As reported by Spencer Holbrook (Letterman Row; 2/12/21), the national accolades for Thayer Munford have begun: ProFootball Focus named OSU’s Thayer Munford the top returning offensive tackle and the second highest ranked offensive lineman, behind only center Tyler Linderbaum (University of Iowa). Thayer Munford will continue to be a solid and central rock in the foundation of Buckeye Football in 2021. Munford is well-positioned to have a solid year that further enhances his NFL draft value. Thayer now has a seemingly clear and a seemingly inevitable path to the NFL. That was not always the case.
Thayer’s path to college was murky and filled hurdles and challenges. For that matter, Thayer’s high school education and his high school football career were in serious peril.
Thayer Munford was part of OSU’s elite 2017 recruiting class, which ranked second in the nation (behind, of course, Alabama). The 2017 recruiting class included the likes of Young, Okudah, Browning, Wade, Davis, Dobbins, Meyers, and Garrett, and it amassed an amazing average recruit rating of .9459 (beating Alabama and others for the unofficial highest class average rating that year).
Within the 2017 class of 21 enrollees, Pete Werner’s rating (.8994) was slightly higher than Munford’s rating (.8958). That placed Munford as the 19th highest rated recruit in that class! Only two players had lower ratings than Thayer Munford: wide receiver, Elijah Gardiner (.8518), and three-star punter, Blake Haubeil (.8321).
Nationally, according to 247Sports, Munford was ranked number 285. 247 Sport reported, in Ohio, he was just the 14th highest rated senior!
Thayer Munford almost wasn’t a Buckeye. At one point, one might even say his football career almost ended in high school. Munford struggled with grades and learning. He struggled with his weight. And, he faced family and financial issues in high school. The support he received, and his efforts to persevere and ultimately succeed are detailed in an extremely compelling and thorough article by Patrick Murphy (Bucknuts/247 Sports, posted 2/16/17), and by writers like Tim Bielik (Cleveland.com, article posted 7/10/18) and Joey Kaufman (the Columbus Dispatch, dated 9/6/19). These are great reads (Note: As of 2/10/21, each of those articles is still available, for free, on the internet).
Murphy, Kaufman, and Bielik, each describe a kid who persevered in high school to overcome tremendous hurdles. Rather than giving up, he took the help that was offered to him. In the end, Thayer did what he needed to do (e.g., working and studying hard) to keep his dream alive and he received a scholarship to Ohio State
The recruiting ratings he received from the services were okay. Alright, they were better than okay, but remember it’s OSU here. They weren’t stellar though and they certainly weren’t elite. However, they were respectable — especially for a kid who almost lost his entire senior football season. He was initially ruled ineligible to play his senior year. After an appeal, he was allowed to play after sitting out the first seven game of his senior season.
It shouldn’t be surprising that Munford’s recruiter was Coach Studrawa. Of course you can imagine the heat Coach Stud took from the fans for recruiting the 285th best player. According to 247 Sports, Coach Studrawa ranked #272 amongst recruiters. Again, you can hear the shouting fans ripping Coach Stud for being ranked 272. The top OSU recruiters for the 2017 class were Zach Smith (ranked #4) and Kerry Coombs (#5), and they were among the tops in the country. Tony Alford was ranked 118 and Larry Johnson was ranked 119. Of course, 247 Sports reminds us, Coach Stud also was responsible for another recruit in 2017: the recruitment of Wyatt Davis. Nice job by Coach Stud for recruiting Wyatt Davis and for recruiting Thayer Munford.
Thayer Munford has accomplished a lot at Ohio State and he seems destined to accomplish even more before he leaves. One can imagine a victory at the end of the regular season, a BIG-10 Championship, a return to CFP, and perhaps, a possible, National Championship. Perhaps, individually, he will be All-BIG-10, and maybe, like Wyatt Davis, he get a tree in Buckeye Grove.
