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St. Thomas Aquinas is arguably the top program in the state of Florida, but when legendary Head Coach George Smith retired in 2011, some critics thought it would be the end of their run. The doubters were silenced last year, as Rocco Casullo led the Raiders to the class 7A state title. Miami commitment Nick Linder was a key part of the team’s run as the starting center and he believes the team has enough to repeat as champions.
“Our coaching staff does a great job of keeping us to stay humble and forget about last year. They tell us that last year’s over and not to get complacent. We aren’t entitled to anything and we have to just go out and play hard. Being motivated is pretty easy considering we play Miami Northwestern first game at Sun Life, then our second game is against John Curtis (La.) in the Superdome and they’re defending national champs so it’s pretty easy to stay motivated,” said Linder.
Nick’s brother, Brandon, is a starting guard at Miami. The younger Linder has high hopes for the team this season.
“I’m expecting a great year at Miami. Brandon’s telling me great stuff from the coaching down to the team’s chemistry and how everything is shaping up. If you win the Coastal, you have a shot at the ACC, and if you win the ACC then you have a shot at a big bowl game.”
Miami has one of the top recruiting classes in the country, which is something Linder has paid close attention to.
“I’m really excited we’re getting a lot of local guys and guys from everywhere really. I’ve messaged Brad Kaaya and talked to him through Facebook and of course Kc McDermott and Reilly Gibbons. There’s some guys I haven’t really talked to, but I know of them through word of mouth and knowing they’re just good ball players.”
Linder is apart of arguably the top offensive line class in the country and has built a good relationship with the group.
“I’ve known Kc through our brothers and our families have been friends and whenever we go to the ‘Canes games we always hang out. We’ll see each other outside of football like down in the Keys with our families. I actually met Reilly (Gibbons) before he was committed at one of the basketball games when they beat Clemson for the ACC title. He’s cool and I’m excited to have him. I hung out with Trevor (Darling) and Kc at a junior day when we sat down with Coach Kehoe.”
One of Miami’s top remaining targets is Linder’s teammate, Anthony Moten, who recently de-committed from Florida. Linder feels like the ‘Canes have a good chance at landing him.
“I think Miami has a really good shot at Anthony and I hope we get him because he’s a real good ball player who makes me better in practice so I just think he’d be a great add. When he was committed to Florida, I was kind of busting his balls and stuff, but I’m definitely telling him all the pros about why Miami is a good fit for him.”
Here’s a look at what Linder’s offseason workout regimen has consisted of:
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday at 9 A.M.
-Team workouts
-Trainer from Aventura who works with NFL guys comes and works with the team
Monday, Wednesday, Friday at 6 P.M.
-Offensive Linemen go to Power Sports Academy, which specializes in explosive power lifting
Any other available time
-Field work with his brother (Brandon) and other teammates
“Our coaching staff does a great job of keeping us to stay humble and forget about last year. They tell us that last year’s over and not to get complacent. We aren’t entitled to anything and we have to just go out and play hard. Being motivated is pretty easy considering we play Miami Northwestern first game at Sun Life, then our second game is against John Curtis (La.) in the Superdome and they’re defending national champs so it’s pretty easy to stay motivated,” said Linder.
Nick’s brother, Brandon, is a starting guard at Miami. The younger Linder has high hopes for the team this season.
“I’m expecting a great year at Miami. Brandon’s telling me great stuff from the coaching down to the team’s chemistry and how everything is shaping up. If you win the Coastal, you have a shot at the ACC, and if you win the ACC then you have a shot at a big bowl game.”
Miami has one of the top recruiting classes in the country, which is something Linder has paid close attention to.
“I’m really excited we’re getting a lot of local guys and guys from everywhere really. I’ve messaged Brad Kaaya and talked to him through Facebook and of course Kc McDermott and Reilly Gibbons. There’s some guys I haven’t really talked to, but I know of them through word of mouth and knowing they’re just good ball players.”
Linder is apart of arguably the top offensive line class in the country and has built a good relationship with the group.
“I’ve known Kc through our brothers and our families have been friends and whenever we go to the ‘Canes games we always hang out. We’ll see each other outside of football like down in the Keys with our families. I actually met Reilly (Gibbons) before he was committed at one of the basketball games when they beat Clemson for the ACC title. He’s cool and I’m excited to have him. I hung out with Trevor (Darling) and Kc at a junior day when we sat down with Coach Kehoe.”
One of Miami’s top remaining targets is Linder’s teammate, Anthony Moten, who recently de-committed from Florida. Linder feels like the ‘Canes have a good chance at landing him.
“I think Miami has a really good shot at Anthony and I hope we get him because he’s a real good ball player who makes me better in practice so I just think he’d be a great add. When he was committed to Florida, I was kind of busting his balls and stuff, but I’m definitely telling him all the pros about why Miami is a good fit for him.”
Here’s a look at what Linder’s offseason workout regimen has consisted of:
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday at 9 A.M.
-Team workouts
-Trainer from Aventura who works with NFL guys comes and works with the team
Monday, Wednesday, Friday at 6 P.M.
-Offensive Linemen go to Power Sports Academy, which specializes in explosive power lifting
Any other available time
-Field work with his brother (Brandon) and other teammates
