Reese Tripp fighting for playing time with Gophers and loving his craft

MINNEAPOLIS Reese Tripp is a 6-foot-7, 335-pound Kasson-Mantorville graduate (2023) who signed to play football with the University of Minnesota as a high school junior.

He was rated as the 71st best offensive lineman in the country as a senior when he was named All-State and was a three-star recruit.

Tripp, a reserve guard at Minnesota, will be in his third season with the Gophers this coming fall.

Tripp redshirted in 2023 and then this past season played in one game, against Rhode Island.

He has three more seasons of eligibility.

ADVERTISEMENT How difficult has it been to stay patient with playing time on this team? It is very difficult.

But seeing everyone around me makes it easier.

I came in with fifth- and sixth-year guys playing.

So, though its been challenging to wait around for my time to come, its been great to see guys who were playing great football and to have watched what they were doing right.

Ive tried to take what they do right and apply it to my game and then work my butt off to give myself a chance.

When you came in as a true freshman, what was your first impression of how things are done at Division I Minnesota? It is a very hard program.

Everything is fast paced and we sprint everywhere we go.

Everything has an urgent pace to it.

I had to make sure I was keeping up with everyone and doing my best, that I was performing to the standard that coach (PJ) Fleck has set.

Also, coming from a small town like Mantorville there werent too many guys I was playing with or against who were my size then.

But here, there are lots of them.

Everyone around me is good.

What attracted you to Minnesota in the first place? It has been my dream school since I can remember, growing up and watching all of their players and in the 2019 season seeing all of their success (Minnesota finished 11-2).

It was then that I started getting serious with football.

Watching their games that season put on a light bulb in my head that this was where I wanted to play.

Also, just seeing what coach Fleck has done with this program and myself being an in-state guy, this has been my dream program forever.

What were some things that you immediately knew you had to get better at to play at this level? ADVERTISEMENT Definitely bending better and being able to stay low, because as they say, the lower man wins.

Also being able to play with leverage and trying to get under guys so they dont create penetration.

When you are lower youre more stable.

And footwork is a huge thing.

We are graded on that.

If you play with the right technique and pad level, youre going to win that rep.

Being able to stay low and play through contact is one of the things that became my main focus.

That, and making sure I bend.

Those are still the main things I concentrate on.

Minnesota offensive line coach Brian Callahan is highly regarded.

Hes had a number of offensive linemen in the last four years named All-Big Ten Conference and three selected in the first four rounds of the NFL Draft, including two in the second round.

What jumps out to you about Minnesotas ninth-year coach? He is an incredible coach.

He preaches that we get to our technique before our (opponent) does.

We really work a lot of techniques in practice.

He wants everyone to speak the same language in the (offensive line) room.

We have to answer the way we are supposed to answer.

We want to all be on the same level.

Also, with him being with coach Fleck for so many years, he stands behind him.

Its good to have that same alignment reflected.

Coach (Callahan) really articulates things well with us.

Playing along the offensive line is generally not thought of as a high-profile position, though we know how crucial linemen are to a teams success.

What do you enjoy about your position? I enjoy that there is contact on every play.

Being able to run the ball is crucial in our program.

At a school like this, we believe in running the ball.

RTB has deep meaning in this program, and its not just Row the Boat, but also Run the Ball.

Its a very rewarding thing when you can go through a 4-minute stretch of just running the ball.

There is an identity to that.

Its being very physical and mean.

What is the most challenging part of being a Big Ten Conference offensive lineman? Its the work that it takes.

It is very challenging and demanding work.

You have to dedicate yourself to your craft because in my opinion the Big Ten is the best conference in college football.

Youre going against great defensive linemen.

Its very demanding in (Gopher practices) too because we have great defensive linemen.

The strength and speed and balance that you have to play at this level is great.

ADVERTISEMENT Who is the toughest defensive lineman you go up against in practice? Deven Eastern is an incredible defensive lineman.

Hes fast, strong, twitchy.

Hes just an all-around tough guy to block.

Hes very good.

How tough is it to have a friendship with a guy who you are physically trying to beat down every day? Once practice is over we are back to being friends.

Once practice is over with, it is a very connected locker room that we have.

Coach Fleck always says that a connected team is a dangerous team.

We are that.

I think that is especially true this year.

Where do you stand now on the depth chart and how satisfied are you with that? I am mainly running with the second group, behind (two-year starter) Greg Johnson.

But I am always striving to be in the (starting) spot.

Im always reaching to be the best and doing whatever I can for that.

What might it take to eventually crack the starting lineup? ADVERTISEMENT It will take dedicating myself to perfecting my craft.

But this has been awesome; I love it.

I love the team aspect of it and the challenge of going out there and facing the person across from me and knowing I have a crucial role in our offense.

If I go out there and make one wrong step, it could end up being a sack-fumble or a tackle for loss or us not getting a first down.

It is a good challenge for me, making sure that I am prepared out there for what I have to do.

Youve gotten through the teams spring practice, finishing last week.

How good are the Gophers going to be in 2025? We are going to have a great offense and a great team overall.

A lot of people are questioning how good our offensive line is going to be because we have just one or two starters back.

But I see great potential in our offensive line.

Its very explosive.

And our (likely starting) quarterback, Drake Lindsey, he has brought our offense together.

He learned a lot from Max (Brosmer, last years starter) and is applying all that he learned.

You can tell that he is here to take care of business..

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