Gophers' 2026 DL commit Howie Johnson now a four-star prospect

Forest Lake, Minnesota defensive lineman Howie Johnson has been verbally committed to the Gophers since last June. He was just elevated to a four-star prospect on the latest 2026 class update from 247Sports.

The consensus is much lower on Johnson than 247Sports. Their composite rankings of 247Sports, On3, Rivals and ESPN combined slot him as the 587th-best player in the class. Listed at 6-foot-3, 255 pounds, he has the versatility to play outside and inside at defensive line, but he likely projects more along the interior.

The update from 247Sports bumps him above four-star Gophers' commit Andrew Trout, as the second-best player in Minnesota, trailing only Roman Voss.

As it stands today, Johnson, Trout and Tennessee cornerback Justin Hopkins are all verbally committed to Minnesota as four-star prospects. The major recruiting services have differing opinions on all three players.

On3 views Trout as their top commit at 273rd in the country, 247Sports now views Johnson on top at 232nd, and Hopkins was once viewed as a top 300 guy by On3. Ultimately, all three players are viewed as four-star recruits by at least one major service.

It's still very early in the 2026 cycle with Minnesota's biggest recruiting weekend of the year on the horizon for the end of May, but their class currently ranks as the 23rd-best in the country according to 247Sports. They have a very solid core, in large part due to Johnson, Trout and Hopkins.

Updated 2026 recruiting class: 10 verbal commitments

• Andrew Trout, OL (Rocori, MN)
• Justin Hopkins, CB (Nashville, TN)
• Howie Johnson, DL (Forest Lake, MN)
• Gavin Meier, OL (Janesville, WI)
• Hayden Moore, WR (Newberry, FL)
• Rico Blassingame, WR (Tolleson, AZ)
• Kai Meza, WR (Draper, UT)
• Owen Lansu, QB (Downers Grove, IL)
• Ezekiel Bates, RB (Malvern, PA)
• Hudson Dunn, LB (Peoria, AZ)

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