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Gopher coach Tubby Smith once again put together a nationally rated recruiting class, and successfully recruited point guard, Justin Cobbs, a 6-0, 170lb PG from Torrance, Calif. He had offers from Minnesota, Iowa, USC, San Diego State, Colorado and Washington State, and choose to be a Gopher last fall. GopherHole quickly caught up with Cobbs after his Howard Pulley game, where he talked about his move to Minnesota, rooming with Devron Bostick, his teamwork with Al Nolen, and how Trevor Mbakwe will turn many heads this next season. (Read More)

Ray Hitchcock is a passionate man. Whether it’s his family, his career, his love for football or all things Gopher sports, Hitchcock’s passion is contagious. And it’s no surprise that this passion has produced a loving and close family, a successful real estate career, a football playing career that included two bowl games with the Gophers and a Super Bowl ring with the Washington Redskins, and a career that now includes a long stint as a line coach at Cretin-Derham Hall. GopherHole recently had the chance to catch up with Hitchcock to talk about his Gopher career, his love for real estate, serving as an assistant on a Cretin team that includes his son and of course his deep-rooted passion for Gopher football. (Read More)

Sabervolleyball.com

The Minnesota Gophers volleyball team has risen to one of the top programs in the Big Ten the past decade, and all indications are that the success will continue into the foreseeable future. Recently, the Gophers 2009 recruiting class was named #1 in the nation, and the Gophers already have a pair of top-notch commits for 2010 in Tori Dixon of Burnsville and Ashley Wittman of Shakopee. Wittman has already racked up several accolades in her brief career, topped by being named the 2008 National Junior of the year by prepvolleyball.com last fall. GopherHole.com recently had a chance to chat with Wittman about her competitiveness, the Northern Lights club team, and trying for a three-peat this fall with Shakopee. (Read More)

Homer Star Tribune columnist Sid Hartman penned in late April...if you want my observation of how good the Gophers football team will be, I'd say that it will be much improved in personnel over the 2008 team, but it is too bad that this current group could not have played the 2008 schedule. The only pushover on the 2009 schedule is South Dakota State, and in the past it has surprised some Division I teams. Let's investigate whether Hartman's thoughts carry any relevance. Sept. 5, at Syracuse – The Gophers will enter this game as the prohibitive favorite. Syracuse has just five wins over Division I-A opponents the last four years... (Read More)

Fritz Rock has been quiet about his recruitment for the past few months, and hasn’t really said much publicly since before Signing Day. GopherHole was able to catch up with Rock’s older brother and legal guardian, Patrick Rock to find out where Fritz was in his decision making process. It turns out, Fritz still has a number of offers on the table, but had to put them on the back burner while focusing on a sick family member.
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On May 22, 2009 I graduated North Broward Prep. It was a long and hard ride but also a fun one. As this chapter ends another begins, but this chapter takes a little change in scenery and a HUGE change in temperature. The day after graduation I went to New York to get away for a bit and chill. My family and I spent four days up there and the day of my return I got a call from Coach Hightower saying that he was in Florida. I got home and settled when my dad called me saying him and Coach Hightower were almost to my mom's house. ..... (Read More)

As GopherHole.com continues to look at potential recruits for the 2010 recruiting class, Nick Walsh heads back to the Academy of Holy Angels, where he was able to catch up with 6’2”, 190 LB junior wide receiver Denny McMahon during the Gopher football team’s spring game at the University of St. Thomas. (Read More)

Director of Athletics Joel Maturi announced Thursday that the University of Minnesota has reached its initial $86 million fund-raising goal for TCF Bank Stadium thanks to a $6 million commitment from philanthropist and 1958 alum T. Denny Sanford. The $6 million package will both support the construction of TCF Bank Stadium and fund an athletics department hall of fame located in the facility. (Read More)

GopherSports.com

DALLAS (NCBWA) – The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, working in conjunction with the St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce and the College Baseball Foundation, has released the list of 16 semifinalists for the 2009 Dick Howser Trophy, given to the top player in collegiate baseball. The 16 candidates hail from nine different conferences and 16 different schools, including 2B Derek McCallum of Minnesota. (Read More)

For most football players from the South, playing at the University of Minnesota would seem to be a long-distance relationship thousands of miles from friends and family. However, for Logan Hutton, a 6’1”, 190 LB wide receiver from La Marque Texas, the University of Minnesota would be nothing more than following in the footsteps of his brother Lee Hutton, who was a wide receiver for the Gophers from 1996-1998. GopherHole.com’s Nick Walsh caught up with Logan Hutton during the Gopher’s spring game to talk about his recruitment with the Gophers. (Read More)