Gophers need Cody Lindenberg to be the defensive anchor in 2024

Can Lindenberg be what Minnesota's defense needs?

Nov 4, 2023; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers linebacker Cody Lindenberg (45) tackles Illinois Fighting Illini wide receiver Isaiah Williams (1) forcing a fumble during the second half at Huntington Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-USA TODAY Sports / Matt Krohn-USA TODAY Sports

Tyler Nubin was the anchor of the Gophers defense the past two seasons. He changed the way teams game-planned and he was top five on the team in tackles both years. Now heading into 2024, Minnesota is searching for a dynamic playmaker on defense who can become of the new face of the defense. One player up to the task may be linebacker Cody Lindenberg.

Lindenberg obviously does not play the same position that Nubin did, but he has the skills to fill the void as the most consistent playmaker for the Gophers' defense. Leading into the last season he was supposed to start at middle linebacker, but for a multitude of reasons that was not the case for much of the season.

In 2023, he missed a major chunk of the season with a mysterious injury. It later came out to be an issue with his hamstring and then he played in Weeks 9, 10, 13 and the bowl game. It seems like he has been part of the Gophers' program for quite a while, but he has started 11 games in his four-year career.

The Anoka, Minn. native has simply not had that much time on the field. He played a career-high 491 snaps in 2022, a season in which he made a career-high six starts. For example, former Gophers linebacker Mariano Sori-Marin played 350+ snaps in four different seasons, something Lindenberg has only done once. He has only played only 896 snaps in his entire career, while Nubin played 768 snaps last season alone.

As a redshirt sophomore in 2022, Lindenberg had his best collegiate season, totaling 71 tackles, which ranked second on the team. According to Pro Football Focus (PFF), he earned a 66.5 overall grade, a total based off of a 66.7 mark in run defense and 64.2 in coverage.

Despite missing seven games last season, he performed very well when he was on the field. He had 11 total tackles against Illinois and Wisconsin, and in a four-game sample size he recorded an overall 69.9 PFF Grade, including 74.8 against the run and 65.5 in coverage.

The expectation is that he will start at the Mike linebacker position with Devon Williams and Maverick Baranowski acting in the No. 2 and No. 3 inside backers. As a redshirt senior, there is big-time pressure on Lindenberg to be the leader of the defense – especially under new defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman.

When Lindenberg came to the Gophers in the 2020 recruiting class, he was the No. 5 ranked player in Minnesota. He started the very first game of his career in Week 1 against Michigan. There have been high hopes that he could develop into a great Big Ten linebacker and 2024 might be the time he finally does.