Per the Strib, the Gophers have offered a scholarship to Lakeville South QB Mitch Leidner. From the story:
The 6-4, 220-pound quarterback threw for 2,096 yards and 17 touchdowns as a junior last fall. The Gophers had initially been looking at Leidner as a tight end with his size and athleticisim, but his dizzying performance this past Saturday at the Coach Kill 7-on-7 Passing Tournament changed everything.
Leidner is currently not ranked on Rivals, and while he has interest from schools like Iowa, Air Force, and Kill's old school Northern Illinois, the Gophers are only the second to actually extend an official offer (the first is 1-AA Northern Iowa). However, considering he already possesses the size college scouts are looking for, if he lights up other camps like a Christmas tree like he did Kill's 7-on-7 tourney, he'll have more D1 offers coming his way, and will grab the attention of the recruiting services too.
Leidner is the second QB in the 2012 Gopher recruiting class to receive an offer, as Mankato West's Philip Nelson has already committed. If Minnesota were to land Leidner, with the addition of 2011 recruits Max Shortell and late signee Dexter Foreman, the Gophers could have as many as eight QB's on scholarship for the 2012 season.
Interesting to see if the potential glut of signal callers will motivate Leidner to come here and compete (FWIW Rivals lists his interest in Minnesota as "high" while everyone else is medium), or cause him to look elsewhere where there might be a clearer path to start someday. Pretty clear already that Coach Kill loves competition, and he's not worried about hurting someone's feelings by bringing in more of it (competition, that is). If you want to play QB for him at Minnesota, you're going have to work and beat out (a lot) of other guys for the job.