5 Under-the-Radar Players Who Could Raise the Gophers' Ceiling in 2026

While returning stars Drake Lindsey and Jalen Smith will need to be rock-solid, these five players could really raise the ceiling for the 2026 Gophers.

Gophers sophomore safety Zack Harden. | Image courtesy of the Minnesota Gopher

If Drake Lindsey takes another step at quarterback as a redshirt sophomore in 2026, the Minnesota Gophers might be a sleeper team to make a lot of noise in the Big Ten. While Lindsey's development is the key to everything, there are a bunch of players who can help raise the bar for the Gophers next season, and fans will get a chance to see them in-person twice in April.

Minnesota announced Thursday that it will host an open practice for fans on Tuesday, April 7, followed by the return of the spring game at Huntington Bank Stadium on Saturday, April 25. The open practice, which begins at 4:30 p.m., is free to the public at the indoor facility at Athletes Village. The spring game, which will run two hours from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., is also free to attend.

While most eyes will be on household names like Lindsey, running back Darius Taylor, and wide receiver Jalen Smith, we've got our eyes on five players who have a chance to burst onto the scene in 2026.

1. Kaden Helms, TE

Oklahoma Sooners tight end Kaden Helms (18) looks to get by Texas Longhorns defensive back Jelani McDonald (4) in the first half of the Red River Rivalry college football game between the University of Oklahoma Sooners and the Texas Longhorn at the Cotton Bowl Stadium in Dallas, Texas, Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025. | SARAH PHIPPS/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The former four-star recruit from Nebraska transferred to Minnesota for his final season of college football. Things haven't gone according to plan for Helms, who signed with Oklahoma out of high school over big-time offers from LSU, Miami, and Michigan.

Helms totaled just eight catches for 58 yards and two touchdowns at Oklahoma, leaving everyone to wonder if he can blossom into TE1 with the Gophers, where the job is wide open after Jamison Geers, Drew Biber, and Frank Bierman all ran out of eligibility.

Note: Roman Voss will be an interesting tight end who changes this conversation, but the recruit from Jackson County Central High School won't join the program until summer camp.

2. Perry Thompson, WR

Like Helms, Thompson hasn't lived up to his recruiting profile hype. At one point, he was a five-star recruit, ultimately ending his prep career as a consensus four-star player who chose Auburn over Alabama. At 6-foot-3 and 220 pounds, he's a big-bodied receiver who could help form a really strong trio alongside Jalen Smith and Javon Tracy.

Thompson had just 17 catches for 154 yards in 2025.

Fun fact: Thompson went to the same high school as former NFL superstar Julio Jones.

3. Bradley Martino, WR

Bradley Martino smiles after signing her letter of intent to play football at the University of Minnesota during a signing day ceremony at First Baptist Academy in Naples, Fla., on Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024. | Jonah Hinebaugh/Naples Daily News/USA Today Network-Florida / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

If Thompson doesn't grab a starting wide receiver role, Martino might take it and never look back. He didn't play last season, but the hopes are very high for the program's highest-rated recruit in the Class of 2025.

247Sports ranked him as the No. 203 recruit in the nation, and the 12th-best athlete in the country. He was so good in high school that he was invited to the 2025 Navay All-American Bowl.

4. Xion Chapman, DT

Chapman, a 300-pound interior defensive lineman, transferred to the Gophers from Florida International, where he made a name for himself as a really good pass rusher. His 79.3 pass rush grade from Pro Football Focus is really good, and his 13% pass rush win rate ranked 18th in the nation among all defensive tackles who played at least 100 snaps.

The Gophers need him to be a beast because they're replacing more than 1,400 snaps after the departures of Deven Eastern, Jalen Logan-Redding, Rushawn Lawrence, and Nate Becker.

5. Zack Harden, S

When P.J. Fleck raved about Harden earlier this month, he compared him to former Gophers star Tyler Nubin, who now starts at safety for the New York Giants in the NFL. Fleck noted that Harden already has an NFL body, and he's apparently buzzing around and making a strong impression already this spring.

Harden played 14 snaps on defense and 77 on special teams as a true freshman, and he currently projects as a third safety behind Kerry Brown and Aidan Gousby. Don't be shocked if Harden winds up playing a big role on Minnesota's defense as a true sophomore next season.