or Wisconsin's?
 

Whose staff? Ours or Wisconsin's?

Ours I assume

Someone had mentioned earlier we are aggressive and what these people to commit fast.
We're the home school. In many cases, the home school is where you go because you've got tradition of success there.
 

Ours I assume

Someone had mentioned earlier we are aggressive and what these people to commit fast.
We're the home school. In many cases, the home school is where you go because you've got tradition of success there.


Your assumption is correct.
 

Depends which painfully obvious, I guess. Could be that they're the #1 team in the Big Ten and likely to be this year's version of last year Washington. Or could be the incredible culture and party atmosphere in Madison. Or the incredible stadium and gameday atmosphere.

Hey I'm still a Gopher fan, but I'm not blind either.
If I were an o lineman, I could see why Wisconsin might be appealing. They win, they run, and they put guys in the NFL. Madison blows though. The female talent pool is far superior in Dinkytown. We need to highlight that more.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 

Your assumption is correct.

I'm not going to let that bother me though.

If he needs to be a cause for change to do something that hasn't been done before, the choice is simple.

If he needs to be in an environment where he can just ride the coattails of what others have done, then he can take the easier route and just be another guy in a system that's been doing the same thing and coming up short for over 25 years.

If Minnesota offered him and he didn't feel the need to commit here, is he hungry enough to take on the work?

It's a lot easier to just go to WI and be the next guy there, and if you fail miserably, no one in WI will know who you are or remember you.
Takes a bit more confidence to accept on the spot, say I'm the guy who's going to help make something happen that hasn't happened in 20, 40, 50 years.

Go to Wisconsin and tell your kids someday that you were one of 700 offensive lineman between the year 1991 and 2025 who did A, B, or C. Stories of where you are one of hundreds is far better than a story where you did something transformational. But then again, not everyone is up to the challenge.
 

But then again, not everyone is up to the challenge.

Some could say it takes more courage to live up to the challenge where there are already higher expectations and a legacy to live up to, and going somewhere where there isn't a strong legacy doesn't take a whole lot of courage. (ie..How would Joe Mauer performed and handled the pressure of being a Yankee? Would he still be playing?)
 

I'm not going to let that bother me though.

If he needs to be a cause for change to do something that hasn't been done before, the choice is simple.

If he needs to be in an environment where he can just ride the coattails of what others have done, then he can take the easier route and just be another guy in a system that's been doing the same thing and coming up short for over 25 years.

If Minnesota offered him and he didn't feel the need to commit here, is he hungry enough to take on the work?

It's a lot easier to just go to WI and be the next guy there, and if you fail miserably, no one in WI will know who you are or remember you.
Takes a bit more confidence to accept on the spot, say I'm the guy who's going to help make something happen that hasn't happened in 20, 40, 50 years.

Go to Wisconsin and tell your kids someday that you were one of 700 offensive lineman between the year 1991 and 2025 who did A, B, or C. Stories of where you are one of hundreds is far better than a story where you did something transformational. But then again, not everyone is up to the challenge.

Wow. Remind me not to solicit your advice when my kid is making his college choice. "Sure, you could go to MIT with a proven track record of job placement and high salaries once you graduate, or you could be brave and go to Dakota County Technical College and do something transformative."

My example is extreme, but you get the idea. If he chooses Minnesota it shouldn't
be based on his desire to transform the program for our benefit, it should be based on what's best for him and his future. Fleck needs to sell that along with all else...Warnier can help!

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 

Well, good luck wherever he goes.

Packer fans will love him.
 




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