Football: Gophers add fourth recruit from Moorhead to its 2027 class

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May 13, 2026 - 15:03

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Football: Gophers add fourth recruit from Moorhead to its 2027 class

The Gophers football program is placing a big bet on prospects from Moorhead, Minn. The U added a fourth recruit from the northern city when cornerback Zak Walker committed on Wednesday.

“After a great visit and talk with my family I have decided to commit to the University of Minnesota,” Walker wrote on social media. “The people, culture, and player development make it a place I am proud to call home. Row the Boat!”

Walker joins Moorhead quarterback Jett Feeney, receiver David Mack and running back Taye Reich in the U’s recruiting class for next year. That trio committed in February and March.

Walker has yet to receive a star rating from recruiting services, but had four scholarship offers from North Dakota State, North Dakota, South Dakota State and South Dakota.

Listed at 5-foot-11 and 175 pounds, Walker has also displayed his athleticism on the offensive side of the ball and in track and field, posting about school records in the long jump (24 feet, 8 inches), 100-meter dash (10.57 seconds) and the 200 (21.36). He posted those numbers at the Hamline Elite Meet in St. Paul in May.

On Tuesday, Minnesota received a pledge from a second Iowa linebacker for next year’s class. Sioux City’s linebacker Kason Clayborne joined Iowa City’s Tate Wallace, who committed on Sunday.

“Gopher Nation let’s do it,” Clayborne wrote on X.

Clayborne, a 6-foot-3, 215-pound, three-star recruit, had other offers from Michigan State, Purdue, Kansas State, Kansas and Arizona. Clayborne, who also plays baseball, was considered a priority recruiting target of linebacker coach Mariano Sori-Marin.

His older brother Kobe Clayborne was a defensive lineman at South Dakota State and was named all-Missouri Valley Conference honorable mention in 2024.

With the addition of Walker and Clayborne, Minnesota is up to 15 total commitments for 2027.