SIGNED: OL John Olmstead

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Metuchen (N.J.) St. Joseph offensive lineman John Olmstead has submitted his National Letter of Intent to Notre Dame.

Rivals: 4.0 stars (No. 3 prospect in New Jersey, and No. 16 offensive tackle and No. 111 overall player nationally)
BGI Grade: 4.0 (top-250 player)
Upside Grade: 4.5

• Invited to play in 2019 Polynesian Bowl
• 2018 New Jersey first-team offense selection (picked by USA Today Network)
• 2018 NJ.com first-team all-state offense selection
• No. 5 in NJ.com’s top 50 football recruits in the state
• 2017 All-USA New Jersey first-team offense selection (picked by USA Today High School Sports)
• 2017 NJ.com first-team all-state offense selection

Power Five Offers: Ohio State, Michigan, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Florida, Penn State, LSU, Nebraska, Northwestern, Oregon, Pittsburgh, UCLA, Mississippi State, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Duke, Arkansas, Boston College, Louisville, Maryland, Ole Miss, Minnesota, Missouri, Rutgers, Syracuse and Vanderbilt

Notre Dame first entered the picture for the nation’s No. 111 overall player offering during a camp in the summer of 2017 after the staff had to chance to see him in person.

The Irish became a strong contender at that point and continued to be among his favorites throughout the finish even with Harry Hiestand, who originally offered, leaving for the Bears last winter.

Olmstead returned to South Bend later that year for Notre Dame’s win over Navy, which was his last until an unofficial in April. Despite the time in between trips, the Irish were considered the team to beat and even more so after Olmstead had a chance to meet Jeff Quinn in person and find out more about him on and off the field.

The Rivals250 prospect narrowed his recruitment down to 10 March 16, leaving Notre Dame, LSU, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio State, Ole Miss, Penn State, Rutgers and Wisconsin in the mix.

Trips to check out the Tigers, Rebels, Cornhuskers, Wolverines and Irish took place in early April. Olmstead then again narrowed his recruitment to Notre Dame, Michigan, Rutgers, Minnesota and Ole Miss April 14 with a commitment date set six days later.

Notre Dame remained the team to beat throughout those trips, and his final visit in April showed South Bend was where he needed to continue his student-athlete career. Olmstead announced his commitment April 20 during a ceremony at this school.

Like the others on this list, Olmstead did not look at other programs after making his pledge and is looking forward to getting an early start in college.

• All four of his older sisters play or played sports in college (basketball and three lacrosse), per NJ.com.
• Started playing football in eighth grade.
• Will enroll early at Notre Dame.

With four returning starters and all the depth expected to return along the offensive line, expect Olmstead to redshirt as a freshman in 2019.

Olmstead is an old-school blocker, a throwback, a guy whose game is all about power. A tackle for most of his prep career, he moved to guard as a senior, and that is where he will lineup when he arrives at Notre Dame in January.

The St. Joseph standout is massive young man that uses his weight to push opponents around on either side of the ball. He not only stands out on offense for the Falcons, he is also a starting defensive end in their 3-4 defense. He is a bully on the field, and that is meant to be a compliment. His body needs a lot of refinement, and with time in the weight room he should go through some needed weight distribution. Once that happens I could see him getting over 310 pounds and actually get quicker and more agile, which are areas where his game needs improvement.

He isn’t an overly quick player in space, he’s not overly flexible and despite being 6-6 he doesn’t have elite tackle length. Olmstead is at his best when working in tight quarters. He comes off the ball well and when he moves his feet he can really punish opponents.

Moving inside helped his pass protection game quite a bit. Olmstead looked far more comfortable protecting the quarterback this season as a guard because he could play in tighter quarters and because he was able to use his power even than you can on the edge. With improved conditioning and footwork his ability to protect the quarterback should take major strides forward.

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