1. DE
98 99
#95 Hendrick Ekpe
FR/FR 6-5, 251
Michael Amaefula
JR/JR 6-2, 244
Returning Starter
#97ScottEkpe
Ra’Shede Hageman
RS/SR 6-6, 311
Returning Starter
NT
#92 RonaldJohnson
SR/SR 6-1, 286
#91 Alex Keith
SO/SO 6-3, 237
Theiren Cockram
RS/SO 6-6, 238
CB FS SS CB
2 11 31
#26De’VondreCampbell
RS/FR 6-2, 239
#50JackLynn
RS/FR 6-3,234
#56 Nick Rallis
Cedric Thompson
JR/JR 5-10, 211
Antonio Johnson
JR/JR 6-0, 207
5
MIKE
Damien Wilson
SR/SR 6-2, 254
#13 Derrick Wells
JR/JR 6-0, 206
Brock Vereen
SR/SR 5-10, 167
#7 Damarius Travis
SO/SO 6-2, 208
#6Grayson Levine
JR/JR 5-11,202
#3 Martez Shabazz
SR/SR 5-11, 172
57
Eric Murray
SO/SO 6-0, 194
Returning Starter
Cameron Botticelli
RS/JR 6-5, 290
Returning Starter
DT
46
BASE DEFENSE
21
55
DE
WILL
9
James Manuel
SR/SR 6-2, 225
SAM
Aaron Hill
RS/SR 6-2, 231
Returning Starter
2. 2013: 34 Tackles, 11.0 TFL, 2.0 Sacks, 1 INT, 8 BU, 2 Blkd Kick
2013: Returning starter. Before season started he was named to the follow-
ing 2013 Watch Lists: Chuck Bednarik Award, Outland Trophy. Also named to
the 2013 First Team Preseason All-Big 10 Team by Phil Steele. His perfor-
mance this season has earned him All-Big Ten DL. He leads the team in TFL
and is 2nd in pass break-ups.
2013: 64 Tackles, 4.5 TFL, 1.0 Sacks, 2 INT, 2 FF, 2 FRcv
2013: Returning starter. His play this year has earned him LB of the year hon-
ors from UMN Football award night as well as All-Big Ten honorable men-
tion. He leads the Gophers in INT and Solo Tackles.
2012: 74 Tackles, 1.0 Sack, 4 TFL, 2 INT, 3FF. He repeated as team's Butch
Nash Award winner, which honors a player for being competitive on the field
and in the classroom. He was also named Academic All-Big Ten.
2013: 56 Tackles, 2.5 TFL, 1 INT, 6 BU, 1 FF
2013: His play this year helped him be named to the first team All-Big Ten by
the coaches and was an honorable mention by the media. Started the season
as a safety, but due to an injury he switched positions to CB.
2012: 64 Tackles, 9 BU, 2 INT. He played in all 13 games. He was named Aca-
demic All-Big Ten
DEFENSIVE PLAYMAKERS
2013: 29 Tackles, 10.0 TFL, 7.5 Sacks, 3 QBH, 4 FF, 1 FRcv
2013: This is his first year starting. His play this year helped him be named
second team All-Big Ten player. Cockran, a RS Sophomore, leads the team
with 7.5 Sacks and 4 FF.
2012: 6 Tackles, 1 Sack. He played in all 13 games as a RS Freshman. He was
also named to the Academic All-Big Ten team.
3. COACHING UNIT
Tracy Claeys has been the defensive coordinator for the University of Minnesota football
program since head coach Jerry Kill's arrival in December of 2010. Claeys has transformed
Minnesota's defense in just two years, as the Gophers improved in every defensive category
from 2011 to 2012. The 2013 campaign under Claeys has seen the gophers improve in scor-
ing DEF and Red Zone DEF. Claeys started his coaching career at Santa Fe Trail High School
in 1994. He joined up with Kill in 1995 at Saginaw Valley State, where he coached the defen-
sive line. Claeys became Kill's defensive coordinator at Emporia State in 1999. He remained
in that capacity when Kill took over at Southern Illinois in 2001 and Northern Illinois in 2008.
Jerry Kill was named head coach of the University of Minnesota football program on December
7, 2010. He entered his 20th year of being a head college football coach in 2013 and his overall
collegiate head coaching record is 141-91. Kill's reputation as a turnaround artist has contin-
ued with the Gophers, as Minnesota doubled its win total from 2011 to 2012 in Kill's second
year. Last season, Kill led the Gophers to a bowl game for the first time since 2009, as Minne-
sota faced Texas Tech in the Meineke Car Care Bowl. Kill came to Minnesota after spending
three seasons on the sidelines at Northern Illinois University. Kill led the Huskies to three con-
secutive bowl games during his tenure and also coached NIU to a berth the Mid-American Con-
ference Championship game in 2010. Kill was 23-16 in his three seasons with the Huskies.
Bill Miller, who is in his second stint on the University of Minnesota coaching staff, adds 35
years of collegiate coaching experience to the Gopher staff. Miller has had a help in shaping a
defense that has improved in every defensive category from 2011 to 2012. Miller has worked
with virtually a who's who in the college football coaching world. In addition to working with
coach Jerry Kill, Miller served on staffs under Nick Saban, Jimmy Johnson, Ron Zook, Dirk
Koetter, Chuck Shelton, Pat Jones, College Football Hall of Fame member Chris Ault and the
late Bud Elliott. Miller has been on staff with five teams that have won conference champion-
ships and has coached in 11 bowl games.
Jeff Phelps is in his third year as an assistant coach with the Golden Gophers. He coaches the
defensive line. Phelps coached a defensive line that recorded 26 sacks in 2012 (up from 19 in
2011), which is the most by the Gophers since they had 34 sacks in 2008. Phelps joined the
Minnesota staff after spending five years coaching at Northern Illinois. From 2008-2010, he
coached the Huskies' defensive line. In 2006-07, Phelps was responsible for coaching the
Huskie defensive tackles. Phelps coached defensive end Larry English at NIU. English went on
to be named the Mid-American Conference's Most Valuable Player twice and was the 2008
MAC Defensive Player of the Year. He was the 16th overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft, going
to the San Diego Chargers.
Jay Sawvel coaches the defensive backs and special teams. He has coached under Jerry Kill
for more than a decade, beginning at Southern Illinois in 2001 and moving on to Northern
Illinois in 2008. Sawvel's charges yeilded only one 300-yard passing game against in 2012.
The Gophers ended the season ranked No. 12 in the nation in pass defense and No. 23 in
pass efficiency defense, as they allowed only 186.6 yards per game through the air. Minne-
sota made 13 interceptions last season, while only giving up 15 passing touchdowns. This
year the gophers rank 39th in the nation allowing 217.3 YPG and have totaled 10 INT.
