Gophers football now without pair of safeties from 2017 recruiting class

per Greder:

The Gophers football program will open fall camp next week without both safeties from its 2017 recruiting class, leaving questions on who will step in behind the projected starters in the defensive backfield.

Adam Beck, of Richmond, Texas, left Minnesota and transferred to Texas Tech in June, joining Kendarian Handy-Holly, of Jackson, Ala., who left the U in February and joined Auburn as a walk-on in June.

Beck, who redshirted at Minnesota in 2017, had five tackles in the Gophers spring game in April. Last season, Handy-Holly had 12 tackles, a forced fumble and fumble recovery in eight games as a true freshman.

Beck said this summer in a message on Twitter: “As for anyone wondering why, I”m going to leave it as family and need to be closer to home.”

Both Beck and Handy-Holly were members of head coach P.J. Fleck’s first recruiting class at Minnesota, which was compiled in three weeks from when he was hired from Western Michigan in January 2017 until National Signing Day the first Wednesday in February. Beck had flipped his commitment from Texas Tech to Minnesota late that January.

The Gophers’ starting safeties this year are expected to be senior Jacob Huff and redshirt sophomore Antoine Winfield Jr., who was granted a medical redshirt after a hamstring injury last season. Walk-on sophomore Calvin Swenson, who led the maroon team with 13 tackles in the spring game, and true freshman Josh Aune, of Highland Park in St. Paul, are potential backups.

https://www.twincities.com/2018/07/...id-of-safety-pair-from-2017-recruiting-class/

Go Gophers!!

Next men up!

This is...not good. Hope the young guys can play right away when/if needed.

I was really impressed by Swenson in the spring game.

btowngopher said:

I was really impressed by Swenson in the spring game.

Click to expand...

Swenson was a Sawvel favorite. Looked great in Spring game.

The 247 guys reporting very good things on Sapp, CJ Smith and, in the possible surprise of Fall, late preferred walk-on Jordan Howden.

New db coach Addae brought Howden in from a Vegas powerhouse school in June. Reminds me of some of lightly recruited guys Sawvel added late and ended up helping in the secondary as true frosh (Wells, Cedric).

Sapp could be like Winfield was in 2016, an NFL heritage kid from EP who shows out as a true freshman AllAmerican.

CJ Smith could help add some size and speed as a true frosh like Antonio and Damarius both did.

T Smith also could help as true frosh, like Myrick and James. Has Myrick like top of the charts speed (Kick return?). Would love to see somebody handle punt return like James did as a true frosh.

Levine like true frosh contributions from Aune?

If you don’t have a 247 subscription, you are not getting the best Gopher coverage available in the market. Burns and Goblirsch two steps ahead of everyone else (Rivals, Pioneer Press, Star Tribune) not just on recruiting but on personnel updates, coaching philosophy. Burns recent position reviews and previews are pure gold.