With less than two weeks to go before high school players can sign letters of intent on Feb. 1, the pace of Gopher recruiting is picking up. Two new players have committed to Minnesota this week, according to the recruiting website Gopher Illustrated.
Defensive tackle Roland Johnson, a transfer from Butler County Community College in Kansas, and K.J. Maye, a slot receiver or running back from Murphy High in Mobile, Ala., each informed Gophers coach Jerry Kill this week that they will sign with Minnesota next month.
Maye is a 5-10, 195-pound athlete who played quarterback at Murphy but will switch positions in college, he told the rivals.com-affiliated site. Johnson, a 6-2, 295-pound all-conference tackle who originally enrolled at Western Carolina before transfering to junior college, visited campus last weekend and made up his mind at mid-week. Unlike the Gophers' five other junior-college recruits, Johnson will not enroll until after this semester.
The Gophers are also still waiting for a decision by Hopkins receiver Andre McDonald, who took his official visit to Minnesota last weekend. McDonald plans to visit UCLA this month, according to GI.com, before revealing his choice on signing day.