Roderick Goodlow, the 6-foot-2, 205-pound outside linebacker from Adamson High School in Dallas, Texas, finished his junior season with 109 tackles and four interceptions.
"I'm a hard hitter and I move well north and south and sideline-to-sideline," Goodlow said. "I'm really aggressive and play very physical."
He says he can bench 275-pounds and squats 405. Goodlow runs a 4.55 forty and has an amazing 41-inch vertical leap.
"I'm working on my footwork and speed," he admitted. "I want to switch directions better and pursue the running back faster. I want to get better angles."
Goodlow has eight scholarship offers, but denies a leader. "I really don't have any favorites right now," he said. "I'm looking at all of them."
He has offers from Northwestern, Kansas, Iowa State, Arizona, Nebraska, Colorado, Arkansas and Louisiana Tech. "I'm going to take all of my visits in the fall," he said. "I really want to see everyone in person and get a feel for all of them.
"I mainly want to see what kind of defense they have and how I'd be able to fit in," he said. "I want to play for a school that is known for defense and known for producing good linebackers."
One such school that fits that criteria is Nebraska. "They are very high on defense and I really like coach Bo Pelini," he said. "He coached at LSU and he knows what he's doing. He knows what it takes to win and what it takes to get to the next level.
"The tradition at Nebraska is just so amazing," he said. "They are a five national championships program and I love the Blackshirt tradition they have. That's a place I could really see myself succeeding. If you're a defensive player it doesn't get any better."
Goodlow has never visited Lincoln, but says the Huskers are one team he'll likely visit in the fall.
Suspiciously absent from Goodlow's list of offers are all of the in-state schools. "I really don't know why the Texas schools haven't offered," he said. "That's interesting. I haven't really thought about it.
"I had a coach from Texas come to one of our spring practices and I was hearing from Texas A&M, but that was a while ago," he said. "None of the other ones are recruiting me."
Goodlow's first offer was from Northwestern back in March.
"Northwestern seems to be getting better and better every year," he said. "They are working really hard and they seem really serious about improving. I really think I'd be able to go there and make a difference. I also really like how they are known for having good academics."
Goodlow's list is full of schools that are what he calls, "building up."
"Colorado, Iowa State, Arkansas…all those schools are getting better and better," he said. "Colorado has a lot to offer. They are building to being a Big12 championship team and I think they'll get there.
"Iowa State is getting better too," he said. "I like the coaches they have, especially coach Gene Chizik. He coached at Texas when they won it all and is a defense-type coach. I like some of the things they are doing there and they should definitely be successful in the next few years.
"Arkansas has some new coaches too, so it'll be interesting to see how they do," he said. "It really seems like the program has been in the spotlight a lot. They had Darren McFadden, who was a Heisman candidate so that really put them out there."
Goodlow says he's also being heavily recruited by Notre Dame, but the Irish haven't offered yet. "They are recruiting me a lot," he said. "I like how they are trying to get back on top and recruiting the best players and everything.
"I really like coach Charlie Weis and think he'll be able to turn them around," he said. "I've talked to a few of their coaches already and they seem to really like me. They said they like my size and see me playing either strong side or weakside linebacker for them."
He doesn't plan on attending any camps this summer.
Goodlow says he never followed a particular team as a youngster.
Goodlow says he plans to major in business marketing and reports a 3.2 core GPA. He is taking both the SAT and ACT in June.