Background:
Three-star recruit who redshirted his first season with the Hawkeyes, then took over the starting left tackle position the following year and has reprised that role for each of the four seasons of his career, missing three games as a junior due to injury.
Positives:
Comes from a program which has a good reputation for producing pro offensive linemen. Was able to secure the starting blindside job even when 2020 first-round pick Tristan Wirfs was also on roster. Tall with good bulk; height and weight are basically ideal for a pro offensive lineman. Pass sets look pretty good within a limited range. Plays from a wide base with his back straight and his hands up. Fires out with his hands instead of absorbing contact from opposing defenders. Good phone-booth blocker who comes out of his stance low with natural srength. Appears to have above-average grip strength to sustain. Functional power is sufficient to drive smaller ends off the line when he gets his feet moving. Also capable of blocking on angles. On rushing downs, has enough short-area quickness to hook defenders. Capable of getting outside positioning to seal the edge. Plays within his frame against opposing defensive linemen. Shows a good work rate in the run game to climb to the second level.
Negatives:
Arm length looks shorter than desirable, and may be too tall to slide inside to guard successfully. More workmanlike than nasty in the run game. Will often content himself with engaging defenders to wall off instead of working to drive them off of their spot. Falls off of blocks because of his apparent lack of ideal length. Can get sloppy and overextend when attempting to reach linebackers in space. Struggles to maintain his pass sets when defending against speed rushers, causing him to abandon technique and get caught off-balance when opponents convert speed to power. Anchor tends to drop late and can be walked back a little bit by defensive ends players with his frame should be able to handle.
Summary:
A tall, experienced offensive tackle who works hard to sustain blocks through the whistle in the run game, an area where he is capable of executing a variety of blocking assignments, and who also shows pretty solid fundamentals in the passing game. However, his arms are on the shorter side, he could stand to play with more aggression and physicality, and he’s not quite laterally quick enough to maintain his technique and anchor when blocking against speed on the edge. Might be a candidate to move to another spot along the line as a developmental option.
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