Spring transfer portal tracker: Which Gophers are leaving? Notable entries and more

The spring transfer portal window is officially open for business.

Nov 29, 2024; Madison, Wisconsin, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck during the game against the Wisconsin Badgers at Camp Randall Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images | Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

College football's spring transfer portal window officially opened on Wednesday, April 16 and it won't close until Friday, April 25. New NCAA rules enforce a 105-player roster limit, so teams across the country will look to get at or below that threshold. At programs like Minnesota, we'll likely see more players leaving than coming in.

Gophers leaving

The new roster rules include preferred walk-ons (PWO) in the 105-player limit, which means we could see a lot of those players opt to look for new schools. Defensive backs Obe Eyafe and Chris Flowers have joined freshman linebacker David Amaliri as the first three Minnesota players to enter. Former Georgia Tech transfer Zach Pyron became the first big name player to enter on April 17.

Player	Position	Career snaps	Landing spot
Obe Eyafe (walk-on)	DB	Zero
David Amaliri	LB	Zero
Chris Flowers (walk-on)	CB	Zero
Zach Pyron	QB	Zero *(w/ Gophers)	South Alabama
Jaydon Wright	RB	Zero
Cade Conzemius (walk-on)	WR	Zero	Retiring
Cortez LeGrant Jr. (walk-on)	RB	Zero
Kaeden Johnson (walk-on)	RB	Zero
Jeremiah Finaly (walk-on)	QB	Zero
Alex Elliott	LB	Zero

Incoming Gophers

Minnesota landed its first commitment from the spring transfer portal window on Sunday with Iowa defensive back John Nestor. He's likely just the first domino to fall.

Player	Previous School	Position	Eligibility Remaning
John Nestor	Iowa	CB	2
Mo Omonode	Purdue	DT	1
Johann Cardenas	Vanderbilt	RB	4
Tom Weston	Ouachita Baptist (D2)	P	3
Brody Richter	UCLA	P	2
Emmett Morehead	Old Dominion	QB	2

Notable entries/buzz across the country

Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava stole all the headlines for his contract dispute with the Volunteers. Minnesota's Week 3 opponent, Cal, has already lost its star running back Jadyn Ott to Oklahoma. There should be plenty of twists and turns.

Kendrick Gilbert, DT, Kentucky (interest)

• Gophers chances: realistic (visit)

National college football analyst Matt Zenitz reported that Minnesota hosted Gilbert on a visit last Friday. He played 53 snaps as a redshirt freshman last season for Kentucky. He would be a talented addition to a deep defensive line group.

Jaden Ball, OL, Purdue (interest)

• Gophers chances: high (visit)

Ball only played 21 snaps last season at right guard for Purdue as a true freshman, but he's being pursued by Ohio State, Minnesota and Syracuse. He's visited the Gophers earlier this week.

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