Mizzou commit Caleb Green looks to write own story in family name: 'Last year was just a taste'
When Elijah Lee joined the Lee’s Summit (Mo.) North football staff in May 2025, one rising junior quickly caught his attention. Class of 2027 prospect Caleb Green, a stout 5-foot-11, 225-pound athlete, packed too much weight for a linebacker.
Lee, an eight-year NFL veteran, couldn’t stress enough to Green that he didn’t need to be that big for the position. For high school linebackers, Lee has advocated for them to be light, fast and strong as opposed to thinking they need to be college ready before even having interest from a college.
Within that transformation, Green accounted for 145 total tackles — 83 by himself and 14 for loss — as a 6-foot-1, 215-pound junior. That culminated in an offseason recruiting surge that also featured a Linebacker MVP award at the Under Armour Next Camp Series in St. Louis this past month.
“He outwardly said it, a few weeks ago, he was like, ‘Coach, I’ll be honest with you, before you came, I thought I was going JUCO,'” Lee recounted of Green. “Last year was just a taste of what he could do. … He’s become a Division-I linebacker within six months.”
Green announced his verbal commitment to Missouri on Sunday. He chose the Tigers over Liberty, Missouri State and Tulsa, becoming the fourth in-state pledge in the 2027 class. Lee marked the first person outside of the Missouri staff and Green’s family to know about the commitment.
“He didn’t know how it would be taken, but I think it’s turning out in his favor,” Lee said. “He’s getting a tremendous amount of love, so I think this will help him.”
Caleb Green writes his own story
With Green’s pledge to the Tigers, more attention surfaced on his direct connection to the program. The younger brother of starting left tackle Cayden Green, he grew up behind a prospect who finished the 2023 recruiting cycle ranked inside the Top 100 nationally.
“That’s always been his thing,” Lee said about Green, who received an in-school visit from Tigers defensive coordinator Corey Batoon and linebackers coach Derek Nicholson on April 17. “He goes, ‘Coach, I want to create my own name. I don’t want people to think I’m going to Mizzou or Mizzou sought me out just because of my brother.'”
Lee recognized some might think that, but in terms of development, he pushed for coaches to recognize the steps the younger Green took in his own journey. A three-star ranked 13th in the state, Green made a huge jump in foot speed, leading to improved coverage skills in space.
“That confidence is helping him understand, ‘Hey, OK, maybe this isn’t because of my brother,'” Lee said. “‘This is actually real.'”
What’s next for Caleb Green?
A former standout at Kansas State, Lee watched Green take a huge weight of his shoulders, knowing where he would play college football. Now, he told his pupil to write down goals for his final high school season.
“We can’t take our foot off of the gas,” Lee said. “He has a good understanding of ball, but I want him to have a elite understanding of what’s going on with the game. … The kid looks like he shoots out of a cannon whenever he’s getting downhill.”
Green already established his ability in block destruction. That focus has now shifted to using his hands, running downhill and being unblockable “at all times.” Lee also emphasized that there’s no such thing as practicing too much man coverage.
“I’m not gonna train you like you’re about to go to college,” Lee recounted from a conversation with Green. “I’m gonna train you as a pro. And the goal is to set yourself up to be in the position to play early, if given the opportunity in college.”