OL Mike Lonsdorf nearing Rutgers arrival

Incoming freshman Mike Lonsdorf is a month away from his arrival at Rutgers as he is finishing up his final weeks of high school at Immaculata. Lonsdorf has also been hard at work, training for his future in the Big Ten trenches.

“My body is starting to change. There has been a lot of progress,” Lonsdorf said. “It’s been great. I am about 285 [pounds] as of right now. I got a lot stronger and faster. I did a lot of agility stuff. It was a different perspective added to my regimen. I did a lot of drills and jumped rope."

A former basketball player, Lonsdorf played hoops as a freshman and sophomore. He discontinued that as a junior but is still competing in track and field, specializing in the shotput for Immaculata.

He will wrap up that season tomorrow in the NJSIAA sectional championships.

And in addition to preparing for the physical rigors of Big Ten football, Lonsdorf is also looking forward to conquering the mental hurdles that come with the college game.

“A big part of it for an offensive lineman is the mental game and understanding the offense. The mental things are going to be the difference between college and high school,” Lonsdorf said. “I know I can play in space and whatever the coaches ask me to do, I will do. The offense is great, it is very up-tempo. I am fired up to play in this offense and represent the state. It’s exciting times.”

Lonsdorf stands at 6-foot-7 and was recruited as a tackle prospect, but is open to playing anywhere on the O-line.

“It doesn’t even matter. I feel like I can play any position,” Lonsdorf said. “It’s wherever Coach Blazek wants me to play. I will do it and put all my effort into it.”

Lonsdorf will graduate on June 4th, but will not arrive at Rutgers until June 26th. He comes to Rutgers as a part of head coach Chris Ash’s first-ever recruiting class and will be joined by three other O-linemen who are also from New Jersey.

“We all know what it means to be tough. We don’t play easy schedules,” Lonsdorf said. “We know what we have to do. We are coming in ready to handle our business. This class may not have some big names, but it’s full of tough football players who are going to get after it. We are excited. We know what it means to represent New Jersey and we are excited to get rolling.”

While most freshmen wind up redshirting their first year, Lonsdorf offered his take on that possibility.

“If I redshirt, I redshirt. It is not going to change how hard I work, practice or play. The bottom line is we are all here on scholarship, so we have to be prepared to play at any time. It’s football, anything can happen. Part of the fun is going in there and just competing every day.”