IU Football’s Two Transfers are Already Chill
1/25/2018 11:03:00 AM | Football
By Andy Graham
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana University long served as the "South Beach of the Big Ten," the southernmost school of a northern conference.
That's no longer technically true. Relatively new entry Maryland's 38.9897 degrees N Longitude slips in just south of Bloomington's 39.1653 N.
And while Nick Linder was perhaps already enamored of another South Beach – as a Fort Lauderdale product and starting center for Miami's football Hurricanes – that's not really why he's now ready to play for IU as a graduate transfer.
"The town of Bloomington. The coaching staff. The academics," Linder, now pursuing his Masters at the Kelley School of Business, said about reasons for his choice while meeting the IU media this month. "The guys. The facilities. It was exciting.
"Coming from Miami, that was big-city living. But change is good at times, and I think it's going to be good to experience a smaller college town like this. I definitely get a good feel and vibe."
Fellow Floridian Delroy Baker, who has logged a lot of minutes on Indiana's offensive line the past three seasons, assured Linder he'd soon acclimate to the northern winter.
January's stretch of sub-zero wind chills did get Linder's attention. "It's been fine, though," he said. "Just layer up and throw on a jacket."
IU football's other transfer for the spring semester, linebacker T.D. Roof, hails from Buford, Ga. (34.1207 degrees N Latitude). And, yes, Indiana's January has also struck him as a bit brisk.
"Back in Georgia, you get one or two snow days every couple of years," said Roof, a swift linebacker who will sit out a season after transferring from Georgia Tech. "And they're cool, because, the next day, they're gone.
"But, hey, it's just the part of the country you live in and you've got to get used to it. I got a pair of UGG boots. I'll be all right."
Linder and Roof have joined four other southerners as January-enrollee newcomers for IU's football program, all right out of high school, in quarterback Michael Penix Jr. (Florida), defensive end James Head Jr. (Florida), wideout Jacolby Hewitt (Tennessee) and running back Ronnie Walker Jr. (Virginia).
But Linder and Roof arrive as Atlantic Coast Conference vets bringing college experience to bear.
Roof recorded 17 tackles, including a pair of sacks, as a true freshman at Tech. That followed a prep career at Buford where he was First Team All-State twice and helped his team win state titles in 2013 and 2014.
"T.D. Roof is a young man that we recruited heavily in the previous recruiting cycle," Allen said. "We are thrilled to have him join us as a transfer … we're really excited about what he will bring to our linebacking corps and ultimately to our football program."
Roof and his father, Ted, left Georgia Tech at the same time. Ted Roof, a former Duke head man and a 31-year coaching veteran, is now the associate head coach, co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach at North Carolina State.
"Growing up in the coaching world, I know changes happen," Roof said. "I've lived in, like, seven different states. At the end of the day, football is a business. I totally get it. You've got to do what's best for yourself.
"Going to N.C. State is best for (Dad) and coming to IU is best for me. I came to that conclusion because it's a college town with friendly people who enjoy football, and because of the coaches – Coach Allen is a straight-up dude. I'm a big fan of his."
Roof's twin brother, Mic, is a quarterback at Charlotte and there are good brotherly bloodlines in Linder's family, too.
Linder's brother, Brandon, is now the highest-paid center in the NFL as the Jacksonville Jaguars' starter. Brandon just helped the Jags lead the league in rushing and finish just one game shy of the Super Bowl.
"Throughout my entire high school and college career, he's been an incredible resource to have," Nick said of Brandon. "There is the big brother sort of mentor aspect, and also the nuances regarding offensive line play."
Linder, who started 26 games at Miami before a shoulder injury truncated his 2016 season and he sat out last fall's campaign, hopes he can in turn serve as a mentor of sorts to IU's line even as he's learning the Big Ten ropes and competing for playing time.
The Hoosiers were relatively youthful up front while playing the entire 2017 season without a senior on their offensive line.
"I have experience. I've played a lot of football. I've encountered a bunch of situations you can be in," Linder said. "Maybe I can help explain it, talk it out, to somebody else if and when those situations arise. Because I've been there.
"I think anyone can lead. I think if you're a true freshman you can lead, if you have the capabilities and characteristics to lead … I feel like I can kind of bestow some of that on some of the other guys, and they're going to do the exact same thing for me, because they've been in situations I haven't been
in. So it's exciting."
Linder feels the offensive line he's joining can provide the foundation for success.
"Number one, you can always get better," he said. "I'm excited to work with Coach (Darren) Hiller. And I feel like being around this group of guys is going to raise my game. I could tell that from the start, when I was up here on my recruiting visit, that this was going to be a good group. Jelling and cohesion isn't an issue. Everybody's together.
"Quarterback aside, I think the team follows the O-line at the high school, college and NFL level," he said. "Everything starts up front. I think the O-line has to stabilize (things) anywhere, anytime, whether you've got a four-year starter (at quarterback) or you've got an 18-year-old freshman. The O-line is that one group on the team where all five guys have got to get their blocks to have the play develop."
Roof knows that IU is a program where linebackers lead on the other side of the ball, too, as evidenced by departing senior All-American Tegray Scales and Honorable Mention All-Big Ten counterpart Chris Covington.
"At the end of the day, the linebackers are going to have to run the defense, will have to make the checks and calls," said Roof, who played a 4-2-5 scheme at Tech similar to IU's. " … Obviously, you've got two great linebackers who are walking out the door right now in Tegray and Chris. But there is definitely an emphasis that they've got to run the show."
Roof will have to bide his time in that regard, since he won't see the field on game days until 2019. But he looks forward to building up his 5-foot-11, 210-pound frame under the auspices of new IU strength coach David Ballou in the interim, and then playing defense for Tom Allen and new linebackers coach Kane Wommack.
"It's going to be different, for sure," he said. "It's not like coming in as a freshman and getting redshirted. But when I transferred here, I knew I was going to have to sit out a year. I'm kind of prepared for it.
"Coach Ballou, even though he wasn't here when I came here, is a great addition. He played at IU, so he cares about it. I just really feel people here are very motivated, very excited for this program and its direction. They're very motivated to make this program great, in a way that I think is very special.
"Coach Allen and Coach (William) Inge recruited me heavily out of high school. I really enjoyed them. So when I decided I was going to transfer, I felt like that Coach Allen is a very stand-up dude, a very true dude, true to his word. I really respect that. So I just reached out to them and they said, 'We'd
love to have you here.' Perfect fit. It worked."
Linder has similar sentiments. And he relishes getting in an entire spring practice, which concludes with the annual Cream & Crimson Game at 12 p.m. April 14, before taking the field with immediate eligibility for his new club next fall.
"I think it's huge (to get in a spring practice)," Linder said. "Number one, even before spring, it's all this work we're going with Coach Ballou – which is awesome, by the way.
"I didn't know (Allen) previously, but they showed interest, and we reciprocated that interest, and took a visit. Had a great visit. Kind of left saying, 'Wow, this could be a really great fit.'"
"The record last year doesn't really reflect the attitude of this team and what its capabilities are. It's not a cliché to use the word 'breakthrough' … I think this program is very, very close."
Even though IU's "south beach" wasn't all that close to his native Florida, but actually pretty far north. And snowy.
But these two transfers from down south think sunny days are ahead.
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana University long served as the "South Beach of the Big Ten," the southernmost school of a northern conference.
That's no longer technically true. Relatively new entry Maryland's 38.9897 degrees N Longitude slips in just south of Bloomington's 39.1653 N.
And while Nick Linder was perhaps already enamored of another South Beach – as a Fort Lauderdale product and starting center for Miami's football Hurricanes – that's not really why he's now ready to play for IU as a graduate transfer.
"The town of Bloomington. The coaching staff. The academics," Linder, now pursuing his Masters at the Kelley School of Business, said about reasons for his choice while meeting the IU media this month. "The guys. The facilities. It was exciting.
"Coming from Miami, that was big-city living. But change is good at times, and I think it's going to be good to experience a smaller college town like this. I definitely get a good feel and vibe."
Fellow Floridian Delroy Baker, who has logged a lot of minutes on Indiana's offensive line the past three seasons, assured Linder he'd soon acclimate to the northern winter.
January's stretch of sub-zero wind chills did get Linder's attention. "It's been fine, though," he said. "Just layer up and throw on a jacket."
IU football's other transfer for the spring semester, linebacker T.D. Roof, hails from Buford, Ga. (34.1207 degrees N Latitude). And, yes, Indiana's January has also struck him as a bit brisk.
"Back in Georgia, you get one or two snow days every couple of years," said Roof, a swift linebacker who will sit out a season after transferring from Georgia Tech. "And they're cool, because, the next day, they're gone.
"But, hey, it's just the part of the country you live in and you've got to get used to it. I got a pair of UGG boots. I'll be all right."
Linder and Roof have joined four other southerners as January-enrollee newcomers for IU's football program, all right out of high school, in quarterback Michael Penix Jr. (Florida), defensive end James Head Jr. (Florida), wideout Jacolby Hewitt (Tennessee) and running back Ronnie Walker Jr. (Virginia).
But Linder and Roof arrive as Atlantic Coast Conference vets bringing college experience to bear.
Roof recorded 17 tackles, including a pair of sacks, as a true freshman at Tech. That followed a prep career at Buford where he was First Team All-State twice and helped his team win state titles in 2013 and 2014.
"T.D. Roof is a young man that we recruited heavily in the previous recruiting cycle," Allen said. "We are thrilled to have him join us as a transfer … we're really excited about what he will bring to our linebacking corps and ultimately to our football program."
Roof and his father, Ted, left Georgia Tech at the same time. Ted Roof, a former Duke head man and a 31-year coaching veteran, is now the associate head coach, co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach at North Carolina State.
"Growing up in the coaching world, I know changes happen," Roof said. "I've lived in, like, seven different states. At the end of the day, football is a business. I totally get it. You've got to do what's best for yourself.
"Going to N.C. State is best for (Dad) and coming to IU is best for me. I came to that conclusion because it's a college town with friendly people who enjoy football, and because of the coaches – Coach Allen is a straight-up dude. I'm a big fan of his."
Roof's twin brother, Mic, is a quarterback at Charlotte and there are good brotherly bloodlines in Linder's family, too.
Linder's brother, Brandon, is now the highest-paid center in the NFL as the Jacksonville Jaguars' starter. Brandon just helped the Jags lead the league in rushing and finish just one game shy of the Super Bowl.
"Throughout my entire high school and college career, he's been an incredible resource to have," Nick said of Brandon. "There is the big brother sort of mentor aspect, and also the nuances regarding offensive line play."
Linder, who started 26 games at Miami before a shoulder injury truncated his 2016 season and he sat out last fall's campaign, hopes he can in turn serve as a mentor of sorts to IU's line even as he's learning the Big Ten ropes and competing for playing time.
The Hoosiers were relatively youthful up front while playing the entire 2017 season without a senior on their offensive line.
"I have experience. I've played a lot of football. I've encountered a bunch of situations you can be in," Linder said. "Maybe I can help explain it, talk it out, to somebody else if and when those situations arise. Because I've been there.
"I think anyone can lead. I think if you're a true freshman you can lead, if you have the capabilities and characteristics to lead … I feel like I can kind of bestow some of that on some of the other guys, and they're going to do the exact same thing for me, because they've been in situations I haven't been
in. So it's exciting."
Linder feels the offensive line he's joining can provide the foundation for success.
"Number one, you can always get better," he said. "I'm excited to work with Coach (Darren) Hiller. And I feel like being around this group of guys is going to raise my game. I could tell that from the start, when I was up here on my recruiting visit, that this was going to be a good group. Jelling and cohesion isn't an issue. Everybody's together.
"Quarterback aside, I think the team follows the O-line at the high school, college and NFL level," he said. "Everything starts up front. I think the O-line has to stabilize (things) anywhere, anytime, whether you've got a four-year starter (at quarterback) or you've got an 18-year-old freshman. The O-line is that one group on the team where all five guys have got to get their blocks to have the play develop."
Roof knows that IU is a program where linebackers lead on the other side of the ball, too, as evidenced by departing senior All-American Tegray Scales and Honorable Mention All-Big Ten counterpart Chris Covington.
"At the end of the day, the linebackers are going to have to run the defense, will have to make the checks and calls," said Roof, who played a 4-2-5 scheme at Tech similar to IU's. " … Obviously, you've got two great linebackers who are walking out the door right now in Tegray and Chris. But there is definitely an emphasis that they've got to run the show."
Roof will have to bide his time in that regard, since he won't see the field on game days until 2019. But he looks forward to building up his 5-foot-11, 210-pound frame under the auspices of new IU strength coach David Ballou in the interim, and then playing defense for Tom Allen and new linebackers coach Kane Wommack.
"It's going to be different, for sure," he said. "It's not like coming in as a freshman and getting redshirted. But when I transferred here, I knew I was going to have to sit out a year. I'm kind of prepared for it.
"Coach Ballou, even though he wasn't here when I came here, is a great addition. He played at IU, so he cares about it. I just really feel people here are very motivated, very excited for this program and its direction. They're very motivated to make this program great, in a way that I think is very special.
"Coach Allen and Coach (William) Inge recruited me heavily out of high school. I really enjoyed them. So when I decided I was going to transfer, I felt like that Coach Allen is a very stand-up dude, a very true dude, true to his word. I really respect that. So I just reached out to them and they said, 'We'd
love to have you here.' Perfect fit. It worked."
Linder has similar sentiments. And he relishes getting in an entire spring practice, which concludes with the annual Cream & Crimson Game at 12 p.m. April 14, before taking the field with immediate eligibility for his new club next fall.
"I think it's huge (to get in a spring practice)," Linder said. "Number one, even before spring, it's all this work we're going with Coach Ballou – which is awesome, by the way.
"I didn't know (Allen) previously, but they showed interest, and we reciprocated that interest, and took a visit. Had a great visit. Kind of left saying, 'Wow, this could be a really great fit.'"
"The record last year doesn't really reflect the attitude of this team and what its capabilities are. It's not a cliché to use the word 'breakthrough' … I think this program is very, very close."
Even though IU's "south beach" wasn't all that close to his native Florida, but actually pretty far north. And snowy.
But these two transfers from down south think sunny days are ahead.
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