Gophers football: Will star Anthony Smith enter transfer portal?

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The few weeks between the end of the college football regular season in November, through bowl and playoff games in December and into the opening of the transfer portal in January come with a heavy dose of roster intrigue.

Who’s coming back and who’s moving on?

With Gophers quarterback Drake Lindsey announcing last week he will return in 2026, the player atop of Minnesota’s list of will-they-or-won’t-they return is star defensive lineman Anthony Smith.

The all-Big Ten edge rusher has the option to return to Minnesota for his redshirt senior season in 2026 or he can head into the transfer portal when it opens Jan. 2. He also might try his luck with a move to the NFL.

“Let me know what he tells ya,” head coach P.J. Fleck joked Wednesday during a news conference before the Rate Bowl in Phoenix on Dec. 26. “Let me know if you have any insight.”

The Gophers have been working to re-sign players for 2026, with Fleck saying Wednesday the U has a “really, really high” retention rate, but Smith is still undecided.

Meanwhile, 13 total players have already announced they are leaving the Gophers, headlined by redshirt freshman running back Fame Ijeboi. Most of that group were not key contributors.

“Everybody’s on their own timeframe,” Fleck said. “I think, as a head coach, my personality is all about like, ‘OK, what are we doing now? What are we doing next? All right, how can we get that done and move on?’

“And I’ve had to be able to almost slow down a little bit more.”

Fleck insisted Smith, who was second in the Big Ten with 10 1/2 sacks in 2025, will be supported regardless of what direction he picks.

“Any decision he decides to make, we’ll support him 100% because all decisions he makes are going to be good decisions,” Fleck said. “He doesn’t have a bad decision.”

With Deven Eastern and Jalen Logan-Redding done as seniors, the exit of Smith would be another blow to the experience of the U’s defensive line room going into next year. Smith was tied for the second-most snaps (610) on the Gophers’ defense this season.

Premiums are paid in the revenue-sharing market for defensive lineman such as Smith, who is 6-foot-6 and 285 pounds. If Smith seeks more compensation, including NIL funds, other schools will have deeper pockets to draw from than the Gophers.

The NFL seems like a less likely option for Smith. He was not among the 481 eligible players mentioned in Pro Football Focus’ big board for the draft in April. Gophers running back Darius Taylor was slotted at 207th, while Eastern was 390th.

Taylor and safety Koi Perich are two more key players who have not yet publicly shared if they are coming back for next year.

However, linebacker Maverick Baranowski said Wednesday he has re-signed with Minnesota for his redshirt senior season in 2026.

“Excited to be a part of this defense, and be a part of this culture for another year and for my final year.” Baranowski said. “It will be awesome.”

In the regular season, Baranowski led the Gophers with 86 tackles, including six for lost yards and two sacks in all 12 games.

After the Rate Bowl, fellow linebacker, senior Devon Williams will head to the Hula Bowl, a college all-star game in DeLand, Fla., on Jan. 10.

“It’s another opportunity, so why not,” Williams said Wednesday. “That is as simple as that. As soon as I got it, I accepted it.”

Meanwhile, Eastern will fulfill an invitation to the Senior Bowl, the premier college showcase, in Mobile, Ala., on Jan. 31.

Opt outs?

The Gophers don’t share which players will opt out of playing the bowl game. That firm list isn’t known until the unavailability list is shared two hours before kickoff.

Senior receiver Le’Meke Brockington, who led Minnesota with 46 receptions for 484 yards in 2025, is a prime candidate to sit out.

“We have a lot of players that are practicing with us and are around with us, some are not,” Fleck said. “Some will play, some won’t play.”

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