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One of three OL commits in the 2017 class, Matt Bockhorst signed his letter of intent with Clemson today. The 6’4” 295 lbs. Bockhorst projects as a guard for Clemson. He is considered a 4 star by the 247 Composite and he comes from a well known Notre Dame pipeline, St. Xavier HS in Cincinnatti, OH. It was a real surprise that Bockhorst was not really recruited by Notre Dame and maybe even more surprising that we pried him from the many blue blood programs closer to him.
Bockhorst has a real mean streak in him, perfect for an OL, and normally he’d be a candidate for playing time early. Unfortunately Bockhorst suffered an ACL tear last summer and depending on his rehab and how the rest of the OL performs he could redshirt. Even if he’s completely healthy it may be worth him redshirting for a year if the he doesn’t provide an upgrade over any of the current lineman.
A few thoughts from our resident OL expert, MetalTiger:
Bockhorst played tackle for his team in high school primarily but will slide inside at Clemson. He projects as a mauler at guard and has some plus athleticism for pulls. He is a likely candidate for a redshirt solely due to depth at guard but also to give him time to regain strength and confidence in his knee post an ACL injury prior to his senior year.
QT’s Take:
I am very high on Bockhorst. Ohio State didn’t move on him because they needed/wanted tackles in this class. Bockhorst’s ranking at 244 in the composite is laughable. If he hadn’t torn his ACL he would be a top 150 player. If there was an underrated gem in this class I would pick Bockhorst. He will need to move inside and play guard at the college level, but he has good enough feet to pull and do the things athletically we want our guards to do. It is all about how quickly he can get back from the injury. Likely to redshirt but I think he will surprise some people by being on the bubble.
He plays with an edge and finishes blocks, plays through the whistle. Comes from a good program in St. Xavier where he was a leader on the team and big personality (he will definitely be the new Jay Guillermo type personality, he loves to joke around and have a good time). Great addition who comes to Clemson with a chip on his shoulder.