Posted: December 27, 2010, 3:45 p.m. CT
By CHRIS MONTER
FOXSportsNorth.com
New Minnesota head football coach Jerry Kill completed selecting his staff this week and added two more commitments as the Golden Gophers work towards national signing day, which is Feb. 2.
Minnesota has 19 commitments to date after landing commitments from Arizona Western CC duo, Ge'Shun Harris, a 6-foot-3, 215-pound wide receiver and Drayquan Crawford, a 6-foot-1, 205-pound safety. The two players will get a home visit from Gophers' coaches on Jan. 4 and will make their official visit to the Twin Cities that weekend. Both players will enroll at Minnesota for the second semester and will count towards the 2010 recruiting class.
Harris, who runs a 4.55 40-yard dash, caught 49 passes for 635 yards and eight touchdowns as a sophomore. Crawford had four interceptions, a team high, for 70 yards and one touchdown. He had 66 tackles (13 solos and 53 assists), two tackles for losses for 14 yards and two forced fumbles.
The two have a chance to play a significant amount of time the losses of wide receivers Bryant Allen (transfer) and MarQueis Gray (moving to quarterback full-time), as well as starting safeties Kyle Theret and Ryan Collado.
Harris feels that his size and passing catching skills could get him on the field quickly. He has three years to use his final two seasons of college eligibility.
"They need some help," said Harris. "They need some big playmakers. I feel that I can go and step in and start. They feel the same way. Playing in the Big Ten. That is big time right there. I get to showcase my skills and help this team get to a winning season and get to a bowl game."
Crawford, whose brother Frank made an official visit to Minnesota before signing with Mississippi, also feels that he can contribute quickly for the Gophers.
"I am an all-around player, because in high school, I played linebacker and safety, so I already had that aggressive mentality," said Crawford. "When I went to college, I was strictly a safety and I worked on my footwork and my coverage. Now, I see myself as all-around because this year I led the team in interceptions and I was second on the team in tackles. So, I see myself as an all-around player and I'm still willing to learn more stuff like getting better every day."
The Arizona Western duo will be able to participate in spring practice, which could help give them a leg up to becoming a starter next fall.
The Matadors advanced to a bowl game both years that Harris was there after a 27 year drought. They finished 9-2 in 2009 and 10-2 in 2010 winning back-to-back Western States Football League titles
Harris and Crawford played for Tom Minnick at Arizona Western. Minnick was previously the head coach at Joliet (IL) CC, where he coached former Gophers Eric Small and Mark Dietz and got to know Kill, who was the head coach at Southern Illinois and Northern Illinois. Gopher fans are hoping that a pipeline from Arizona Western to Minnesota could pay dividends in the future.
The Gophers also learned that Marcus Jones, a 5-foot-8, 162-pound defensive back from Wake Forest (NC) Rolesville who committed to Minnesota after taking his official visit last weekend, will also enroll in January. Jones, who had committed to Northern Illinois in June, helped lead the Cougars to the 4-AA North Carolina state championship game, losing to Matthews Butler 44-0.
Jerry Kill named Bill Miller, Jeff Phelps, Pat Poore, Rob Reeves and Jim Zebrowski to the Minnesota coaching staff. Miller will hold the title of assistant head coach and will coach the linebackers. Phelps will serve as the defensive line coach. Poore will coach the receivers. Reeves will coach the H-Backs and tight ends. Zebrowski will serve as the quarterbacks coach.
Miller coached the linebackers and served as the co-defensive coordinator for the Kansas Jayhawks in the 2009 season. This is his second stint with Minnesota as he served as the Gophers' defensive backs coach from 1986-88.
The other four coaches are following Kill from Northern Illinois, which should provide great stability within the coaching staff. Former head coach Tim Brewster had three different offensive coordinators and three different defensive coordinators during his four seasons at Minnesota.
Kill has also announced that current graduate assistants Daryl Agpalsa and Jesse Nelson will both remain with the Minnesota staff in their current roles. Both Agpalsa and Nelson recently completed their first seasons as graduate assistants with the Gopher program. Agpalsa works with the offense, while Nelson is a member of the defensive staff.
Notes
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Peter Westerhaus, a 6-foot-3, 215-pound tight end/linebacker from Holy Family Catholic who committed to Minnesota in July, won the Minnesota Mr. Football Award last Sunday. Westerhaus helped lead the Fire to Class 3A Prep Bowl championship game, where they lost to Rochester Lourdes 41-13. Holy Family finished 13-1 in their second state playoff appearance. They were ranked No. 5 in this year's final AP poll.
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