We continue to look at breakout candidates for Minnesota this upcoming fall and will stay at the wide receiver position. After looking at Charlotte transfer Elijah Spencer last week, we look at Western Michigan transfer Corey Crooms.
His career thus far...
Crooms comes to Minneapolis after spending four years with the Western Michigan Broncos, where he developed into one of the best wide receivers that the MAC had to offer. In his four seasons in Kalamazoo, Crooms totaled 115 receptions for 1,766 yards and 12 touchdowns.
Over the last two seasons, Crooms was the Broncos' top wide receiver, totaling 101 receptions for 1,582 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Pro Football Focus last season graded Crooms overall offensively at 75.1; the popular advanced statistics website had Crooms targeted 115 times last season, with him bringing in 57 of those targets. Out of those 58 targets that did not result in a reception, only three were due to drops. A step forward from his six dropped passes in 2021. He was also targeted quite a bit in contested situations, making six contested catches in 25 total opportunities.
Crooms to have a big role in the Gophers 2023 offense:
With the Golden Gophers, Crooms is likely to step into an immediate starting role with the program this fall. He will likely be the Gophers' starting slot wide receiver while Daniel Jackson and Chris Autman-Bell line up in the X and Z spots, respectively.
His target total this season with the Gophers will likely be lower than what it has been the last season in Kalamazoo, but the 6-foot-0, 180-pound wideout should still find himself carving out a nice role overall.
Crooms will especially be a strong receiver across the middle within 10 yards for the Gophers. Last season, he made a reception on 13 of 24 targets in between the hashes for 104 yards. He's also quite dangerous beyond 10 yards across the middle of the field with 13 additional receptions. Crooms lived in the middle of the field for the Broncos last season, and it seems likely the Gophers will use him in a similar way.
The Verdict
Crooms is going to have a big role in this Minnesota offense, but it's unclear how big that role will be. There is the potential for him to be the Gohpers' No.1 wide receiver this fall. Chris Autman-Bell will likely have that role entering the season, but it is unclear how he will return from his injury from last season. Crooms taking over that role, however, is a realistic scenario.
============================
- Talk about it INSIDE GOPHER NATION.
- SUBSCRIBE TO LOGoldenGophers
- Follow us on Twitter: @MinnesotaRivals, @AlexCarlsonTGR, @SeanW_Rivals, @DylanCC_FB, @JaredHalus, @GopherKaneRob, @LOGoldenGophers
- SUBSCRIBE to The Gopher Report.
