Get to Know Your Orange Man: #17, LB Steve Linton

Height: 6’5”

Weight: 226 lbs.

Hometown: Dublin, Ga.

High School: Dublin

2020 stats: Linton made the switch from defensive end to linebacker for the Syracuse Orange, and spent 2020 in the linebacker rotation that was expanded due to injuries. He finished the season with one start, 15 total tackles, and a fumble recovery.

2021 projections: Linton is going to remain a part of the linebacker rotation that is still a bit thin as the Lee Kpogba situation resolves itself. Linton will be considered for the two deep, and should appear on special teams as well.

How’d he get here?: Linton had numerous P5 offers, including Missouri, USF, Baylor, UCF and Lousiville, among others. He also had an offer from Arizona State University, where his current coach, Tony White happened to be the defensive backs coach, so that’s a nice connection too. As you can tell, he chose Syracuse.

What’d recruiting sites say?: Three stars from 24/7, Rivals and ESPN.

Money quote: Linton’s head coach had some good foresight with the linebacker’s development at ‘Cuse.

“He has the ability to do either,” Holmes said, “but obviously if he’s going to consistently put his hand on the ground then he’s got to put on some mass. ... I think everybody’s in agreement that if you give this kid one year, you’ll see him at 245 (pounds).”

Twitter feed: @stevenlinton12

Tweets of wonder: Steve’s not super active on twitter, so here’s his commitment to that damn University of Syracuse.

What movie would Dino recommend for him?: Actor Phillip Linton was part of the original 21 Jump Street television series, so I bet Dino is going to recommend the now almost 10 year old remake that was a solid comedy.

Interesting nugget o’interest: According to Linton’s LinkedIn, he’s an aspiring computer programmer! The nerds are here!

Let’s get a look at ya: Here is Linton’s commitment video!