Danny Anderson, a 6-foot-1, 220-pound senior linebacker from Eden Prairie (MN) High, is a preferred walk-on at Minnesota.
Anderson helped lead the Eagles to an 11-2 mark as a senior, losing to Totino-Grace in the Prep Bowl title game 28-20. He was named to the Kare-11 and StarTribune All-Metro team.
Anderson runs 47 40-yard dash. He has a 33-inch vertical and bench presses 250 pounds, squats 470 and cleans 270 pounds.
Gopher Hole caught up with him recently to learn more about his decision.
Gopher Hole: You recently committed to Minnesota as a preferred walk-on. What was the main reason you decided Minnesota was where you wanted to be?
Danny Anderson: I was deciding between Iowa State and Minnesota as a preferred walk-on. Minnesota has always been what I wanted to do since I was a sophomore, I saw Blake Cashman accept a preferred walk-on and I have seen how much success he has had and I have really just always been in love with the “U” really, and when the opportunity arose, I really couldn’t say no.
Gopher Hole: Did you go to many games the last couple of years as a guest?
Danny Anderson: I went to almost every game, not as a recruit, my junior year and senior year, not as a recruit, but coach Sherels saw my film and really liked how I played and invited me to the Northwestern game, so that was the one game that I went to as a recruit.
Gopher Hole: When did you first start hearing from Minnesota about being a possible walk-on?
Danny Anderson: It was about the middle of the season. He saw my midseason tape and he really liked how I played. He said that I reminded him of (Blake) Cashman, so Coach Sherels was the one who really noticed me.
Gopher Hole: You mentioned Iowa State. What others schools were you hearing from this year?
Danny Anderson: I also talked to Northern Illinois. It was kind of a late recruiting process for me, for sure. Both of the schools turned out halfway or later through the season, so those were the three schools that I talked to.
Gopher Hole: Eden Prairie has a couple of former teammates on the defensive side like Carter Coughlin and Blake Cashman. Had you talked to them much before you made your decision about Minnesota?
Danny Anderson: Yes. I went to a practice. Coach Sherels invited me to a practice and I got a chance to talk to Blake and Carter and I played basketball with Blake and I have been on their teams for football as well, so I am good friends with those guys and I really actually look up to those guys. They helped me make the decision.
Gopher Hole: You mentioned Blake a couple of times. He was a preferred walk-on who had an outstanding season this past year and was named the Holiday Bowl Defensive MVP and I would expect that he is going to be on scholarship this season. Is that something that you have looked at and would like to emulate?
Danny Anderson: Yes. Coach Sherels told me that he expects that I would play a position similar to Cashman, how he plays. Hopefully, the new coach will think the same. He is the dream. He worked hard and he made it. He is what I look up to, for sure.
Gopher Hole: You also have an Eden Prairie teammate Tommy Fuller, who is also a preferred walk-on at Minnesota. Had you talked to him much throughout the process?
Danny Anderson: He has been my workout partner since I was a freshman and he is probably my best friend. It is a dream that I get to play with him and I am looking to room with him, too. He and I talked throughout the whole process. We visited Iowa State together and everything.
Gopher Hole: Your senior season, your team finished 11-2, losing to Totino-Grace in the Prep Bowl 28-20. You were one of the captains this season. How pleased were you with the success you had this past season?
Danny Anderson: I was a captain of the team and I was really proud of how we played the year before and we put in a lot of effort in the offseason. I’m proud of how we played this season and how we dominated on defense pretty much throughout the season. The end wasn’t what we wanted, but I am definitely really proud of the boys, for sure.
Gopher Hole: You were named to the Kare-11 and StarTribune All-Metro team. How pleased were you with some of the individual accolades you received this year?
Danny Anderson: It is good to see, for sure. My main goal was definitely to just get us to that Prep Bowl, but it is good to see that you are getting recognized for your hard work and stuff, but the main goal always is a team effort, for sure.
Gopher Hole: How would you describe yourself as a linebacker?
Danny Anderson: I think that I have natural ability at the linebacker position. I have a nose for the ball. I had a really good coach in high school and I love the game. That is all I think about. Just that love for the game translates on the field. Just how hard I work in practice. I would say that I am a heady linebacker versus an athletic freak.
Gopher Hole: You played mostly middle linebacker in high school. What have the coaches said about a position you would play in college?
Danny Anderson: They haven’t really told me much. Coach Sherels talked to me before, but I have not yet talked to the new coaches about what I would be playing.
Gopher Hole: Have you gotten to the new coaches. Obviously, there was a coaching change in January. Have you gotten to know the new coaches very well yet?
Danny Anderson: Yes. I got a chance to go to the basketball game as a recruit and I talked to Coach Smith for a while and the running backs coach and I got to know them pretty good.
Gopher Hole: Have you already been accepted into the college?
Danny Anderson: Yes. I have.
Gopher Hole: I know that you played basketball last year. What was the reason that you decided to not play this year? Was it to concentrate on football a little bit more?
Danny Anderson: Yes. Football is really my one love. I really fell in love with football in my high school career, so I just wanted to do as much as I could this offseason to have a successful future in football.
Gopher Hole: Do you do anything normally in the spring?
Danny Anderson: No, I don’t.
Gopher Hole: Playing basketball, do you think that helps you as a football player in terms of foot work?
Danny Anderson: Yes. I absolutely do agree with that. Basketball has trained me a lot for football, in my opinion. It has done a lot for me, especially in open field with seven on seven and stuff like that. Foot work has definitely comes from basketball.
Gopher Hole: Was it hard not to play basketball as a senior? I know that you said that football is your main sport, but was it hard to turn that down as a senior?
Danny Anderson: Yes. It was really hard. It was really hard. It was probably the toughest decision that I have had to make in high school. It was tough. It is hard seeing the boys out there this year, but it is probably for the best that I put as much as I can into football.
Gopher Hole: What things are you going to be working on leading up to camp this June?
Danny Anderson: It is a lot with speed. I’ve been on my speed a lot and then, weights are obviously very important. I do a lot of leg work for explosive work, but it really a mix of everything, honestly.
Gopher Hole: You played for a legendary high school head coach in Mike Grant. How do you think that he has prepared you to play college football?
Danny Anderson: I think weight room, for sure. How the program is run, really just pushes you to fall in love with football. Being around the coaches with the linebacker coach, Coach Ritter, it just really pushes you to fall in love with football and it has prepared me a lot for college, I think.