# Minnesota Golden Gophers

Big Ten · Huntington Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, MN
Head coach: P.J. Fleck · year 10 · 66-44 at MINN · 96-66 career over 14 seasons
Offense: Multiple · Defense: 4-3

## 2026 outlook

- 2025 record: 8-5 (5-4 in conference)
- National title odds: +75000 (#45 on the futures board)
- Season win total: 6.5 (over priced +128)
- Returning starter games: 53%
- Schedule difficulty: 40th-hardest of 138 FBS teams

## Returning production by unit

| Unit | Returning games | Games back | Depth back |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Skill offense | 50% | 34/68 | 7/15 |
| Offensive line | 60% | 39/65 | 8/13 |
| Defensive front | 58% | 52/90 | 13/21 |
| Secondary | 40% | 24/60 | 9/14 |

## Roster movement

- Key returning: John Nestor (DB), Drake Lindsey (QB), Anthony Smith (DL), Kerry Brown (DB), Karter Menz (DL)
- Key departures (with destination): Marcellus Marshall (OL), Dylan Ray (OL), Koi Perich (DB) – ORE, Aluma Nkele (OL), Devon Williams (LB)
- Key arrivals (with previous school): Michael Merdinger (QB) – LIB, Zion Steptoe (WR) – TLSA, Noah Jennings (WR) – CIN, Perry Thompson (WR) – AUB, Kaden Helms (TE) – OKLA

## Depth chart

### Offense

- WR-X: Jalen Smith, Noah Jennings, Bradley Martino
- WR-Z: Perry Thompson, Donielle Hayes
- WR-SL: Javon Tracy, Zion Steptoe
- LT: Nathan Roy, Kaveon Lee
- LG: Greg Johnson, Jaden Ball
- C: Ashton Beers, Brett Carroll
- RG: Tony Nelson, Jerome Williams
- RT: Bennett Warren, Daniel Shipp
- TE: Kaden Helms, Pierce Walsh, Julian Johnson
- QB: Drake Lindsey, Max Shikenjanski, Michael Merdinger
- RB: Darius Taylor, A.J. Turner, TJ Thomas

### Defense

- DE: Anthony Smith, TJ Bush Jr., Adam Kissayi
- NT: Naquan Crowder, Riley Sunram, Mo Omonode
- DT: Xion Chapman, Sid Kaba, Jaylin Hicks
- RUSH: Jaxon Howard, Karter Menz
- WLB: Matt Kingsbury, Emmanuel Karmo, Mason Carrier
- MLB: Maverick Baranowski, Joey Gerlach, Andrew Marshall
- LCB: John Nestor, Mike Gerald
- SS: Kerry Brown, Mekhai Smith, Zahir Rainer
- FS: Aidan Gousby, Zack Harden
- RCB: Aydan West, Naiim Parrish
- NB: Parker Knutson, Garrison Monroe, Elisha West

### Special Teams

- PT: Tom Weston, Zachary Robbins
- PK: Beckham Sunderland, Daniel Jackson
- KO: Beckham Sunderland, Daniel Jackson
- LS: Alan Soukup, Jakob Lutz
- H: Tom Weston, Zachary Robbins

## 2026 schedule

| Week | Opponent | Site | TV | Spread |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | Eastern Illinois Panthers (FCS) | Home | Peacock/NBCSN | MINN -43.5 |
| 2 | Mississippi State | Home | CBS | – |
| 3 | Akron | Home | BTN | – |
| 4 | Washington | Away | – | – |
| 5 | Michigan | Home | – | – |
| 6 | Purdue | Away | – | – |
| 8 | Iowa | Home | – | – |
| 9 | Indiana | Away | – | – |
| 10 | UCLA | Home | – | – |
| 11 | Penn State | Away | – | – |
| 12 | Northwestern | Home | – | – |
| 13 | Wisconsin | Away | NBC/Peacock | – |

---

Source: SharpData OS – https://www.sharpdataos.com/cfb/teams/minnesota
Depth chart updated 2026-08-11. Odds shown are point-in-time snapshots.