Minnesota Golden Gophers: 5 Players to Watch in 2026
By Peter Mann
Long-term Golden Gophers Head Coach, Philip ‘PJ’ Fleck, will no doubt be looking at some old hands to push his Minnesota side through the upcoming Big Ten Conference season, old hands that will push some exciting talent into the hubbub of the college football scene.
Heading into his tenth season at the helm, PJ boasts a 66-44 record with the Golden Gophers, and despite not having claimed a National Championship since 1960, the program has seen several players drafted.
Nineteen of those drafted stars have come over the last seven drafts, with the New York Giants taking four, including safety Tyler Nubin, in 2024; the Baltimore Ravens snagged wide receiver Rashod Bateman in 2021, and in the one recently finished, the Seattle Seahawks added defensive tackle Deven Eastern.
Starting the 2026 campaign at their Huntington Bank Stadium home, against an Eastern Illinois Panthers program that last season finished 3-9 in the OVC-Big South, should afford room to manoeuvre and build on an 8-5 season last time around.
With their first three outings coming at Huntington, the Panthers being followed by the visits of the Mississippi State Bulldogs and the Akron Zips throughout early September, the Golden Gophers would love to go into their first road game, at Washington Huskies on 26 September, 3-0.
Their regular season will finish in late November when they make the trip to oppose the Wisconsin Badgers at Camp Randall Stadium; hopefully, a couple of these FIVE TO WATCH will have pulled up the turf and sent the Huntington into raptures.
Offensive tackle Kaveon Lee is perhaps the most random of the five to watch, but I’m keen to see what Lee does, having redshirted last season. The former Plainfield Central High Wildcats star was a 3-star recruit, a #10-ranked recruit in Illinois, and ranked #57 at OT by ESPN.
What also makes Lee stand out as a one to watch is that he was also a high school wrestler, stands at 6ft 5ins, and weighs in at a tasty, 290lbs, oh and he’s one of four brothers so can certainly mix it up…
John Nestor spent the two previous years with Iowa State’s Hawkeyes. Nestor transferred to Minnesota in late 2024 and made eleven appearances for the Golden Gophers in 2025, impressing along the way.
He tied in the Big Ten for interceptions, whilst also registering the third most in a single season in program history; Nestor not only claimed numerous Player of the Week awards, he also put on a standout performance in the Week 12, 17-7 win, over the Wisconsin Badgers, becoming the first FBS player since the mid-nineties to register nine tackles, two tackles for loss, two interceptions and one fumble recovery in a game.
The Badgers will certainly be on notice come their regular-season finale match-up, that’s for sure.
There are a number of gunslingers in the Golden Gophers quarterback room, and, last season, the 6 ft 5 in, 230 lb Drake Lindsey fought off all competition to make the slot his own, seeing off challenges from Dylan Wittke, Max Shikenjanski, and Jackson Kollock.
Hailing from Arkansas, Lindsey redshirted his first season, appearing three times, throwing his first career score against the Rhode Island Rams, the Golden Gophers inflicting a 48-0 shut-out win on their visitors.
Last season saw him play all twelve regular season games, posting 2,235yds, 16TDs (passing), -104yds, 4TDs (rushing), before firing the program to success in the Rate Bowl, edging New Mexico Lobos 20-17 (OT), he adding another 147yds, 2TDs (passing) in the win.
They make them tough in Detroit; just ask Michigan native, Walled Lake Western High Warriors running back Darius Taylor; he’s certainly an asset to the Golden Gophers’ offense.
As a senior in high school, he broke records that had stood since the early nineties, rushing for some thirty-six touchdown scores; he’s not stopped in Minnesota either, putting on nineteen scores over the last three seasons, including ten for 986yds in his 2024 sophomore year.
He’ll be looking to get back to that level this season, having dropped below standard in his junior year; odds will be pretty decent on him doing so, though, and quickly…
A Minneapolis, Minnesota-native, and a homegrown star that Huntington Bank continues to get behind; 6ft 2ins, 225lbs of raw power, Karmo impressed for the Robbinsdale Cooper High Hawks, being ranked as both a 4-star prospect, and #1 recruit in Minnesota, whilst also being placed as the #26 linebacker in the US by ESPN.
He continued to impress in his freshman season last time around, playing in all thirteen Golden Gophers match-ups, debuting against the Buffalo Bulls in Week One; overall, making fourteen tackles, one sack, recovering one fumble, and breaking up two passes.
Like Taylor, Karmo will be looking to better those stats during the new season, do that, and who knows how far the Golden Gophers will go…
Peter Mann
COLLEGE FOOTBALL ANALYST
PETER IS A LIFELONG SPORTS FAN, JOURNALIST AND AUTHOR BASED IN COUNTY DURHAM. HE HAS FOLLOWED THE NFL AND THE RAIDERS SINCE THE 1980s, AND LOVES BOTH SPORTS AND FAMILY HISTORY. PETER HAS A DEGREE IN SPORT & EXERCISE PSYCHOLOGY, AND CAN BE FOUND ON TWITTER @petermannwriter