GAYLORD - Gaylord junior standout Brady Pretzlaff has one more season left with the Blue Devils before he takes his talents to the Big Ten.
Pretzlaff received an offer from PJ Fleck and the Minnesota Golden Gophers during a visit in January and committed on the spot.
A three-star linebacker who had 115 tackles, five sacks and two interceptions this past season, Pretzlaff said he chose the Gophers because of their track record with developing linebackers.
“When you get there it’s almost like you can feel the culture that Coach Fleck has built and all the players adapt and it’s almost like all working toward one goal,” said Pretzlaff. “So that was a huge part [of my decision]. Also, I believe their development is very good in the college, taking some of the linebackers as raw products and bringing them even to the point of NFL prospects was something that really stood out to me.”
Pretzlaff cited former Minnesota linebacker Mariano Sori-Marin, who will be a rookie with the San Francisco 49ers this season, as an example of Minnesota’s ability to develop players at his position.
Minnesota has also had three linebackers go on to get drafted under Fleck in Blake Cashman (New York Jets, 2019 5th round), Kamal Martin (Green Bay Packers, 2020 5th round), and Carter Coughlin (New York Giants, 2020 7th round).
Pretzlaff said his goal for his senior season is to help Gaylord surprise some people and make a deep playoff run.
