P.J. Fleck's clear message to Gophers at fall camp: 'Compete'

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - The University of Minnesota football team ended its first week of fall camp with a Saturday night practice at Huntington Bank Stadium, the first workout open to fans.

The Gophers open the 2024 season against North Carolina on Thursday, Aug. 29, under the lights in Dinkytown, a game you can watch on FOX 9. Five days into fall workouts, what does coach P.J. Fleck think of his team? They compete. He spoke with reporters after Saturday night’s practice and the message on his T-shirt was clear, as have been the conversations all week: Compete.

"We haven’t had one day where I’ve come out and been like ‘man, the energy is not there, the tempo is not there, the willingness to get better is not there, the competitiveness isn’t there.’ It’s a very competitive camp, probably the most competitive camp we’ve had in our eight years here, by far." Fleck said. "That’s what we’ve talked about, that’s what’s on our shirts and they’ve been doing it."

‘It’s about creating a little bit of pressure’

Fleck said the idea behind a night practice was to get under the lights, get in front of fans and put some pressure on players in live situations to see how they would react.

Both sides of the ball had their moments. Between individual sessions and team situations, Fleck said the Gophers got in about 150 repetitions over more than two hours Saturday night.

"Lights on, there’s fans here, there’s a little added pressure five days into camp. You can’t get that fast enough," Fleck said. "If it’s going back and forth, I’m usually enjoying practice."

Day 5 offensive highlights

New Hampshire transfer quarterback Max Brosmer hit Elijah Spencer near the end of practice on a back shoulder throw for a touchdown in a team situation. A short time later, he tried to hit a tight window over the middle. It was tipped by Aidan Gousby and intercepted by Tyler Stolsky.

Brosmer frequently looked for Darius Taylor for passes out of the backfield, and often looked to tight ends in the short passing game. He’s also building chemistry with Danile Jackson.

Marcus Major, who missed spring football due to a surgery, was the featured running back behind Darius Taylor.

The longest play of the day went for a touchdown of nearly 50 yards from freshman Dylan Wittke to Cade Conzemius.

Defensive highlights

Anthony Smith and Deven Eastern are going to be a force on the defensive line. Eastern smacked Taylor for a tackle for loss early on, then Smith got Taylor in the backfield later on. Both were among the loudest trash talkers on the field. Justin Walley broke up one of the few long throws attempted by Brosmer Saturday.

Jaxon Howard also had a sack on Drake Lindsay in a team drill after leaping to prevent a passing attempt.

Koi Perich standing out early

Koi Perich hasn’t been on campus very long, but the freshman four-star from Esko is already making an impact. He’s fielding punts in drills, and sprinkling in at safety with first and second-team defense. He nearly had an interception Saturday that would’ve gone for a touchdown. He also made an open-field tackle in a team situation.

"He loves football. He wants to be coached, that’s hard to find in 2024. He’s not ready to play right now, but we’re putting him in that position," Fleck said.