The Mizzou Tigers have always been black and gold, but lately they’ve been a little Green as well. That appears like it will continue for at least the next few years as Lee’s Summit North linebacker Caleb Green committed to Eli Drinkwitz and company in late April.
The little (much littler) brother of Tigers starting left tackle and future 2027 NFL draft pick Cayden Green, Caleb has made a name for himself in high school on the other side of the ball from his big brother. Currently ranked as the 15th
best inside linebacker in the 2027 class according to 247, Caleb has some room to grow into his 6’1, 215 lbs. frame in the next year before he finds himself on the Mizzou campus.
Where he fits
In his junior year at Lee’s Summit North, Caleb Green played primarily inside or middle linebacker in LSN’s 4-3 defensive scheme. Mizzou has traditionally played a two linebacker system without a dedicated “interior” linebacker, so Green will most likely find himself as the strong-side linebacker once he makes his way to Columbia. To do so, however, he will need to add at least 10 pounds of muscle onto his frame to be able to better shed SEC lineman blocks. If his growth pattern takes a different route… say he grows taller rather than heavier, he may actually find is way into more of a STAR or box safety role, similar to that of Daylan Carnell in recent years. Most likely he’ll stick as a linebacker though, as that seems to be his best skill set.
His junior year film shows a smart and instinctive player who is excellent at diagnosing plays and sniffing out running backs carrying the ball and going out on pass routes. He does that all while staying disciplined and doing his job as assigned by the scheme. While perhaps not the most eye-poppingly athletic linebacker recruit the Tigers have, he does seem to always be in the right place at the right time, which really is all you can ask for from the guys in the middle of your defense.
When he’ll play
Green will most likely enter a linebacker room with a lot of depth once he arrives on campus. With multiple starting-caliber linebackers with two-plus years of eligibility remaining on the roster in 2026, including Nick Rodriguez, Robert Woodyard, Jr., Jeremiah Beasley and Dante McClellan, the chances that Green is able to come on in and find the field early is minimal.
However, by the time his sophomore year rolls around all those guys, plus a few more like Bobby Washington and Brian Huff will have exhausted their eligibility, opening quite a bit of playing time for guys like Caleb Green. I expect him to first see the field in 2028 with a chance to perhaps earn a starting role in 2029.
What it means
It’s gratifying to see that Caleb and the rest of the Green family have been impressed enough by the Mizzou coaching staff based on their experience with Cayden’s development as a Tiger that they chose to sign up for another round. Caleb is a very different type of player than his older brother: different build, different side of the ball, different mindset all together.
That said, it’s clear that he similarly has SEC-level talent and skill, which makes him a great in-state pick up for Mizzou. Lee’s Summit North has turned into quite a pipeline for Mizzou (as well as other P4 programs) so it is always great news when Drinkwitz is able to maintain connections with that program and pull at least one player every year or two to Columbia.
