The Gophers football program on Wednesday received a verbal commitment from offensive tackle Aaron Thomas of Mountain Pointe High School in Phoenix. On Monday, he decommitted from defending national champion and No. 1-ranked Ohio State.
Thomas, 6-foot-7 and 300 pounds, is a three-star recruit who is rated the No. 8 player in Arizona and the No. 46 offensive tackle nationally in the 2026 class in the 247Sports composite rankings of major recruiting services.
Thomas has an impressive list of offers from 19 other Power Four programs, including Texas A&M, Oregon, Washington, BYU and Florida State, though Ohio State’s interest reportedly had waned. He had given the Buckeyes a verbal commitment in June but unofficially visited Florida State in October. Thomas made an unofficial visit to Minnesota in April 2024.
Thomas is the fourth player this week to pick the Gophers after decommitting from another program.
On Monday, coach P.J. Fleck received verbal commitments from wide receiver Braiden Stevens of Platte City, Mo., who decommitted from South Dakota State and had recement interest from Nebraska and West Virginia; offensive tackle Beckett Schreiber from Madison (Wis.) Memorial, who decommitted from Washington State and recently visited Indiana; and running back Jett Walker of Georgetown, Texas, who decommitted from West Virginia.
With Thomas’ commitment, the Gophers have 28 players in their 2026 recruiting class, with the early signing period opening Dec. 3. As of Wednesday afternoon, Minnesota’s class ranked 29th nationally and eighth among Big Ten teams in the 247Sports composite.
