The Minnesota quarterback room will be full of familiar faces this upcoming season. This is the most talented and experienced group of quarterbacks Minnesota has seen not only in the Fleck era, but probably in the 21st Century. Redshirt junior Tanner Morgan enters the season as the starter and will be backed up by former starter and redshirt sophomore Zack Annexstad as well as redshirt freshmen Jacob Clark and Cole Kramer, both of whom saw some game action last season.
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Who's Gone?
Nobody! Minnesota is returning every quarterback from last year's team.
Who's Back?
Tanner Morgan
Redshirt junior quarterback Tanner Morgan is going to be entering the 2020 season with high expectations. The Union, Kentucky native has already been voted onto the Gopher quarterback Mount Rushmore by fans, and is looking to build off a year in which he was named All-Big Ten second team and threw for over 3,200 yards, 30 touchdowns, and only seven interceptions. Among quarterbacks with at least 350 dropbacks last season, Tanner Morgan ranked 8th in the country with a 89.4 passing grade on PFF, also good for 2nd in the Big Ten behind only Justin Fields. Morgan was elite when throwing the ball down field as well. With an adjusted completion percentage of 59.6, Morgan was second in the country in throws over 20 yards behind only Heisman winner Joe Burrow, and his 133.2 passer rating on such throws was good for fifth in the country. Morgan was also ranked 7th in the country with a 99.5 passer rating when under pressure, and 5th in the country when kept clean at 129.1. Numbers like these are a major reason that the Gopher signal caller is receiving serious NFL Draft buzz, and is a Heisman dark horse entering the season.
Zack Annexstad
Redshirt sophomore Zack Annexstad is entering his third season as a Golden Gopher quarterback. His true freshman season he came in as a walk-on and won the starting job over Tanner Morgan. Annexstad saw action in seven games as a freshman, throwing for over 1,200 yards, nine touchdowns, and seven interceptions. After an injury in the game against Nebraska, Annexstad lost his job to Morgan and was the backup even after he came back to full health. Entering the 2019 season the Gophers had another open competition for the starting quarterback position, and many — including myself — believed that he was the front-runner to win the starting job again before a broken foot took him out of the race, and the entire 2019 season. In the one spring practice we were able to watch this year, I was really impressed with Annexstad’s arm strength and leadership ability at the quarterback position and believe he would be starting at (at least) a few other Big Ten schools. Annexstad gives Minnesota the luxury of having a starting-level quarterback behind their All-Big Ten-level starter.
Jacob Clark
Rockwall, Texas native Jacob Clark was a huge recruiting win for coach Fleck and the Minnesota staff in the 2019 class. He was bumped up to a 5.8 four-star after an impressive senior campaign in which he threw for over 3,200 yards and 31 touchdowns. Clark’s first season as a Gopher flashed promise. He had an impressive showing in the spring game, and completed his only pass in game action which was a 39-yard dime in a blowout win over Maryland. Clark and fellow freshman Cole Kramer battled all season for the backup role, with neither being named the clear number two, but Clark’s big arm and ability to stretch the field makes his perceived ceiling very high.
Cole Kramer
Hailing from Minnesota football powerhouse Eden Prairie, Cole Kramer has deep ties to Minnesota and also flashed potential in the 2019 season. Many wrote of Kramer because he was coming in at the same time as a four-star, but he impressed in camp and in practice and was with Clark, possibly ahead of him, in the backup by committee role that the freshman took on last year. Kramer’s only passing attempts of the season came when he was thrown into the fire on a potential game-winning drive against Iowa on the road following a Tanner Morgan concussion. The freshman was put into a tough spot and completed zero of two passing attempts with the last one being intercepted. Kramer has a mobility that none of the other Gopher quarterbacks on roster possess and was much further along than many thought he would be as a passer coming in. Kramer and Clark will again battle in camp for a spot, but this year it will likely be for third-string.
Who's Coming In?
The Gophers did not take in any quarterbacks in the 2020 class because not only did everyone come back from last season, but everyone is eligible to return again next season. Gopher fans will have to wait for 2021’s Athan Kaliakmanis to see a new face in the quarterback room.
