Tyler Cochran's desire to play for Ben Johnson goes back three years, two schools

Cochran shakes up the Gophers' backcourt outlook for 2024-25.

Tyler Cochran controls the ball for the Toledo Rockets. / Daniel Miller/University of Toledo

The Gophers made a late splash in the transfer portal by adding a commitment from graduate student guard Tyler Cochran from Toledo on Saturday afternoon.

Last season with the Rockets he averaged 14.4 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game on respectable 49.5/34.6/70.2 shooting splits. Listed at 6-foot-2, 225 pounds, he's a talented two-way player and he averaged 1.9 steals per game, earning Co-Mid American Conference (MAC) Defensive Player of The Year and second-team All-Conference honors.

"During my time in college basketball, one thing missing from my resume was the NCAA tournament," Cochran told KSTP's Darren Wolfson. "I feel like I have done a lot in my time playing basketball... coming to play under [Ben Johnson] is something that I have always wanted to do."

Hailing from Bolingbrook, Illinois, Cochran began his college career at local Northern Illinois, where he blossomed into one of the best young players in the MAC. He had a stop at Ball State before ending up at Toledo for the last two seasons.

"Sophomore year when my coaches at [Northern Illinois] retired, [Ben Johnson] interviewed for the job and one of my former teammates and I were helping interview and he was one of the candidates," Cochran told Wolfson. "My teammate and I really loved what he was talking about, what he thought about NIU and how he would use us and what he expected of us as a team, and I took a liking to that and I was super excited and praying he got the job there."

Johnson did not get the Northern Illinois job and instead took over at Minnesota in 2021. Heading into 2024-25, Cochran joins a loaded Gophers' backcourt with four other guards in at least their fourth year of college. Mike Mitchell Jr. is the lone returner alongside Charlotte transfer Lu'Cye Patterson, Oregon transfer Brennan Rigsby and Macalester transfer Caleb Williams.

Starting 68 of his 115 career games in the MAC, Cochran trails only Patterson (82) and Mitchell Jr. (87) for the most Division I starts in the Gophers' new-look backcourt. All signs point towards Patterson, Mitchell Jr. and Cochran being near the top of the rotation and having a three-headed monster approach next season.

Given Cochran's late addition, the most likely outcome is that we see Patterson and Mitchell Jr. start night one for the Gophers and the former MAC star could be the first guard off the bench, but any of the three could be interchangeable in the rotation on any given night. Rigsby and Williams are more than talented enough to play in a Big Ten rotation and incoming four-star freshman guard Isaac Asuma will likely have something to say as well, but there will be a lot of experience in front of them.

Ultimately, when Elijah Hawkins shockingly hit the transfer portal and went to Texas Tech, the Gophers' backcourt outlook for 2024-25 was looking grim. Johnson and his staff have pivoted well and they now have plenty of options as they look to remain competitive in the Big Ten next season.