Listed measurements: 6-foot-2, 233 pounds.
2023-24 year, eligibility: An early-enrolled freshman, Zinter has all four seasons of eligibility remaining.
Depth Chart: Zinter just may crack the two-deep given the dearth of non-veteran, non-rookie linebackers on Notre Dame’s roster. Someone needs to back up fifth-year Mike (middle) linebacker JD Bertrand, and it may come down to Zinter and sophomore Nolan Ziegler, but logic expects that to be Ziegler.
Recruiting: A consensus four-star prospect when he first committed to the Irish, Zinter ended the cycle a consensus three-star prospect, though still the No. 41 outside linebacker in the class, per rivals.com.
More notable than that rankings drop, Zinter held offers from Michigan, Ohio State and Georgia when he chose Notre Dame. The Irish beating out the Wolverines, in particular, stood out, given Zinter’s brother, Zak, has been a starting part of two consecutive Joe Moore Award-winning offensive lines at Michigan. He likely would have been drafted this past spring but instead opted to return to Ann Arbor for his senior season, one that could have overlapped with Preston.
It should also be mentioned, recruits from the Northeast, like Zinter from Massachusetts, rarely fare well in recruiting rankings; simply a reality of the lack of elite high school football talent in the area.
WHAT WAS SAID WHEN ZINTER SIGNED IN DECEMBER
“An ability to get upfield on a pass rush could hint at a future at Vyper end for Zinter, partly a question of how his body reacts to the collegiate strength and conditioning program.”
NAME, IMAGE, LIKENESS
2 years in a row to be one of the top 26 Football Players in the State of Massachusetts by the Gridiron Club of Greater Boston! Out of Over 23,000 football players in the state of MA to be name top 26 is a Blessing! Always Proud! @Preston_Zinter @CCRaider_FBall @NDFootball pic.twitter.com/JKXHWJ8hZL
— Tiffany Zinter (@zintertiffany) March 13, 2023
2023 OUTLOOK
Zinter also played tight end in high school, so he may need some time to focus entirely on a linebacker’s duties. That thought alone could keep him from defensive snaps well into the season, and at that point, a season of playing four games while preserving a year of eligibility may make the most sense.
That said, Zinter flashed in the Blue-Gold Game. His stats were a bit inflated, given he played in a green jersey, meaning he played for both teams, but making six tackles with two for loss still stood out.
His strong spring at linebacker has quelled, for now, thoughts of him perhaps moving to Vyper end. He was advertised as 220 pounds when he signed in December, and if anything, recruiting weights are usually heavy. By the first summer weigh-in, Zinter was up to 233 pounds. On some level, that spurs further thought of him moving to the defensive line, following in the footsteps of sophomores Joshua Burnham and Junior Tuihalamaka. But, again, Zinter’s spring was impressive enough to inspire confidence that added weight will be mostly muscle and his lateral range will most benefit the second-level of the Irish defense.
At the very least, Zinter could contribute on Irish special teams as a freshman. That thought may force him into more than four games, though he would presumably jump at that chance, and a willingness to burn a year of eligibility like that shows the coaching staff’s confidence that it will continue to recruit well in both quantity and quality.
DOWN THE ROAD
Zinter’s 2024 prospects hinge on how many of the fifth-year trio return; Bertrand, Jack Kiser and Marist Liufau will all still have eligibility next season, though it would be a surprise to see even two of them use that.
Presume, for this moment, only Liufau returns. In that scenario, Zinter will be competing with Ziegler, sophomore Jaylen Sneed and two other early-enrolled freshmen for playing time. No one among that quintet yet has an advantage in playing experience. They all have considerable upsides.
The 2024 starting linebackers, if not returning veterans, will be determined by who among those youngsters first taps some of that upside.
2023 Notre Dame LB commit Preston Zinter hosted Marcus Freeman on Monday night. pic.twitter.com/zsxK3mUUys
— Matt Freeman (@mattfreemanISD) December 13, 2022
NOTRE DAME 99-TO-0
The summer countdown begins anew, Rylie Mills to Deion Colzie
No. 99 Rylie Mills, senior defensive tackle, moving back inside from end
No. 98 Devan Houstan, early-enrolled four-star defensive tackle
No. 97 Gabriel Rubio, junior defensive tackle, one of three Irish DTs with notable experience
No. 95 Tyson Ford, sophomore defensive tackle, up 30 pounds from a year ago
No. 93 Armel Mukam, incoming freshman defensive end, former Stanford commit
No. 92 Aidan Keanaaina, a senior defensive tackle now ‘fully healthy’ after a 2022 torn ACL
No. 91 Aiden Gobaira, sophomore defensive end, former four-star recruit
No. 88 Mitchell Evans, the next starter at ‘TE U
No. 87 Cooper Flanagan, incoming freshman tight end, four-star recruit
No. 84 Kevin Bauman, senior tight end coming off a torn ACL
No. 83 Jayden Thomas, junior receiver, probable No. 1 target in 2023
No. 79 Tosh Baker, senior tackle, again a backup but next year ...
No. 78 Pat Coogan, junior interior offensive lineman
No. 77 Ty Chan, sophomore offensive tackle, former four-star recruit
No. 76 Joe Alt, first-team All-American left tackle
No. 75 Sullivan Absher, incoming freshman offensive lineman
No. 74 Billy Schrauth, sophomore left guard, likely starter
No. 73 Andrew Kristofic, fifth-year right guard, likely starter
No. 72 Sam Pendelton, early-enrolled freshman offensive lineman
No. 70 Ashton Craig, sophomore interior offensive lineman
No. 68 Michael Carmody, senior offensive lineman
No. 65 Michael Vinson, sixth-year long snapper, four-year starter
No. 64 Joe Otting, incoming freshman offensive lineman, four-star recruit
No. 59 Aamil Wagner, sophomore offensive tackle
No. 56 Charles Jagusah, incoming freshman offensive lineman, four-star recruit
No. 56 Howard Cross, fifth-year defensive tackle, multi-year starter
No. 55 Chris Terek, incoming freshman offensive lineman, four-star recruit
No. 54 Blake Fisher, junior right tackle, second-year starter
No. 52 Zeke Correll, fifth-year center, third-year starter
No. 51 Boubacar Traore, incoming freshman defensive end, four-star recruit
No. 50 Rocco Spindler, junior offensive guard
No. 47 Jason Onye, junior defensive tackle on the verge of playing time
No. 44 Junior Tuihalamaka, sophomore defensive end, former linebacker
No. 42 Nolan Ziegler, sophomore linebacker, Irish legacy
No. 41 Donovan Hinish, sophomore defensive tackle following in his brother’s footsteps
No. 40 Joshua Burnham, sophomore linebacker-turned-Vyper end
No. 38 Davis Sherwood, junior fullback/H-back, former walk-on
No. 34 Drayk Bowen, early-enrolled freshman linebacker, baseball infielder
No. 32 Spencer Shrader, South Florida transfer kicker
No. 31 Nana Osafo-Mensah, fifth-year defensive end
No. 29 Christian Gray, early-enrolled freshman cornerback coming off a knee injury
No. 29 Matt Salerno, sixth-year receiver, former walk-on
No. 27 JD Bertrand, fifth-year linebacker, third-year starter, possible captain
No. 17 Brenan Vernon, incoming freshman defensive end, four-star recruit
No. 13 Holden Staes, sophomore tight end, up 20 pounds in a year
No. 12 Penn State RB transfer Devyn Ford gives Notre Dame newly-needed backfield depth, experience
No. 4 Rhode Island transfer safety Antonio Carter gives Notre Dame desperately needed backline depth