'A piece of Minnesota': Gophers embrace Dinkytown Athletes
Minnesota football coach P.J. Fleck opened his press conference on National Signing Day Wednesday by thanking Gophers donors, boosters and alumni.
And Dinkytown Athletes, the U’s name, image and likeness (NIL) collective.
“Our NIL and what we’ve been able to do is 10x, 12x, whatever you want to say, from where we were last year,” Fleck said. “And Dinkytown Athletes is just doing an amazing job, and I can’t thank them enough.”
It was the latest vocal embrace of the local collective from the Gophers football program as NIL plays a larger and larger role in recruiting and retaining players in the new era of college football.
In terms of retaining, some of the notables sticking around Dinkytown include leading rusher Darius Taylor, top receiver Daniel Jackson and star defensive back Justin Walley. Each of those players included a shoutout to Dinkytown Athletes in social media posts announcing their returns to the U.
“Well I guess now in today’s age the way college football is going (Dinkytown Athletes) is, I guess you could say, a piece of Minnesota now,” Walley said on Monday.
Jackson said NIL wasn't a huge factor into his decision to stay at the U for another year — "I'm not one chasing money at all, really," he said — but he did voice support for Dinkytown Athletes and what the collective has done for student-athletes.
“The more support we get, especially within Dinkytown Athletes, the more the players feel the love and the more the city is just more connected, honestly,” Jackson said.
When it comes to recruiting, Fleck on Wednesday announced a class that included the top-ranked recruit in Minnesota’s 2024 class, safety Koi Perich, the No. 1 recruit in North Dakota’s 2024 class, defensive lineman Riley Sunram, and the No. 2 recruit in Wisconsin’s 2024 class, offensive lineman Nathan Roy.
Minnesota added 26 players in all on National Signing Day.
The Gophers followed an impressive offseason of retention with an impressive 2024 recruiting class. No doubt Dinkytown Athletes is part of what's made it possible.