Luke Schoonmaker, an Old Saybrook native, is hoping to hear his name called in the 2023 NFL Draft this weekend.
The tight end out of the University of Michigan is expected to be drafted in the third or fourth round.
That’s a prediction his high school coach, Joe Linta, is comfortable making, not just because he’s rooting for his former player but also because he’s Schoonmaker’s agent.
“You know I’m the only agent that was at the NFL Combine whose player came up and said, ‘Hey coach’,” said Linta, who coaches at Hamden Hall Country Day School.
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It’s certainly not common if it has happened at all.
Linta has been a certified NFLPA agent for 30 years but became the Hornets' head coach in 2011.
“Yeah everybody's like, ‘Wow, you’ve got it good,’ which I do,” said Schoonmaker. “I've known him for so long and it's just been so special and unique to be able to have somebody that can give that much to you.”
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Schoonmaker would be the first Hamden Hall graduate to be drafted into the NFL.
“He’s been a joy since the day I met him,” said Linta. “His calmness, how he absorbs everything. He was the kind of kid you never had to tell him twice … If everybody were like him, I wouldn't have high blood pressure.”
