Taylor Landfair's decision to transfer is another blow to Gophers volleyball

Keegan Cook came to Minnesota last December with a reputation for player retention and culture building that helped him lead a Pac-12 juggernaut over eight seasons at Washington.

Twelve months later, Cook is dealing with the first transfer of his career in his first year as Gophers coach. The impact figures to be gigantic.

The news that redshirt junior Taylor Landfair had entered the transfer portal Friday night was unexpected, according to sources inside the program who also said they don't expect anyone else to transfer.

Landfair posted on Instagram on Sunday morning: "Thank you again Gopher Nation for everything and no matter where I end up, I won't forget you all!! I loved being a Gopher over the past 4 years and I'll always keep being a Gopher close to my heart."

She went on to thank former Gophers coach Hugh McCutcheon, who recruited her to the program, for "the knowledge and wisdom he shared with me" but didn't mention her teammates or the current coaching staff.

Reached for comment, Landfair didn't respond immediately to questions about her decision to leave.

Cook said via text message: "Thank you to Taylor for all of her years competing and representing the University of Minnesota. I wish her all the best as she continues her academic and athletic journey."

Last week, Cook sat in his office and spoke with excitement about the upcoming season. He was cautiously optimistic — all coaches must be these days — that his roster was returning. But he said the urgency around developing Landfair to her highest potential was at top of mind. He said about next season: "You have to go for it here."

He will not get that chance with Landfair.

She arrived as the consensus top recruit in the class of 2020. Her freshman season was delayed by COVID-19, and then she went out and dominated, being named first-team All-Big Ten. Her sophomore year was derailed by an abdominal injury. She returned in 2022 to win Big Ten Player of the Year and be named a first-team All-America in McCutcheon's final season as Gophers coach.

Her decision to stay when Cook took over was crucial to the stability of the program — especially after the transfers of Carter Booth and Jenna Wenaas — and her new coach highlighted it several times during the season.

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But her statistical output was not as high, and the team failed to reach several of its goals. After the Gophers and setter Melani Shaffmaster adjusted their offensive system midway through the season, Landfair returned to a higher level in conference play as the team played some of its best volleyball.

The big picture for Landfair at the U: three seasons in four years, three first-team All-Big Ten finishes, three academic All-Big Ten awards and the conference Player of the Year in 2022. The team reached the Elite Eight when she was injured as a sophomore, but she never played past the Sweet 16.

How her leaving impacts the program is a completely different question as the transfer of some of McCutcheon's top players and recruits continues to shadow the start of Cook's tenure.

As he recapped the season last week, unaware that Landfair was on the way out, Cook was more philosophical about the transfer portal and its impact on his job, pointing out the unending churn of players in college football.

"Somehow, they're still operating, and they're still successful," he said. "So what am I sitting here complaining about?"

That will be a necessary attitude as he plots what comes next for the Gophers. They have a roster spot to fill with Landfair's departure; whether they use that on a transfer at her position or not remains to be seen.

They still have, at the time of this writing, hitters Mckenna Wucherer, Lydia Grote, Julia Hanson, Lauren Crowl, Sydney Schnichels and incoming freshman Olivia Swenson.

Wucherer is driven, highly touted and developing — a player with the highest aspirations in the sport who had to navigate highs and lows this season but led the team in kills per set. Hanson has shown tantalizing ability when given the chance to play but has seen relatively little time as an attacker because of Wucherer and Landfair on the outside.

The coaches have already been targeting players in the transfer portal and were specifically looking at liberos and middle blockers to help replace graduates Kylie Murr and Phoebe Awoleye.

If Gophers fans are looking to take heart in all of this, they could easily point to last season, when Cook's three transfers — Murr, Awoleye and Grote — all excelled and were key points of stability in a wobbly season.

Still, what is lost with Landfair's departure is both simple to see and impossible to quantify. She was not merely the team's most identifiable player, she was the center of the offense and every opposing team's game plan.

In that sense, it is hard to see how they replace her. It is also exciting to imagine something new coming in the wake — next year's team will now, without question, have a completely new identity.

Everyone knew it would take time for Cook to shape Gophers volleyball after McCutcheon's resignation. That pace is accelerating. Not that anyone has time to complain.