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P.J. Fleck says QB Demry Croft has rejoined Minnesota
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Minnesota quarterback Demry Croft has rejoined the team, head coach P.J. Fleck confirmed on Tuesday.
On Monday, the Gophers released their depth chart for Saturday’s game against Purdue and Croft’s name was back on the list after being absent for the past few weeks. Andy Greder of the Pioneer Press tweeted out that Fleck confirmed Croft’s return.
#Gophers QB Demry Croft is back on the team, coach PJ Fleck said. But it seems like he still has a lot to prove going forward.
— Andy Greder (@andygreder) October 3, 2017
Fleck stated that Croft had left the team for some personal issues and did not give any specific reasoning. The quarterback was away from the team after Minnesota’s trip to Oregon State.
Here’s what Fleck said about the situation three weeks ago:
He is dealing with some personal issues that are way, way more important than football, so it’s my job as a head football coach to get him what he needs. We are going to help him any way we can. I’m not going to get into that, in respect to his privacy and his personal life.
If you do not do the right thing academically, athletically, socially and spiritually, and you do not uphold the high, high expectations of our culture on and off the field, you will not play. And it does not matter who you are.
There’s still no clear reason why Croft left the team for an extended period of time.
Quarterback Conor Rhoda was named the starter after Croft departed and, according to Greder, Croft might have some work to do before he’s anywhere close to seeing the field again.
Prior to his temporary absence, Croft completed 7-of-12 passes for 63 yards. He also rushed for 96 yards and a touchdown.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB