The football was overthrown and too far to the left, and the cornerback trailing him pulled up as the pass whistled by. But Da'Jon McKnight wasn't done.

The senior receiver stretched his right hand over his head at the last moment and somehow slapped his palm on the ball, then pulled it down so casually, it was impossible to tell whether he had used string, magnets or super glue to complete the illusion.

"It's just kind of natural. It's instinct," said the Gophers' top returning scorer. His one-handed catches -- at least four so far in two days of spring practice -- are impressive feats of reflex and dexterity, not that most Gophers fans know it. "I still haven't made a one-handed catch in a game," McKnight said almost impatiently. He did in high school back home in Dallas, though, when he was trying to decide what sport to focus on. "After I caught one one-handed, I couldn't go back to basketball," McKnight said.

Circus catches aside, McKnight has stood out after only two days of spring practice, hardly a surprise after catching 10 touchdown passes during a trying junior season. With the prospect of a potential NFL career providing some extra motivation -- "It's been my dream since I came back to football," he said -- McKnight is in good physical shape, focused on "catching every pass, every one," and trying to be a leader amid a corps of young receivers.

"He's slimmer maybe than a year ago," said Gophers coach Jerry Kill, who watched McKnight catch seven passes against Northern Illinois last year, including a 20-yard touchdown grab. "I think he's maybe a bit more athletic than a year ago because his body's changed a little bit."

So has his comfort level. McKnight said he's a believer in Kill's offense, which he hopes enables him to break the school record for touchdown catches in a season (11, held by Ron Johnson and Omar Douglas) that he came so close to a year ago. "Last year, I could get kind of nervous, but this year, I've got all the confidence in the world," McKnight said.

Even if he can't get both hands on the ball.

Etc. • Kill said Troy Stoudermire, who spent the first month of last season at receiver, will remain at cornerback this year. "We feel like we've got to get better on defense and we're going to keep good players on defense," Kill said.

• Safety Kim Royston, returning from a broken leg, sat out Friday, just as a precaution. He'll practice again Saturday, Kill said.