PrepRedzoneMN Preseason Transfer Update + JUCO Players to Watch

Hello, beautiful readers! I am very pumped to reiterate that we are less than a week away from the Minnesota 2021 prep season officially kicking off statewide, and with a little taste of the action coming last Friday in Week 0 I think we are set for an exciting, hard-fought season of high school football that we as a state and a society desperately need. In these next 4-5 days before Week 1’s kickoff I wanted to make sure to prep our subscribers with as much up to date, pertinent information on current and former Minnesota football players as possible, and part of that includes updating you guys on former MN athletes who have entered their name in the transfer portal or have begun their college career in the JUCO ranks and are still looking for a four-year institution to continue playing college football at. In today’s feature, I will cover both of these topics in-depth and will update everyone on the new homes found by the Minnesota born studs in the transfer portal - including the former #1 recruit in the state - as well as list some of the dozens of MN preps who will play as a #JUCOPRODUCT this fall and who our readers need to be aware of. There is a lot of talent featured in today’s article with some big-time names set to make waves on the college football scene, and I hope you enjoy. Thanks for reading! College Transfer Update [player_tooltip player_id="1559" first="David" last="Alston"] (Woodbury) OLB. 6’4, 235 lbs. Class of 2018. Entered his name in the transfer portal from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln on June 11th The former #1 recruit in Minnesota ended his Cornhuskers career without seeing any game action, and when you combine that stat with the recently alleged transgressions by Head Coach Scott Frost, I think Alston made a good personal decision to transfer from the B1G institution. As a prep, the Woodbury Royals graduate received offers from the likes of Iowa State, Utah, and Wisconsin after totaling 31 tackles, 10 TFLs, and five sacks as a junior and 6.5 sacks, 13 TFLs, and four interceptions as a senior. He was named First Team All-Metro by the StarTribune, a finalist for the Pioneer Press Player of the Year, and selected to the MN All-Star game, where he recorded a sack. However, his high school accolades don’t matter anymore once you enter the transfer portal, and I was pretty surprised by how lowkey his recruitment was after leaving Nebraska. He quickly earned and reported offers from Rhode Island and Montana State, but then things went silent. He didn’t make an official announcement, but he changed his bio on Twitter to "Nebraska Alumn Montana State Football" and changed his profile picture to him in some Montana State pads, so i think it’s safe to say he’s a Bobcat for this upcoming season, and when I checked the 2021 roster I did indeed see the former Royal rocking #91 and listed as a sophomore. He’s joined former Totino-Grace star Lewis Kidd and former East Ridge standout Ty Okada in Bozeman. Good luck, David! [embed]https://twitter.com/D_Alston5/status/1403426910072446979?s=20[/embed] [player_tooltip player_id="1586" first="Spencer" last="Rolland"] (Apple Valley) OL. 6’6, 260 lbs. Class of 2018. Entered his name in the transfer portal from Harvard University It’s been a whirlwind of a past couple of seasons for the former Apple Valley standout, as the 2020 season and the Ivy League’s decision to not play football had some lasting impacts on Harvard’s OL and the Minnesotans that inhabited it. Following former Benilde-St. Margaret’s mauler and fellow Crimson OL Eric Wilson, Rolland entered his name in the transfer portal on June 1st, but won’t be transferring until he graduates from Harvard in the spring of 2022. Around a month later he announced that after he competes for Harvard this fall and graduates in 2022 he will join fellow Minnesotan and Harvard transfer Wilson on the Penn State Nittany Lion offensive line. I’m very excited to see these two boys compete in the B1G, and although I don’t think they will be able to play together, it’s pretty awesome to see two former Minnesotans and Ivy League athletes set to compete on one of college football’s biggest stages. [embed]https://twitter.com/spencerolland13/status/1400303352039227393?s=20[/embed] [player_tooltip player_id="10982" first="Elijah" last="Ofori"] (Shakopee) DB. 5’11, 185 lbs. Class of 2020. Entered his name in the transfer portal from Morgan State University The former Shakopee Saber defensive back and South Dakota commit saw him drop his commitment to the Coyotes late in his recruiting process in 2020, so I was pretty excited that he found a new Division 1 home to play football at in a short amount of time as Morgan State successfully earned his commitment shortly before signing day. However, the relationship was short-lived as Ofori entered his name in the transfer portal after only a year at Morgan State on May 10th. Only four days later the DB committed to becoming a #JUCOPRODUCT at ASA Miami, where he has four years of eligibility remaining and will graduate in the fall of 2021. Best of luck this season, Elijah! [embed]https://twitter.com/Ofori1Elijah/status/1423707642254532615?s=20[/embed] Deyon Campbell (Hopkins) WR. 5’10, 195 lbs. Class of 2017. Entered his name in the transfer portal from South Dakota State A name and transfer recruitment I was very closely following came out of the Hopkins Royals program who was one of the fastest players in the state of Minnesota at the time of his graduation in WR Deyon Campbell. The speedster saw a lot of success while he was a MN prep and signed with the defending FCS runner-ups with his teammate Malik Lofton out of high school, and the both of them saw a fair amount of action early in their Jackrabbits career, so I was somewhat surprised to see Campbell enter the transfer portal despite his role in the 2021 spring season shrink. Up until that point he had played in 22 games and rushed 3 times for 58 yards, added 8 catches for 70 yards, recorded a tackle, and returned 3 kicks for 85 yards. The writing must have been on the wall though, and the wideout announced he was transferring on March 17th of this past year. Things remained very quiet on the recruitment front for him, and he didn’t report any offers, so I was STOKED when I was scrolling NSIC updated rosters and saw the junior was listed on the DII powerhouse Minnesota State-Mankato Mavericks roster for this upcoming season. The Mavs landed a stud and I am pumped to see him compete in the Northern Sun. [player_tooltip player_id="2447" first="Milkaso" last="Dedefo"] (St. Louis Park/MN State Community and Technical College-Fergus Falls) DE. 6’3, 240 lbs. Entered his name in the transfer portal from Southwest Minnesota State The St. Louis Park Oriole is now onto his third college after spending a year at MN State-Fergus Falls where he totaled 36 tackles, six sacks, and two fumble recoveries in his only year as a #JUCOPRODUCT. He went on to sign with the NSIC’s Southwest Minnesota State Mustangs and spent last year in Marshall. On April 19th of this year, he announced on Twitter that he was transferring and needed a new home to play football at, and after staying active at looking at his social media I saw that he updated his bio to say "UWL FOOTBALL." I’m assuming that means he signed with WIAC powerhouse UW-La Crosse, but unfortunately, the Eagles updated roster only listed returning players so I am not able to confirm if he was playing there 100% at this time. I think he’d be a great fit in the WIAC and will make sure to keep you guys posted. As a prep at SLP he was twice named All-District and tallied 64 tackles and 5 sacks as a senior. [embed]https://twitter.com/dmilkaso/status/1246978022986715141?s=20[/embed] Jackson Martens (Burnsville/Iowa Central Community College) LB. 6’2, 220 lbs. Class of 2017. Entered his name in the transfer portal from Northern Iowa Another former MN standout who is onto his third college football team, Martens took his athleticism to the Iowa Central Tritons to begin his college career and in the 2018-19 season, he totaled 28 tackles, four TFLs, half a sack, two interceptions, and a fumble recovery in his second season as a #JUCOPRODUCT. He then signed with the FCS heavyweight Northern Iowa Panthers, but did not record any stats or game appearances, and on April 11th he announced he was transferring from UNI with two years of eligibility remaining. On July 14th he tweeted that he had committed to Northern Sun up-and-comer Northern State University and is accounted for and listed on their 2021 roster. I’m pumped to watch lay the wood in Aberdeen this year and wish him the best as he concludes his college career. <a href="http://www.hudl.com/v/2CaQ8n">Some Burnsville highlights</a> & <a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/9728736/5c06f76ef31c9511a074c9a3">JUCO Highlights</a> True Thompson (Robbinsdale Armstrong/Iowa Western Community College) WR. 6’5, 220 lbs. Class of 2018. Entered his name in the transfer portal from the University of Minnesota A big-time name to enter the portal from Minnesota came out of the uber-talented 2018 Armstrong Falcons class and the XL wide receiver True Thompson. As a senior at Armstrong, he was a matchup nightmare and recorded 39 catches for 650 yards and 10 TDs and used that momentum to sign with one of the best JUCO programs in the nation in Iowa Western. He redshirted there initially, and then as a sophomore caught 4 balls for 65 yards. He then signed with former high school teammates Thomas Barber and Jack Leius at the University of Minnesota, where he three seasons without seeing any game action. As a now grad transfer, I got wind that Thompson had put his name in the transfer portal, and later saw from the Minnesota State-Mankato head coach Todd Hoffner in a tweet that he had signed with the Mavericks in their star-studded 2021 recruiting class. He reunites with former Armstrong and Minnesota teammate Jack Leius and former Minnesota teammate Royal Silver on the Mavs roster, and he’s listed at a gigantic 6’5, 220 for this upcoming season. He’s going to be a fun one to watch! <a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/3159372/5721cd4019a53e2a186df8e8">High School Highlights</a> TJ Tumbelson (Mahtomedi/Iowa Central Community College) FB. 5’8, 235 lbs. Class of 2017. Entered his name in the transfer portal from Abilene Christian University The former Zephyr spent his first two seasons of college football in Fort Dodge, Iowa at Iowa Central CC, and as a sophomore, he posted 36 carries for 119 yards and two TDs from his fullback position in 12 games. He then signed to play some FCS football down in Texas for Abilene Christian and appeared in all 12 games as a junior in 2019 and recorded five carries for 18 yards and six catches for 14 yards. He announced his transfer as a grad student on January 21st of this year, and after a long period without any news, he updated his Twitter bio that he was a member of the NSIC’s Sioux Falls Cougars. After the Northern Sun schools have released their 2021 rosters I can also confirm that he will play football for the Coo in 2021. As a prep at Mahtomedi, he was a 2x All-Conference fullback who rushed for 900 yards on 105 carries with 16 TDs as a senior. As a junior, he had 500 yards on 70 carries and six TDs and was also twice named all-conference in wrestling. This kid is a bowling ball and according to USF he is up 15 pounds from his ACU days, so I’m pumped to see him in action again. <a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/12373237/5fa8c31b15f72508d4695942">D1 ACU highlights</a> Eddie Ogamba (Robbinsdale Cooper/Iowa Western Community College) P. 6’1, 200 lbs. Class of 2017. Entered his name in the transfer portal from Iowa State Mr. Ogamba has made a few stops on his college football journey thus far after graduating from Robbinsdale Cooper in 2017. The talented specialist initially signed with JUCO power Iowa Western out of high school and had a strong showing as an underclassman as he made 8-of-14 field goals as a freshman with a long of 42 yards while also going 64-of-72 on extra points. As a sophomore, he was 4-of-8 on field goal attempts with a long of 37 yards and made 16-of-20 extra points. He also made the game-winning field goal with 6:51 to play to help the Reivers beat Snow in the Graphic Edge Bowl. He then signed to play P5 football for the Iowa State Cyclones, redshirted in 2019, and in 2020 took over kickoff duties and averaged 62.2 yards on 18 kickoffs and had six touchbacks. However, he entered his name in the transfer portal on June 2nd and signed with the South Dakota Coyotes of the Missouri Valley, where he is listed on their 2021 roster as a junior. Good luck this year, Eddie! <a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/10370933/5c06f36215f70e00605e33e1">Sophomore JUCO highlights</a> Still Unsigned [player_tooltip player_id="2123" first="Desean" last="Phillips"] (St. Michael-Albertville/North Dakota State College of Science) RB. 5’11, 220 lbs. Class of 2019. Entered his name in the transfer portal from Eastern Illinois University I’m quite surprised the former STMA Knight standout remains unsigned, but the transfer portal has really switched things up and kids fall through the cracks all the time. As a prep, the bruiser of a RB was named All-District twice and his district’s Offensive Player of the Year as a junior and senior as well. As a junior, he posted 1,198 rushing yards plus 17 TDs and followed it up with 1,608 yards and 18 TDs as a senior and signed with the JUCO program North Dakota State College of Science out of high school, which has a long history of Minnesotans finding success on the gridiron there. Phillips went off as the Wildcat’s RB and led the NJCAA in rushing yards with 1,306 and finished second among NJCAA RBs with 16 TDs to go along with eight 100-yard rushing games with a season-high of 209 yards against MN West. He earned All-American HM honors plus a First Team All-Region and First Team All-Conference pick and signed with FCS competitor Eastern Illinois as a mid-year transfer in the winter of 2020. In the spring of the 2021 season, he had eight carries for 26 yards with a season-high of five rushes for 19 yards against Murray State. He then entered his name in the transfer portal on June 9th and hasn’t reported any interest or offers and I haven’t seen his name on any rosters I’ve checked out so far. I hope he finds a new home to play at soon! <a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/5526281/5dc0ca425ca98d0d08fa46d1">JUCO highlights</a> & <a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/5526281/5bfcdf913453920a18925a22">STMA highlights</a> [player_tooltip player_id="2097" first="Marlon" last="Wiley"] (Jordan) WR. 5’10, 180 lbs. Class of 2018. Entered his name in the transfer portal from South Dakota State One of the most interesting preps and storylines in this feature comes out of Jordan-Hubmen and their former burner of a WR [player_tooltip player_id="2097" first="Marlon" last="Wiley"]. A 2x state champion in Class A for the 100 M dash, Wiley was an explosive playmaker on the gridiron who was a 2x captain, an All-Metro Dream Team pick, his district’s Special Teams Player of the Year, and an All-District selection who recorded a school-record 78 catches for 928 yards and 8 TDs as a senior. His explosive ability and overall speed saw him originally commit to South Dakota State to run track, but after a season on the Jackrabbits T&F team, he made the decision to go out for football and made the squad as a WR. In the spring of 2021, he made his lone game appearance for SDSU against Western Illinois but announced he was transferring on May 18th and hasn’t reported any interest or offers since then. I believe he remains unsigned at the time of this article’s publishing. [embed]https://twitter.com/_MarlonWiley/status/1402316292078686210?s=20[/embed] Brock Johnson (Champlin Park) WR. 5’10, 170 lbs. Class of 2020. Entered his name in the transfer portal from the University of Mary Helped lead the 6A Rebels to a state runner-up finish as a senior and was named All-Conference and the team’s Offensive MVP for his efforts. He caught 43 passes for 781 yards and 9 TDs, and for his career totaled 93 receptions for 1,433 yards and 12 TDs. The NSIC did not have a football season in 2020, and in April the WR decided to put his name in the transfer portal from the University of Mary Marauders. He hasn’t reported any interest or offers since then and I haven’t seen him listed on any rosters so far but will continue to look. Someone should hit this man up, though! He can definitely improve a college football WR or DB room. <a href="http://www.hudl.com/v/2CVDDM">Senior Season</a> [player_tooltip player_id="3501" first="Trey" last="Steinbach"] (Marshall) DE. 6’3, 240 lbs. Class of 2020. Entered his name in the transfer portal from North Dakota State We have a weird one here as the former Marshall standout announced he was transferring from NDSU this spring, tweeted a commitment to Augustana University in Sioux Falls on the 13th of July while also announcing he was switching to TE, but has since deleted that tweet and has no mention of playing for Augie anywhere on his social media. He is also not listed on Augie’s roster for 2021, and I really don’t think he’s set to play football anywhere this fall. It’s a shame, as the former prep standout was a three-year starter who played a ton of different positions for the Tigers and finished his career with 183 tackles, 30.5 tackles for loss, eight sacks, two interceptions, three forced fumbles, and three fumble recoveries while adding 23 career receptions for 305 yards and five touchdowns on offense. He was a 2x All-Area selection, District Defensive Back of the Year in 2019, and led his team to a 38-5 record with two sectional titles and two state tournament appearances. I really hope his college football career is not over. <a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/8007406/5dce16cb64e9e90bf4db8ea3">Senior Highlights</a> Nick Dengler (Mahtomedi) OL. 6’4, 300 lbs. Class of 2020. Entered his name in the transfer portal from Northern State The two-year starter as a prep did not experience a college football season in 2020 and entered his name in the transfer portal on June 13th and hasn’t reported any interest or offers since then. I’ll continue to check out rosters and see if I missed anything, but it doesn’t look like he’s found a home to play football at for this fall. <a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/9884585/5daa50e623480c0c143a5522">Senior Season Highlights</a> Casey Fisher (Fridley) DB. 5’9, 185 lbs. Class of 2018. Entered his name in the transfer portal from the University of Mary The All-Conference Fridley graduate had a prolific high school career that saw him help the Tigers to three section championships while playing both offense and defense and totaling 25 tackles, four interceptions, four PBUs, and catching 32 passes for 589 yards and 12 TDs. He also had 23 rushes for 177 yards and a TD and as a junior in 2017 he posted 33 tackles, four interceptions, and six PBUs. He was a Scout Team defensive player of the week in 2019 for the Marauders, but entered his name in the transfer portal on July 6th and hasn’t reported an interest, offers, or a commitment since then. Coaches: get at him! [embed]https://twitter.com/CaseyFisherJr/status/1413642870213464066?s=20[/embed] Jake Schaper (Osseo/Rochester Community & Technical College) DE. 6’3, 260 lbs. Entered his name in the transfer portal from Minnesota State-Mankato The junior college transfer from RCTC signed with MSU-Mankato after a successful stint with the Yellow Jackets that saw him post 61 tackles, 12.5 sacks, and three FF’s as a freshman DL. In 2018 for the Mavs he posted 18 tackles, 6 TFLs, and 4.5 sacks in 10 games and followed it up with 24 tackles, 1.5 TFLs in 13 games in 2019. After COVID took away the NSIC’s 2020 season it seemed like Schaper was ready to hang up the cleats, but posted on Twitter on July 22nd that he was interested in using his final year of eligibility and reopened his recruitment. However, I don’t think he found a new home to play ball at and remains unsigned at this point in time. <a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/7896144/59d1bd556e81b5111cc1da95">Season Highlights</a> JUCO Names to Know [player_tooltip player_id="18034" first="Dominic" last="McMillian"] (MPLS North) LB. Playing with Iowa Central Community College Deonte Bryant (Hopkins) DE. Playing with Iowa Central Community College. Offered by Buffalo Quientrail Jamison-Travis (MPLS North) DL. Playing with Iowa Western Community College Arzheen Shahin (Moorhead) ATH. Playing with Iowa Western Community College Carter Anderson (Centennial) WR. Playing with Minnesota State Community & Techincal College-Fergus Falls [player_tooltip player_id="11017" first="Dacion" last="Francis"] (Robbinsdale Armstrong) LB. Playing with Itasca Community College [player_tooltip player_id="18132" first="Deezwin" last="Cooper"] (Totino-Grace) DB. Playing with Ellsworth Community College Keshon Walker (MPLS North) WR. Playing with North Dakota State College of Science Isaiah Nunn (Irondale) Playing with North Dakota State College of Science [player_tooltip player_id="156082" first="Cole" last="Sandahl"] (Mounds View) LB. Playing with Santa Barbara Community College Anthony Gipson Jr. (Maple Grove) LB. Playing with Iowa Central Community College Forrest Gibson (Brainerd) LB/DE. Playing with North Dakota State College of Science Jaylen Davis (Park Center) Playing with North Dakota State College of Science Rashad Sherwood (Robbinsdale Armstrong) DB. Playing with Central Lakes Community College Ja’Von Coleman (Tartan) Playing with Central Lakes Community College [player_tooltip player_id="156063" first="Marselio" last="Mendez"] (Cretin-Derham Hall) WR. Playing with North Dakota State College of Science Cage Linton (Cretin-Derham Hall) LB. Playing with North Dakota State College of Science [player_tooltip player_id="18154" first="Emmanuel" last="Alabi"] (Champlin Park) OL. Playing with North Dakota State College of Science Terence Campbell (Rosemount) LB/RB. Playing with Ellsworth Community College Prep School Players to Know [player_tooltip player_id="18042" first="RJ" last="Chakolis"] (Hopkins) LB. Playing at St. Thomas More Prep School [player_tooltip player_id="18084" first="Forrest" last="Scheel"] (Eden Prairie) OL. Playing at Fork Union Military Academy