The Little Brother Blindside
The class of Supreme ’18 that Ohio State recruited this year is accurately fitting for what they could be, supreme. It seemed to be a roller coaster towards the back half of the process, as most recruiting seasons are, but at one point it seemed that Ohio State would win by a landslide in the number of recruits that could end with 5-star ratings (i.e.- Brenton Cox, Jackson Carman, Emory Jones, Jaiden Woodbey). Nonetheless, the buckeyes led by the unbelievably persuasiveness of Urban Meyer finished with the #2 overall recruiting class, #1 overall average player rating, and most 4 and 5 star recruits signed by any team. After many thought that the class of 17’ couldn’t be topped, good ole Urbs and his posse figured out a way to wrangle in a stellar class. Led by the nations top offensive tackle, Nicholas Petit-Frere, that is where we’ll start on the breakdown of Supreme 18’.
From Tampa, Florida, Petit-Frere attended Berkeley Prep where he played offensive tackle and defensive end for the Buccaneers. He has been ranked as the best offensive tackle in the nation per 247 sports, and as the 7th best player in the country. Listed as 6’6, 272 lbs., Petit-Frere has plenty of room to put on more weight with the frame that this guy was blessed with. The ironic thing about his last name is that it translates to little brother in French, but there is nothing little about his game. On national signing day, ESPN had talked about the amazing basketball like foot skills he had, along with the 93 pancake blocks he obtained. I’ve watched tape on this kid now multiple times and have been blown away. Seeing as many didn’t believe we had a chance to land Petit-Frere, I can admit I had done little research on him until I realized a few days before National Signing Day that we had a legitimate chance of landing him. Overall, wow…. just wow. It seemed Berkeley Prep ran the ball a majority of the time, and rightfully so because Petit-Frere’s motor is off the charts, hence the 93 pancakes. If you’ve ever seen the movie The Blindside (which if you’re a football fan, don’t admit if you haven’t seen it), when Michael Oher plows through a kid, pushes him down the field and essentially throws him out of the stadium when he realizes his full potential; that’s the very first play I saw watching film on Petit-Frere. He absolutely annihilates the helpless defender and drives him to the other side of the field and chucks him out of bounds.
*Throws the flag*
“Did he hit after the whistle”
“I don’t believe so”
“Then what was the flag for?”
“ I don’t know, excessive blocking”
The Blindside, look it up.
Like I stated his motor is amazing, and he doesn’t seem to give up. If there is any trait I want one of my lineman to have, it is the relentless desire to never give up on a play, and that’s Petit-Frere. From the looks of his pass blocking, it was up to par. There were times that he is so locked on defenders that I didn’t realize he was pass blocking for a split second. I would say his strength is in the run game, but as the best offensive lineman in the nation, the holes in his game seem pretty minute. The big hits he laid were everywhere, granted it’s a highlight film so that’s to be expected, but even his play against big beefcakes on the defensive lineman were impressive. He never struggles to drive a defender backwards multiple yards.
The defensive tape on Petit-Frere was still more than functional, just maybe not as extraordinary as his offensive tape. There seemed to be a limited amount of moves by the big man, but that didn’t stop him from powering through every man that was in front of him. As already stated, his motor is what separates him and it wasn’t hindered at all on the defensive side of the ball. He’s got good explosiveness and drive off the ball, which helped him get into the backfield. For as a big of a man as he is, his speed looks to be up to par with college level athletes.
Being a future buckeye, I see all the intangible traits that the coaching staff loves to see; the will to work, never quitting, a strong mind with a positive attitude, and a great family life. Nicholas Petit-Frere will be a top tier talent at Ohio State, and will be a great person in the buckeye community. I’m looking forward to seeing this young man grow into something more extraordinary than he already is, with the occasional excessive blocking of his man into the stands.
Stay humble, keep grinding.