Peyton Manning surprised Mitch Leidner when he approached him during the Manning passing camp in July curious about Minnesota.
Manning lived in the Twin Cities briefly when his father, Archie, ended his NFL career playing for the Vikings. But the Denver Broncos all-pro quarterback wanted to know about the Gophers.
"He came out of nowhere and asked, 'Is Minnesota going to be any good this year?' " the University of Minnesota junior quarterback said.
The Gophers, who open the season Thursday night against No. 2-ranked Texas Christian at TCF Bank Stadium, will be much improved offensively if Leidner can develop into a productive passer this year.