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Four Gophers to Compete in Senior Bowl
1/31/2025 9:30:00 AM | Football
Aireontae Ersery, Cody Lindenberg, Jah Joyner and Danny Striggow are representing Minnesota the Senior Bowl
Four former University of Minnesota standouts will compete in the Reese's Senior Bowl on Saturday, as offensive lineman Aireontae Ersery, linebacker Cody Lindenberg and defensive linemen Jah Joyner and Danny Striggow are all expected to play.
The Senior Bowl will take place at 1:30 p.m. on February 1 at Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, Ala., and will air on the NFL Network.
The four Gophers at the Senior Bowl tie a program record. The only other year that Minnesota had four players at the showcase event was 1991 when Ron Goetz, Jon Leverenz, Jon Melander and Darrell Thompson were invited.
Ersery, Joyner and Lindenberg will all compete for the National Team. Ersery will wear No. 69, while Joyner will wear No. 17 and Lindenberg will wear No. 45. Striggow, who was added to the roster on Thursday, will wear No. 14 and will compete on the American Team.
Ersery started all 12 games he played last season at left tackle and blocked for an offense that averaged 26.15 points per game, 115.6 rushing yards per game and 222.15 passing yards per game. According to Pro Football Focus, Ersery gave up just one sack and one quarterback hit in 398 opportunities during the 2024 season.
Ersery was named a 2024 All-American by the Sporting News, Associated Press and the FWAA. He was also recognized as the Big Ten Rimington-Pace Offensive Lineman of the Year and was named All-Big Ten First Team. Ersery is as durable as they come on the offensive line, as he started the final 38 games of his career at left tackle.
Joyner started all 12 games he played last season and made 32 tackles. He added 5.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks, while also breaking up seven passes and forcing two fumbles. Joyner played in 42 career games for Minnesota and had 66 tackles, 16.5 tackles for loss and 14.5 sacks. He also broke up nine passes, forced four fumbles and recovered two fumbles.
Lindenberg started all 12 games he played last season and led Minnesota with 94 tackles. He also made five tackles for loss, had one sack, broke up six passes and made one interception. Lindenberg played in 38 career games for the Maroon and Gold and totaled 209 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss and two sacks. He also had one interception, one forced fumble and nine pass breakups.
Striggow started all 13 games this past season and made 52 tackles. He added 5.5 tackles for loss, five sacks, forced one fumble and recovered one fumble. He played in 50 career games for Minnesota and made 124 tackles, 18 tackles for loss and 14.5 sacks. Striggow also had one interception, three pass breakups, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery.
Minnesota has had at least one Senior Bowl invite in each of the last six seasons (2019-2024), which is the longest stretch in school history. Prior to Ersery, Joyner, Lindenberg and Striggow, the following nine players were invited to attend the week-long evaluation period: Carter Coughlin (2019), Kamal Martin (2019), Benjamin St-Juste (2020), Daniel Faalele (2021), Boye Mafe (2021), Esezi Otomewo (2021), John Micael Schmitz (2022), Tyler Nubin (2023) and Brevyn Spann-Ford (2023). Eight of those nine players were on an NFL roster during the 2024 season.
The Senior Bowl will take place at 1:30 p.m. on February 1 at Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, Ala., and will air on the NFL Network.
The four Gophers at the Senior Bowl tie a program record. The only other year that Minnesota had four players at the showcase event was 1991 when Ron Goetz, Jon Leverenz, Jon Melander and Darrell Thompson were invited.
Ersery, Joyner and Lindenberg will all compete for the National Team. Ersery will wear No. 69, while Joyner will wear No. 17 and Lindenberg will wear No. 45. Striggow, who was added to the roster on Thursday, will wear No. 14 and will compete on the American Team.
Ersery started all 12 games he played last season at left tackle and blocked for an offense that averaged 26.15 points per game, 115.6 rushing yards per game and 222.15 passing yards per game. According to Pro Football Focus, Ersery gave up just one sack and one quarterback hit in 398 opportunities during the 2024 season.
Ersery was named a 2024 All-American by the Sporting News, Associated Press and the FWAA. He was also recognized as the Big Ten Rimington-Pace Offensive Lineman of the Year and was named All-Big Ten First Team. Ersery is as durable as they come on the offensive line, as he started the final 38 games of his career at left tackle.
Joyner started all 12 games he played last season and made 32 tackles. He added 5.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks, while also breaking up seven passes and forcing two fumbles. Joyner played in 42 career games for Minnesota and had 66 tackles, 16.5 tackles for loss and 14.5 sacks. He also broke up nine passes, forced four fumbles and recovered two fumbles.
Lindenberg started all 12 games he played last season and led Minnesota with 94 tackles. He also made five tackles for loss, had one sack, broke up six passes and made one interception. Lindenberg played in 38 career games for the Maroon and Gold and totaled 209 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss and two sacks. He also had one interception, one forced fumble and nine pass breakups.
Striggow started all 13 games this past season and made 52 tackles. He added 5.5 tackles for loss, five sacks, forced one fumble and recovered one fumble. He played in 50 career games for Minnesota and made 124 tackles, 18 tackles for loss and 14.5 sacks. Striggow also had one interception, three pass breakups, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery.
Minnesota has had at least one Senior Bowl invite in each of the last six seasons (2019-2024), which is the longest stretch in school history. Prior to Ersery, Joyner, Lindenberg and Striggow, the following nine players were invited to attend the week-long evaluation period: Carter Coughlin (2019), Kamal Martin (2019), Benjamin St-Juste (2020), Daniel Faalele (2021), Boye Mafe (2021), Esezi Otomewo (2021), John Micael Schmitz (2022), Tyler Nubin (2023) and Brevyn Spann-Ford (2023). Eight of those nine players were on an NFL roster during the 2024 season.
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