Nate Triplett becomes third Gopher FB commitment

The Minnesota Gopher coaching staff has made good use of its 10-win season and Sun Bowl victory over Oregon on the recruiting trails. That work has paid off as they received their third in-state commitment when 6-foot-3, 220-pound Nate Triplett of Delano verballed to the Gophers.

Nate Triplett made an unofficial visit to Minnesota on Friday and made his commitment earlier this week. Iowa, Nebraska and Notre Dame recently visited his school.

Triplett played both sides of the field and helped lead the Tigers to a 10-4 mark and the Class AAA championship game. They lost to Glencoe-Silver Lake 21-0 in the Metrodome. He rushed 11 times for 54 yards and caught two passes for 21 yards in the loss. Triplett also had six tackles.

Triplett rushed 155 times for 1,355 yards (8.7 yards per carry) and 17 rushing touchdowns. He caught 28 passes for 485 yards (17.4 yards per catch) and eight more scores.

Triplett had 31 tackles and 33 assists.

Triplett is also having an outstanding season on the baseball field as a catcher and pitcher for the 10-4 Tigers.

He is one of the metro area's leaders in batting (.435 batting average), home runs (four) and RBIs (18). He has eight stolen bases.

Triplett is 3-1 as a pitcher with 23 strikeouts in 28 innings and a 3.00 ERA.

Triplett is a versatile player who can play as a defensive end, linebacker or tight end for the Gophers.