This offseason, Minnesota hit the transfer portal hard, including at the wide receiver position. One of the Gophers' additions to the position was former Charlotte standout Elijah Spencer.
Spencer entered the transfer portal this offseason after earning USA Freshman of the Year honors as a true freshman in 2021 and following it up by being a Conference USA Honorable Mention this past season.
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During his time with Charlotte, Spencer showed strong hands, dropping just five passes over 136 career targets. He was a deep-play threat on a consistent basis for the 49ers, averaging 16.5 yards.
His career thus far...
Spencer comes to Minneapolis after two years with the Charlotte 49ers, where he was a highly productive wideout. After a strong freshman campaign that saw him post 28 receptions for 381 yards and six touchdowns, the 6-foot-2 wide receiver followed that up with 57 receptions for 943 yards and nine touchdowns a year ago. In total, over his two seasons, he brought in 85 receptions for 1,324 yards and 15 touchdowns.
Spencer steps into a nice role with the Gophers
Spencer steps into a solid role for the Gophers. This upcoming season, he'll firmly be a key part of the Gophers' rotation at wide receiver alongside Daniel Jackson, Chris Autman-Bell, Corey Crooms, and Le'Meke Brockington. With such a strong role, the junior transfer should be in line to see his fair share of targets this season. Barring another injury to Autman-Bell, he'll likely remain as a rotational wide receiver, but if injury does occur to Autman-Bell, Spencer would be able to provide solid production in his place.
It wouldn't be surprising to ultimately see Spencer land between 30 and 35 targets next year for the Gophers. For comparison, tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford had 57 targets last year, while Daniel Jackson had 54, and Michael Brown Stephens and Dylan Wright finished with 39 and 31, respectively. Based on that, a season of 350-400 receiving yards for Spencer is likely a reasonable expectation entering the season.
Last season, Daniel Jackson led all receivers with 484 receiving yards, while Breyvn Spann-Ford recorded 481.
The Verdict
Depending on how we define breakout, Spencer is surely a candidate to watch. He has the skill set to be a breakout candidate; there is little doubt about that, and he has had the production in the past as well. It will be intriguing to see how he adapts to Big Ten football; if that transition is smooth, there's a pretty high ceiling for Spencer with the Gophers. What may hold him back the most in this regard is his spot in the Gophers' depth chart, but as mentioned above, Spencer still could find himself with a nice target and receiving yards total by the end of the season if all goes well.
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