Syracuse Football Tale of the Tape: LB Geoff Cantin

The Syracuse football squad got some help from north of the border with their latest addition. Here’s the tale of the tape on this talented prospect.

The Syracuse football squad received its’ fourth commitment in the class of 2019 from Canadian linebacker Geoff Cantin. The Quebec native announced his commitment shortly after being offered at a camp that took place on the Syracuse hill.

And while Cantin is a relatively unknown player in his class, one thing is known, he has size, and lots of it.

If he were to join the team today, he would be the tallest linebacker on the squad and also one of the heaviest. Coming in at 6-foot 4 and weighing 220-pounds, Cantin is the perfect fit at middle linebacker in a conference as demanding as the ACC.

No recruiting services list Cantin as having any other offers, but all of the coaching staff got to see the Canadian up close at Syracuse camp the weekend of June 16th. His size and position is similar to fellow Canadian, and red shirt freshman Tyrell Richards.

Let’s look at the tape:

The play that Cantin makes at the :36 second mark really jumps out to me. He is lined up in his role at middle linebacker for his team in Canada. Cantin is dropping back in a zone coverage where he is a spy in the middle of the field, just reading the quarterback’s eyes.

After an alert play by the QB, to try to look Cantin away, the linebacker recovers and finds the receiver the ball is getting thrown to. The new Cuse commit, locates the ball in the air, and shows off some soft hands for a big man, bringing down a one-handed interception. In Syracuse’s Tampa-2 defensive scheme, it is crucial that linebackers have ball skills, and the ability to cover pass catchers.

At the 1:05 mark Cantin shows off his cover skills again, but that is not all that is impressive about this play. He locates the receiver, and takes a good angle to get to him. As soon as the opposing player catches the ball, Cantin is bearing down on him, and he delivers a big hit in the open field to jar the ball loose. With that kind of frame, expect plenty of those big hits from Cantin.

Sweet Caroline…

At the 2:09 mark we get a good look at how effective he can be in a blitzing situation. Cantin does a good job to disguise the blitz initially, but as soon as he think he gets a read on the snap count, he times it up perfectly and is in the back field as soon as the QB gets the ball. Cantin, alertly slows down, making sure to not out run the ball carrier, and reads the hand-off stuffing the running back for a loss of three yards. He looked like he was shot out of a cannon on that play.

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Overall, Cantin has a very impressive tape, that reminds me of former Syracuse linebacker and current CFL LB, Dyshawn Davis. Although there is not much out there on him, the coaches did get a good look at him at camp.