Gophers football coach P.J. Fleck got an early start to his 2026 recruiting class on Sunday when offensive tackle Andrew Trout of Rocori High School in Cold Spring, Minn., announced on the X platform that he has committed to Minnesota.

Trout, a 6-6, 275-pound sophomore, attended a Gophers camp in June and made unofficial visits to campus in November and January before receiving his offer from the team on Jan. 15. Trout also has scholarship offers from Iowa, Iowa State and Kansas State. He is the first player from the 2026 recruiting class to commit to Minnesota. Trout does not yet have ratings from the major national recruiting services.

Trout started all 13 games last season for Rocori, which reached the Class 4A state championship game where it lost 14-6 to Hutchinson. According the Hudl recruiting website, Trout allowed no sacks and had 69 pancake blocks during the 2023 season.

Later Sunday, the Gophers received a commitment from long snapper Alan Soukup of Pinnacle High School in Phoenix for their 2024 recruiting class.

Soukup received first-team All-America honors from Kohl's Professional Camps, a respected developer of kicking and punting specialists. Soukup originally committed to Indiana last June but rescinded his commitment in December. USC and Houston also offered Soukup a scholarship.