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University of Minnesota Athletics
Captains Named For 2016 Season
12/1/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
Dec. 1, 2015 
The University of Minnesota football program held its annual awards banquet on Sunday and also continued the tradition of passing on the Captain's Torch.
Former captains gather every year to pass the torch from one to another until it is passed to the captains for the following season. The 2015 captains - Briean Boddy-Calhoun, Eric Murray, KJ Maye and Mitch Leidner - then passed the torch to the group that will lead the Gophers in 2016. That group will be Leidner, Damarius Travis, Jack Lynn and Brandon Lingen.
Leidner, who set a program record for completions by a junior in 2015 with 218, will captain the Gophers for a third straight season. The Lakeville, Minn., native will join former quarterback and current Minnesota graduate assistant Adam Weber as the school's only three-time captains (Weber captained the Gophers from 2008-10).
Leidner has rushed for 1,110 career yards and 22 career touchdowns (second most in school history for a quarterback) and has passed for 4,895 career yards (seventh most in school history) and 27 touchdowns (eighth most in school history). He ranks seventh all-time in school history in completions (383), attempts (692) and completion percentage (55.3). He is one of only two Minnesota quarterbacks to pass and rush for 20 career touchdowns (Rickey Foggie rushed for 24 and passed for 33 from 1984-87).
Travis is a senior safety from Pensacola, Fla., and has played in 40 career games. He has 107 tackles, 4.0 tackles-for-loss, nine pass breakups, two interceptions, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. He made 10 tackles against TCU last season before suffering a season-ending injury.
Lynn is a senior linebacker for the Gophers and has emerged as one of Minnesota's most dynamic defensive playmakers. The Lake Zurich, Ill., native posted a career high 72 tackles last season, which included a team-leading 9.5 tackles-for-loss. He has played in 28 career games and has made 134 tackles, 17.5 tackles-for-loss, four pass breakups, four forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.
Lingen is the only junior among the four captains. The Wayzata, Minn., tight end broke onto the scene in 2015 and became a potent offensive threat for his hometown school. Lingen had 28 catches for 395 yards and three touchdowns last season. He caught five passes for a career-high 111 yards against Michigan, which was the fourth-most yards by a Gopher tight end since 1950. He also scored one touchdown and caught six passes for 105 yards at Iowa to become the first Gopher tight end to have two 100-yard games in the same season since at least 1950.
Former captains gather every year to pass the torch from one to another until it is passed to the captains for the following season. The 2015 captains - Briean Boddy-Calhoun, Eric Murray, KJ Maye and Mitch Leidner - then passed the torch to the group that will lead the Gophers in 2016. That group will be Leidner, Damarius Travis, Jack Lynn and Brandon Lingen.
Leidner, who set a program record for completions by a junior in 2015 with 218, will captain the Gophers for a third straight season. The Lakeville, Minn., native will join former quarterback and current Minnesota graduate assistant Adam Weber as the school's only three-time captains (Weber captained the Gophers from 2008-10).
Leidner has rushed for 1,110 career yards and 22 career touchdowns (second most in school history for a quarterback) and has passed for 4,895 career yards (seventh most in school history) and 27 touchdowns (eighth most in school history). He ranks seventh all-time in school history in completions (383), attempts (692) and completion percentage (55.3). He is one of only two Minnesota quarterbacks to pass and rush for 20 career touchdowns (Rickey Foggie rushed for 24 and passed for 33 from 1984-87).
Travis is a senior safety from Pensacola, Fla., and has played in 40 career games. He has 107 tackles, 4.0 tackles-for-loss, nine pass breakups, two interceptions, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. He made 10 tackles against TCU last season before suffering a season-ending injury.
Lynn is a senior linebacker for the Gophers and has emerged as one of Minnesota's most dynamic defensive playmakers. The Lake Zurich, Ill., native posted a career high 72 tackles last season, which included a team-leading 9.5 tackles-for-loss. He has played in 28 career games and has made 134 tackles, 17.5 tackles-for-loss, four pass breakups, four forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.
Lingen is the only junior among the four captains. The Wayzata, Minn., tight end broke onto the scene in 2015 and became a potent offensive threat for his hometown school. Lingen had 28 catches for 395 yards and three touchdowns last season. He caught five passes for a career-high 111 yards against Michigan, which was the fourth-most yards by a Gopher tight end since 1950. He also scored one touchdown and caught six passes for 105 yards at Iowa to become the first Gopher tight end to have two 100-yard games in the same season since at least 1950.
Players Mentioned
DB
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Quarterback
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Defensive Back
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Defensive Back
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