Weekly Wardaddies: Cody Lindenberg

The Gophers aren't shy about giving a special eye to elite athletes, such as those with a SPARQ (Nike's high school combine rating) above 100. It's no surprise then that <strong><em>Cody Lindenberg</em></strong> is the latest hometown recruit to get an offer. The 6'2" 205 lb. defender scored a 101.31 at the Opening Regional Camp in St. Louis in April. When I saw the news I immediately thought of Fleck and made a note to circle back on Lindenberg. Before I knew it he was brought in for a visit and received a grade of 0.8299 on 247. The next day, possibly that same day, he was committed to the University of Minnesota. In less than a month he went from no-star with a few FCS offers to 3-star Big Ten commit. All because of a Nike combine. This is one of my favorite commits for 2020 because he is exactly the type of player we would've lost to Wisconsin in the past. Read on to see my thoughts on the newest Gopher linebacker and why I think he could be All Big Ten when it's all said and done. &nbsp; <h2 style="text-align: center">Cody Lindenberg - DB/LB Anoka</h2> [caption id="attachment_7012" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Another homegrown Minnesota LB[/caption] <h2><span style="font-size: 14pt"><strong>Size/Body Type</strong></span></h2> Lists at 6'2" 200 lbs. lanky frame with slight swimmers body up top. Definite room for growth in a college weight program. Strong lower body. Proportioned body, arms are not noticeably long. Looks like he's done growing and physically mature. <h2><span style="font-size: 14pt"><strong>Athleticism</strong></span></h2> Solid burst with good step frequency that he keeps up through the tackle. Returns punts and plays free safety if you had questions about his hips. A laser 4.67 is a great time for him and it shows up on film. Has a second gear when he needs to make a play. Good functional strength, balance and power through contact. <span style="font-size: 14pt"><strong>Pass Coverage</strong></span> Solid coordination out of his backpedal to plant and break up a pass or deliver a hit. Obvious sideline-to-sideline speed that arrives with bad intentions. Flashes high level burst to his man's hip in man coverage with the length to break up accurate passes. <h2><span style="font-size: 14pt"><strong>Run Game</strong></span></h2> Healthy break mechanics allow him to build speed and get downfield to deliver strikes. Sinks into blocks and uses good hip mechanics to get separation. Very good build-up speed and keeps a good lean to produce power upon contact. Takes solid angles and has the speed and length to keep them. <h2><span style="font-size: 14pt"><strong>Ball Skills</strong></span></h2> Unsurprisingly solid with room for growth. He's the field general in Anoka's defense and that means playing it safe more often than not. Again, he returns punts. <h2><span style="font-size: 14pt"><strong>Vision</strong></span></h2> He is a see-it-first player right now. Definitely more comfortable breaking on things that are in front of him. A touch more confident stepping down to play the run. He'd be much better recruited if he played linebacker instead of free safety. &nbsp; <h2>Overall</h2> Cody Lindenberg is a traits-based linebacker prospect with the testing numbers to back it up. He can run, he can hit, i'm not sure if he can paint cha' back porch and who knows how he passes. I am sure that if he was in a smaller town he'd be that QB/DB BMOC prospect that a lot of coaches adore. And if he was at Eden Prairie he'd already be a household name. He has an excellent Cashman Quotient* as a linebacker playing DB in high school and has Big Ten speed right now. Linebacker is one of the more straightforward positions to scout for and Lindenberg is the new Big Ten archetype. The Big Ten goes through Ohio State so faster, more athletic linebacker play will be key. Rush, Gordon, Willis, and Finnessy will be program defining names at the linebacker position. Cody Lindenberg has a very good chance to be on the same list. &nbsp; * - I'm fairly sure I invented the Cashman Quotient which is big defensive backs who <em>look</em> like they should be playing linebacker Images courtesy of 247.com, Hudl.com and Giphy