Usually in college football it can be pretty tough for a student athlete to earn the full trust of their head coach. For Gophers freshman safety Koi Perich, that hasn't been the case.
During his weekly press conference on Monday, Minnesota head coach P.J. Fleck was asked about Perich's performance on Saturday in a 48-0 win for the Gophers and unsurprisingly, Fleck was highly complimentary of the Esko, Minnesota native.
"You know, from the start as a true freshman coming in June, I think no matter what we saw, what he did in training camp and even in the summer, and you're like, alright, we got to find ways to be able to get him on the field," Fleck said when asked about the former top-100 prospect.
"And you know, I never put too much stock in just one thing. I never have done that or just one game. But I think we can all see from game one and he's on the field and does some really good things," he added. Loves football, where he's supposed to be, when he's supposed to be there, make some plays, game two make some plays."
In his first chance at extensive playing time this past Saturday against Rhode Island, Perich showed his play making ability over just 17 snaps. In 17 snaps, Perich recorded two tackles and one interception. He also recorded one punt return for 28-yards with usual punt returner Quinten Redding missing due to injury.
Perhaps, Perich's quick impact shouldn't be surprising. After all, he was ranked by Rivals as a top-100 prospect in the country and one of the top-10 safeties in the country. The Gophers were able to hold off a late push from Ohio State last fall to ultimately sign the high four-star prospect.
From the moment he signed with the Gophers, the expectations were high for the former Esko standout.
"He is a special person, a special player," Fleck said last December. "I can't tell you how much his commitment means to the future of our program and I think he knows that. You talk about everything you can to leave your legacy. He's already left a little bit in recruiting. He's got a lot of goals, hopes, and aspirations and we want to help them come true here at the University of Minnesota."
Despite seeing early playing time and high expectations on his shoulders prior to arriving in Minneapolis, Perich knows he still has a long way to go in his development and has been just as impressive off the field according to Fleck.
"He's a sponge. He loves to learn. He loves the game. So it's not like, oh well, yeah, he's a freshman. I can only spoon feed him. I mean, we can. We can give it to him by the shovels, if he can handle it. And as of right now, he can handle it by the shovels, and we're going to continue to do that and get to the bulldozer part," he said.
"He just absorbs it all. And I'm proud of him for that, because that's really difficult to do, and he's really humble, and I give him credit for that too. He knows how much he's got to learn and how far he needs to go, but, you know, he made some plays for us, hopefully continues to do that as the season goes on."
But most importantly, the true freshman safety has earned P.J. Fleck's trust quickly since arriving on campus this past summer.
"I trust him 100% and again, that's hard to earn."
Perich will look to maintain and hold that trust of P.J. Fleck and the entire Gophers coaching staff and as long as he continues do so, it's clear that the program doesn't plan on redshirting him this fall.
The 6-foot-0, 200-pound safety has appeared so far in both of the Gophers' first two games of the season, he'll have the ability to play in upto two more games before burning his redshirt upon appearing in a fifth game.
This upcoming weekend, expect to see more of Perich as he competes in a Gophers' safety room alongside the likes of Aidan Gousby, Coleman Bryson, Kerry Brown, and Garrison Monroe for playing time.
Additionally, if punt returner Quentin Redding is unable to go this weekend against Nevada, it's expected that Perich will continue to be the program's punt returner for the time being.
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