Notre Dame Commit Profile: Preston Zinter, Linebacker
Notre Dame picked up a winter commitment from talented two-way standout Preston Zinter, who projects to play linebacker for the Fighting Irish.
PRESTON ZINTER PROFILE
Hometown: Lawrence, Mass.
High School: Central Catholic
Height: 6-3
Weight: 215
IB Grade: 4.0 (Top 250 caliber recruit)
Upside Grade: 4.5
Offers: Notre Dame, Georgia, Ohio State, LSU, Michigan, USC, Penn State, Auburn, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Michigan State, Ole Miss, Virginia Tech, South Carolina, Louisville, Boston College, West Virginia, Vanderbilt, Syracuse, Arizona
Recruited By: Marcus Freeman
RECRUITING RANKINGS
ESPN: 4-star - No. 11 tight end
Rivals: 4-star - No. 15 outside linebacker
247Sports: 3-star - No. 50 linebacker
On3: 3-star - No. 50 linebacker
Consensus: 3-star - No. 413 overall - No. 39 linebacker
FILM ANALYSIS
Based on junior film there are some questions about Zinter's size and length, but a growth spurt seems to have happened with him. He showed up to Notre Dame taller and longer than he looked on film, which clearly changed the projection for him.
What Zinter did show on film was impressive athleticism. He plays wide receiver, tight end and outside linebacker/edge for Central Catholic. On offense there are a number of plays where Zinter is allowed to turn loose and really run, and you can see his impressive long speed.
He shows good short-area quickness, top-notch balance and the lateral movement skills needed to play off-ball linebacker. His body control as a tight end should translate quite well to being an inside linebacker. We actually don't see much of him playing off ball linebacker, so there is a lot of projection with his game, but the talent and tools are clearly there.
Playing on the edge puts Zinter in a lot of situations where he has to use his hands, and his block destruction is impressive. He shows the length and hand strength needed to keep blockers off his body and then shed them when he wants to get to the football. He'll need work when it comes to the finer points of playing inside linebacker due to the fact he doesn't currently play that position.
Notre Dame clearly sees that he possesses all the physical traits needed to make that transition, which is why the push was made to add Zinter to the class.
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