A promising offensive tackle prospect in the 2025 class is preparing to make his first-ever visit to Ohio State.
New York offensive lineman Rowan Byrne confirmed he’ll be among the many recruits attending the Buckeyes’ large recruiting get together on Friday and is eagerly anticipating the trip.
“I’m really excited, I’d say I’m just mainly looking forward to seeing everything,” Byrne told Eleven Warriors Tuesday. “I’d like to learn more about the program. I haven’t been there yet, so getting to see everything firsthand will be pretty great. I’ve been building a great relationship with offensive line coach Justin Frye and Mike Sollenne, but I haven’t met them in person yet so I think that will be great too.”
Ill be at The Ohio State University Friday, July 28th!! @OhioStateFB !! #GoBucks @CoachJFrye @CoachSollenne @ryandaytime @N_Murph @Joespags12 @CoachMoffitt @ionafootball @adamgorney @RivalsFriedman @ChadSimmons_ @JeremyO_Johnson @EdOBrienCFB @alexgleitman @SWiltfong247 pic.twitter.com/TaIyUgKfno
— Rowan Byrne 4 (@RowanByrne6) July 21, 2023
The 6-foot-6, 290-pound Byrne said Frye has been recruiting him for about a month and a half, and believes in his ability as an offensive tackle at the next level.
“He likes how athletic I am and that I bend really well,” Byrne said of the conversations he’s had with Frye. “I have a good first step, I’m quick off the ball and I play with good leverage. He said when he watches film a lot of times, he looks for those specific traits. He puts two categories together, one where a guy might have that but he wants to see them at a camp, and another one where they clearly have those traits so I don’t need to see them and he said I fell into that category so he didn’t need to see my work out with him.”
Byrne plays left tackle at Iona Preparatory School and has been one of the team’s anchors on the offensive line.
“I’d say my pass blocking,” Byrne said of his strongest on-field attribute. “I think I have good patience and I do a good job of staying pretty square.”
Though Byrne doesn’t hold a composite ranking from 247Sports as of yet, he’s racked up nearly 20 Division I offers, including Florida, Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Penn State, Texas A&M and Wisconsin. He’s hoping to add an OSU offer to his offer sheet.
“That would be a really big deal,” Byrne said on the possibility of getting an OSU offer. “They’re a really great program and I’d love to have coach Frye as my coach. That would mean a lot to me. It’s a program with high expectations and they meet those expectations every year, you’re going to win a lot of games and get developed really well. The coaches develop offensive linemen really well there.”
Ethan Barbour puts OSU in top eight
One of the top-ranked tight ends in the 2025 class is getting closer to making a decision. Four-star Georgia prospect Ethan Barbour trimmed his recruitment down to eight schools on Monday, putting out a top eight of Ohio State, South Carolina, Florida State, Georgia, USC, Auburn, Alabama and Texas.
Top 8!!! Where is home? #GoBuckeyes #SpursUp #GoNoles #GoDawgs @FightOn #WarEagle #RollTide #HookEm @JasonKervin @quonmarshall16 @JeremyO_Johnson @RustyMansell_ @SWiltfong247 @adamgorney @Andrew_Ivins @ChadSimmons_ @RivalsFriedman pic.twitter.com/kMQTXse9eX
— Ethan Barbour (@EthanBarbour5) July 24, 2023
Barbour visited OSU during the Buckeyes’ contest against Indiana last season and was blown away by the gameday experience.
“My visit was great,” Barbour told Eleven Warriors after his visit. One of my key takeaways was just how thorough they were. They literally discussed everything from what it means to be a Buckeye, how they help you manage your academic schedule, nutrition, and they even discussed how they prepare you for life on and off the field. The level of detail was incredible.”
The 6-foot-3, 215-pound tight end had a standout sophomore season for Alpharetta High School (Alpharetta, Georgia), catching 51 passes for 714 yards with 12 touchdowns.
Tarvos Alford to commit in December
One of Ohio State’s top linebacker targets in the 2025 class has a timeline for when he’d like to make a commitment. Four-star Florida linebacker Tarvos Alford announced he’ll be making a commitment in early December.
Commitment time early December! https://t.co/Q9MUl0t041
— Tarvos Tj Alford II (@TarvosAlford_II) July 24, 2023
While it’s still early in the process, Florida and OSU are seen as two top contenders for Alford. Alford visited OSU in June for a multi-day that included him working out with Jim Knowles at a recruiting camp, and the 6-foot-2, 210-pound product said he plans on returning to OSU sometime this fall for a game.
“I’d say they’re one of the top dogs of the top dogs,” Alford told Eleven Warriors in June of where OSU sits with him in his recruitment. “They’re always in the cards for the playoffs and have one of the best offenses in the nation. They really are just going to make their defense better, so they won’t have a reason to lose and they can win the whole thing.”
