Minnesota Football Recruiting: Jacob Paulson Commits to Gophers

(*Editor's note...What the heck does "Commitment to Eight" mean? It is our new recurring title for recruit commitments referencing a commitment to work towards the Gopher's Eighth National Championship.)

Jacob Paulson is a tight end out of Louisville and has given his verbal pledge to play football for the Golden Gophers. A 3-star kid who was planning on visiting LSU this weekend where it was widely assumed that he would get a scholarship offer. But Coach Fleck got in his ear and convinced him that Minnesota was the right place for him.

Paulson was pursued and offered by the Claeys staff and took an official visit earlier in the year but interest waned till Fleck was hired and he made the call. He was able to re-ignite the passion for Minnesota and Paulson cancelles his LSU official visit and has committed to Minnesota.

Quotables

Ryan Burns of GopherIllustrated ($cout).

"Coach Fleck and Callahan see me as a true "Y" tight end that can do both in terms of blocking and receiving," Paulson explained to GopherIllustrated. "I think those are my strengths as a tight end as I'm able to run well, but I'm also not afraid to put my hand in the dirt and block. My family came with on my official visit back in December and they think it's great in Minneapolis. The biggest reason I chose Minnesota over schools like Illinois and LSU where I was going to visit this weekend, is I loved it there when I was on my visit. I loved the campus, the facilities and I have only heard good things about coach Fleck."

From Scout’s LSU site on they they targeted Paulson as the eventual lone TE for the Tigers in this recruiting class.

Right now, LSU is set to host Jacob Paulson for an official visit this weekend, which bodes well for LSU and if they offer, it's tough to imagine LSU not landing Paulson out of Kentucky. The three-star tight end would be a solid add at a position of need with tight ends Colin Jeter and DeSean Smith leaving to graduation.

Measurables

Height: 6’ 4"
Weight: 230 lbs.

Big 4 Ratings:

Power 5 Offers - Illinois, Cincy, Purdue, Syracuse

Highlights

Senior year highlights:

TDG Analysis

In Two Words - if you have to remember just two things about this player...

• Versatile
• Hands

Absurd Comparisons

Well I’m going to go with a former great Gopher TE who just so happened to have a short little NFL career that was derailed by concussions. But Paulson reminds me a bit of Ben Utecht. Utecht was a solid blocker and had very nice hands without being exceptionally fast or athletic (i.e. Maxx Williams).

Scheme Fit

I see Paulson as a kid who can play on all 3 downs. He’ll be a good blocker who can sneak out and make tough catches.

Impact on Other Prospects?

The only other potential TE would be Noah Grindorff and he’s being recruited as an “athlete” who could end up playing as a DE.