As we’ve noted previously, Rutgers is killing it on the football recruiting trail. As it turns out, they’re not doing too shabby when it comes to the portal, either.
Since Greg Schiano (re)took over the Rutgers football program, the Scarlet Knights have added seven players from Ye Olde Transfer Portal. Included in that are four from the Power Five ranks.
This past week, those numbers unofficially moved up to eight and five. On his personal Twitter account Thursday, Mayan Ahanotu announced that he has decided to the Rutgers football team.
The defensive lineman had taken the first step in leaving Minnesota by putting his name into the NCAA transfer database earlier this offseason.
Excited to get back to work!! ⚔️🛡 #CHOP #GodIsGood pic.twitter.com/b804HyJKZa
— Mayan Ahanotu (@MAhanotu) April 23, 2020
If the NCAA’s one-time transfer rule isn’t in place for the 2020 season, Ahanotu would have to sit out the upcoming campaign. That would then leave the lineman two years of eligibility he could use starting in 2021.
Ahanotu was a three-star member of the Golden Gophers’ 2018 recruiting class. The Florida native was rated as the No. 50 strongside defensive end in the country.
While Ahanotu played in a pair of games as a true freshman, he was able to take a redshirt for that season. This past year, the lineman played in three games. Following that campaign, he was accorded Academic All-Big Ten honors.
Ahanotu’s father, Chidi Ahanotu, played his college football at Cal. He then went on to a 12-year career in the NFL, playing for five different teams. The last of those was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where the family settled. Mayan Ahanotu played his high school football in the city of Tampa.
