The Gophers football program added depth to its backfield Sunday when highly productive running back Xavier Ford from Leesville (La.) High School gave a verbal commitment to join Minnesota's 2025 recruiting class.

Ford, 5-9 and 210 pounds, was named Louisiana's Mr. Football after rushing for 3,467 yards and 52 touchdowns as a Leesville senior in 2024. His total set the Louisiana single-season record for most rushing yards. For his career with the Wampus Cats, he rushed for 8,591 yards and 123 touchdowns.

A three-star recruit, Ford is the 35th-ranked player in Louisiana and the 82nd-ranked running back nationally by recruiting-focused website 247Sports.com. His list of scholarship offers included Tulane, Houston, Arkansas State, Louisiana-Monroe and Air Force. Ford made his official visit to the Gophers this weekend.

The addition of Ford gives the Gophers eight scholarship running backs for 2025, led by junior-to-be Darius Taylor. Coach P.J. Fleck added A.J. Turner (Marshall) and Cameron Davis (Washington) from the transfer portal, and returnees in Fame Ijeboi and Jaydon Wright, plus incoming freshmen Trey Berry and Grant Washington.