The Minnesota Golden Gophers have enjoyed a strong start to their season, improving to 6-3 with a notable 25-17 win over the No. 24 Illinois Fighting Illini on the road on Saturday.
A good part of that success has been a stout defense that has allowed an opponent to score over 30 points just once this season, while seven of their nine games have been with opponents scoring under 20 points.
When it comes to major contributors on that defense, one of the first names that comes to mind is Minnesota true freshman Koi Perich, who has exploded onto the scene in his first season with the Gophers, recording 13 tackles, five interceptions and a forced fumble through the first nine games of the season.
Perich has shown up on a consistent basis and in big moments, recording a game-winning interception in Minnesota’s wins over the USC Trojans and the UCLA Bruins, putting his name on the map.
A four-star recruit in the Class of 2024, Perich had a bevy of offers, but elected to stay with his hometown team and immediately carved out a major role for the Gophers as a lynchpin in the team’s secondary.
Ahead of this week, Perich was rated as PFF’s highest-graded safety in college football with a 91.4 grade, signifying how big his impact has been in 2024.
Well, his impact doesn’t just stop there, as the freshman has started to be experimented with on offense, earning a snap in Minnesota’s game last weekend against Maryland.
Could that be a part of his role going forward?
“It’s something that we want to be able to dabble with a little bit. I don’t want to put too much on his plate, but whatever we’ve put on his plate, he’s been fine,” head coach P.J. Fleck said earlier this week. “He’s a competitor and an athlete and if we can add another athlete on offense, and I am not saying he’s gonna play 30, 40 snaps, but if we can find a way to get 8-10 snaps with him doing different things, then we’re definitely gonna highlight that.
“We have big plans for him. He has just grown into a bigger role and another role and another role. One thing about Koi Perich is he will handle any role you give him, and most true freshman can’t do that. There are a lot of seniors that can’t do that. He loves football. I mean loves football and loves competition. When you have somebody like that, that is such a good athlete, you want to get him on the field as much as you can: offense, defense, special teams. And throughout his career, he is going to do it all.”
Perich didn’t record an offensive touch against the Fighting Illini on Saturday, but his usage in the offensive part of the game plan has to be monitored as the Golden Gophers find a way to get their four-star freshman on the field as much as possible.
Of course, when it comes to two-way stars, Colorado’s Travis Hunter immediately comes to mind, as the receiver/defensive back is well within the mix for the Heisman Trophy, and is projected to be a top-five pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
But, as teams navigate and continue to adapt to the new world of college football, the idea of a two-way player has become more popular, and Minnesota could very well be the latest team to try one of their top athletes on both sides with Perich.
