Signed: Avery Henry Brings Size, Work Ethic to Ohio State Offensive Line As Three-Star Class of 2022 Signee

Offered by the Buckeyes on a Monday in mid-October, the in-state offensive line prospect had committed by the following Wednesday morning.

Welcome to the Brotherhood, @AveryHenry731

From the unanimous All-American Billy Price#BOOM22 pic.twitter.com/atfmifAaIJ

— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) December 15, 2021

The St. Clairsville, Ohio, native, listed at 6-foot-6, 305 pounds, is a three-star recruit, the No. 116 offensive tackle prospect in the country and the 42nd-ranked player in the Buckeye state. Less than two months after committing to the scarlet and gray program, Henry made things official on Wednesday by signing his National Letter of Intent on Early Signing Day.

Henry was the 16th commit to join Ohio State's 2022 class and the third offensive linemen, joining four-star prospects Tegra Tshabola (No. 114 overall) and George Fitzpatrick (No. 324). Henry is one of six in-state prospects to join the Buckeyes’ class of 2022, along with five-star defenders C.J. Hicks (No. 12) and Sonny Styles (No. 13), four-star defenders Gabe Powers (No. 61) and Jyaire Brown (No. 155) and the aforementioned Tshabola.

Aside from Acworth, Georgia, tight end Bennett Christian, Henry is the lone three-star prospect in Ohio State’s recruiting class.

“You do have to be smart about how many of those guys you take, and that’s part of the puzzle,” Buckeye head coach Ryan Day said at an October press conference when asked about recruiting less heralded players. “Just in general right now, you really have to recruit guys that want to be at Ohio State, guys that want to be Buckeyes and understand what being a Buckeye is. Because the minute something doesn’t go well, they could walk out the door. So we’re really taking that to heart and evaluating all these guys and what we think, not trying to look at the stars or who’s recruiting them. 

“What do we think, and what do we think is the right fit for Ohio State? I think we’ve done a good job of that. There are certain situations where you see traits and then think, ‘Can we develop him?’ Dawand (Jones) is an example of that.”

Henry’s Division I offers also included Iowa State, West Virginia, Akron, Eastern Michigan and Syracuse, and his grandfather played for the Mountaineers in the early 1960s. Henry initially committed to the Cyclones on June 20, but decommitted on Sept. 26 following a visit to Ohio State for the Akron game the day prior. Henry did not leave that visit with an offer from the Buckeye coaching staff, but Ohio State offensive line coach Greg Studrawa presented him with one a few days after attending one of his games three weeks later.

Over the course of his high school career, Henry – who also played defensive line at St. Clairsville – has worked to lose around 60 pounds in order to take his game to the next level.

Likely a project for Studrawa and company upon entering the program, Henry need only look at Dawand Jones as an example of a three-star tackle prospect that has ascended to starter status on the Buckeye line as recently as this season.