Avante Dickerson, the top-ranked recruit in the Minnesota Golden Gopher football team’s 2021 recruiting class, has opted to de-commit from the program and will sign with another team during next month’s signing period.
Dickerson is a four-star cornerback from Nebraska that is ranked as the 121st overall prospect and eighth-ranked cornerback from the 2021 class. While most of the Gophers’ recruits signed during the early signing period in December, Dickerson held off before making his commitment official.
On Sunday, Dickerson tweeted that he had “a change of heart,” and would not be joining the Gopher program next season.
I’d like to thank Coach Fleck and the entire University of Minnesota staff for the support throughout this process. However, I’ve had a change of heart and I am de-committing from Minnesota.
I will be announcing my decision on signing day on Feb. 3rd.— Avante Dickerson (@dickersonn_) January 24, 2021
The loss of Dickerson is a blow to the overall recruiting class and stings more with Benjamin St. Juste forgoing his final season of eligibility to prepare for this year’s NFL Draft.
The Gophers still have a strong recruiting class that’s ranked 35th in the nation per 247 Sports and have scored several transfer recruits including Clemson defensive lineman Nyles Pinckeny and Texas A&M receiver Dylan Wright, both of whom have four-star ratings.
