Gophers fire co-offensive coordinator Matt Simon, add 2 former stars to coaching staff

Matt Simon has been with the Gophers since 2017. The fresh faces joining P.J. Fleck's staff are former Minnesota stars Mohamed Ibrahim and Isaac Fruechte.

Sep 17, 2022; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers running back Mohamed Ibrahim (24) looks on after the game against the Colorado Buffaloes after the game at Huntington Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images | Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

After another disappointing season on offense, the Minnesota Gophers are shaking up the coaching staff with the departure of co-offensive coordinator and longtime wide receivers coach Matt Simon, while former Minnesota stars, running back Mohamed Ibrahim and wide receiver Isaac Fruechte, have been added to the coaching staff.

Ryan Burns of 247Sports and Andy Greder of the Pioneer Press were the first to break the stories, with Greder saying Ibrahim has been hired as Minnesota's running backs coach, while Fruechte enters the fray as the wide receivers coach.

With Simon out, the offensive coordinator job is solely in the hands of Greg Harbaugh Jr., who has been leading the offense since 2023. Since then, Minnesota hasn't finished better than 80th in the nation in scoring, and they've been outside the top 100 in total offense each season.

Season	Total	Passing	Rushing	Points
2025	127th (293.2)	100th (189.9)	126th (103.2)	99th (23.0)
2024	107th (337.8)	76th (222.2)	110th (115.6)	80th (26.2)
2023	125th (300.9)	126th (143.4)	66th (157.5)	111th (20.9)

Simon has coached alongside P.J. Fleck for nearly a decade, having joined Fleck's staff as a wide receivers coach at Western Michigan in 2014. He stayed with the Broncos through the 2016 season, then joined Fleck at the University of Minnesota in 2017.

Dec 26, 2025; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers wide receivers coach Matt Simon against the New Mexico Lobos during the Rate Bowl at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

He was the wide receivers coach at Minnesota in 2017 and 2018 before being promoted to a role as the passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach in 2019. He's held the title of co-offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach since 2020.

Before his Minnesota and Western Michigan days, Simon, who is a native of Farmington, Minn., had coaching jobs at Northern Illinois, St. Thomas (Minn.), and Rutgers.

Minnesota's passing game has been underwhelming outside of the 2019 season that saw the 11-win Gophers win the Outback and set numerous passing records as quarterback Tanner Morgan connected routinely with Tyler Johnson and Rashod Bateman, who rank first and seventh in Gophers history in receiving yards. Johnson and Bateman are now in the NFL.

Simon also oversaw the careers of Daniel Jackson and Chris Autman-Bell, who rank fourth and ninth, respectively, in Minnesota receiving yards history.

Ibrahim and Fruechte were Minnesota stars

Oct 11, 2014; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers wide receiver Isaac Fruechte (14) runs with the ball after making a catch in the second half against the Northwestern Wildcats at TCF Bank Stadium. The Gophers won 24-17. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images | Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images

Ibrahim, whose NFL career never panned out due to injuries after brief stints with the Lions and Vikings, returns to the school where he owns the all-time rushing record with 4,668 yards and 53 touchdowns.

Ibrahim was the running backs coach at Kent State this season. The Golden Flashes averaged 2.9 yards per carry this season, including former Gophers tailback Jordan Nubin carrying the ball 79 times for 253 yards and one touchdown.

Freuchte only had 50 receptions for 702 yards and three touchdowns in three years (2012 to 2014) with the Gophers, but he was a prep standout and two-time state champion at small school powerhouse Caledonia in southeastern Minnesota. He played at Rochester Community and Technical College before joining the Gophers, and then had opportunities on the practice squads of the NFL's Vikings and Lions.

Freuchte has been coaching since 2018, including this season as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at North Dakota. The Fighting Hawks finished seventh in the Missouri Valley Football Conference in passing offense (192.4 yards per game), but they were fourth in total offense (387.3 yards per game) and points (32.9 points per game).