Defensive line has been a priority for Gophers coach P.J. Fleck in recruiting this year, and late Friday night he added another highly ranked recruit.
Kristian Williams, a four-star defensive tackle from Southwind High School in Memphis, Tenn., announced on Twitter that he has committed to Minnesota. Williams, 6-3 and 297 pounds, is the 27th-rated defensive tackle nationally in the 247Sports.com composite of major national recruiting services. He is the second-highest-rated recruit in the Gophers' Class of 2019, and three of the top four in the class are defensive linemen. Williams joins four-star Rashad Cheney of Ellenwood, Ga., and three-star Keonte Schad of Ellsworth Community College in Iowa Falls, Iowa.
Williams also had scholarship offers from Indiana, Tennessee, Ole Miss and LSU, among others.
The Gophers also received a verbal commitment from three-star kicker Michael Lantz of Starrs Mill High School in Fayetteville, Ga. Lantz is the 10th-ranked kicker nationally by Kohl's Kicking Camps. Earlier Friday, kicker Camden Lewis of Cornelius, N.C., who verbally committed to the Gophers in June, decommitted from Minnesota, according to GopherIllustrated. Lewis is ranked No. 9 nationally by Kohl's.
Lantz also had offers from Washington State and Louisiana-Monroe.
The additions of Williams and Lantz give the Gophers 24 players who have verbally committed for the Class of 2019, with Wednesday's opening of the early national signing period approaching. The Gophers are ranked No. 34 nationally in the 247Sports composite and eighth among Big Ten teams.
