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Cantwell May Be the Most Impressive Offensive Tackle Prospect Ever

I honestly believe he is the best OL prospect to ever come out of HS.

If you could build in an OL in a lab, he is literally what you would build. Combine that with his intelligence, work ethic, and support system with successful professionals at home and you really have a special case. With him making a decision to play for Mario and Mirabal, I think there is a really small chance of him not realizing his full potential.

Amazing prospect and I think we are going to be really happy that Miami did everything they had to do to secure him.
 
k9cane said:
Hey!! #StopAsianHate


Like I said, I didn't want to go overboard
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The Office Jim GIF by MOODMAN
 
Arehel said:
There is also the problem with him being exceptionally developed earlier physically, where the trajectory begins to curve out a little bit.

I wouldn't expect his combine or strength numbers to get much better over the term of college. He just need to be better at football he needs reps and reps and reps.

His base is going to be very solid. But I see him having a slightly worse year then Cici, his first year.
He came from IMG where he practise vs other high level players and received tonnes of coaching.

Cantwells genes, hardwork and training regimen out him in a position to excel at football quickly.

His ceiling will be higher then Cici, I just expect to see that jump his Sophomore year and will have a few Freshmen lumps.
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His father did 72 reps of 225. There is tons of room left in this kids development. This isn’t normal human.

Also I don’t think you are considering just how massive it was for Cantwell to get on campus for the CFP run, practicing against Bain and Mesidor. In addition to that I don’t care who CiCi faces at IMG when he arrives at Miami in spring of 2023 Miami did not have the level of talent on the edge that it does now.

So with the CFP practices and spring going against a JR Bain, 6th year Mesidor, JR Leightfoot, JR Blount, SR Wilson and so on.. it’s safe to say Jackson at this same stage has more high level experience than CiCi did.
 
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This is very simple.

1. He has Olympic DNA

2. The work ethic of Malachi Toney

3. Extremely smart, 98th percentile on the ACT

4. If he would have participated in the 2026 combine he would have posted the 2nd highest bench press numbers and 3rd highest shuttle time.

5. He is being coached by Mario and Maribal

Again this is not a normal human. He has the potential to be the 1st over all pick when his time comes.
 
Hstokes1447 said:
People see "true freshman" and immediately assume there will be a learning curve. I think they're missing the bigger picture. Jackson Cantwell isn't just another 5 star offensive tackle. When you look at his genetics, athletic profile, measurable traits, production, intelligence, and the situation he's walking into at Miami, there's a legitimate argument that we're looking at the most complete offensive tackle prospect of the modern recruiting era.

Start with the pedigree.

His father, Christian Cantwell, was a five time World Champion in the shot put and won the silver medal at the 2008 Olympics. His mother, Teri Steer Cantwell, was an Olympian herself and a two-time NCAA champion. Jackson didn't just inherit size. He inherited elite explosiveness, balance, coordination, and functional power that very few humans possess.



Then look at what he accomplished before ever stepping on a college campus, becoming the first true offensive tackle ever named Gatorade National Football Player of the Year. Now that’s impressive. When you combine that with his academic profile, where he reportedly scored in the 98th percentile on the ACT while still in middle school, you're talking about a player who checks every box both physically and mentally.

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Now let's compare him to NFL offensive tackles.

Cantwell arrives at Miami at 6'8" and 330 pounds. Among first round offensive tackles over the past two decades, very few have entered the NFL Combine with that combination of height and weight. He's already built like a veteran NFL left tackle before playing a college snap. His 33.5 inch arms and 10.5 inch hands are exactly the type of measurements NFL scouts look for in franchise tackles. There simply aren't many athletes walking around with that frame and that kind of movement ability.

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Then you get to the strength numbers, and that's where things become almost unfair.

Cantwell has benched over 500 pounds and completed 32 reps at 225 pounds before arriving at Miami. If he walked into the NFL Combine today, those 32 reps would rank second all-time among offensive tackles, trailing only Russell Okung's 38 reps. He would already out bench players like Joe Thomas, Lane Johnson, Terron Armstead, Tristan Wirfs, Penei Sewell, Taylor Lewan, Jake Long, Ryan Ramczyk, and virtually every elite offensive tackle to come through the Combine over the last twenty years.



The shot put numbers explain why.

Cantwell isn't simply strong because he spends time in the weight room. He's one of the best high school throwers in America. He has thrown over 76 feet in the shot put. Shot put is built on explosive hip extension, rotational force, balance, leverage, and violent hand strike. Those are the exact same traits offensive line coaches teach every day. When you watch Cantwell throw a defender out of the hole with one arm, you're seeing Olympic-level power translate directly onto the football field.



His athleticism is just as impressive.

His reported 4.70 short shuttle is already an outstanding time for someone who stands 6'8" and weighs around 330 pounds. He's still 3 years away from being eligible for the NFL Combine. With another three seasons under Miami's strength and conditioning program, continued body composition improvements, and daily technical refinement, it's reasonable to believe that number could drop into the 4.55-4.60 range by 2029. If that happens, we're talking about an athlete with one of the most complete testing profiles the world has ever seen at offensive tackle.



What excites me even more is the situation he's walking into.

Cantwell enrolled early, he arrived in Coral Gables while Miami was preparing for the College Football Playoff. Every day in practice he was able to work against future 1st rounders in Rueben Bain Jr. and Akheem Mesidor. Then a full spring practice, by the time the season starts he would have been on campus for 9 months. There are very few freshmen in the country who get that kind of developmental head start.



Even more importantly, he's going to spend the next three years being coached by Mario Cristobal and Alex Mirabal. In my opinion, there isn't a better offensive line coaching duo anywhere in college football. Their ability to identify, develop, and prepare offensive linemen for the NFL has been proven year after year. Technique, footwork, leverage, hand placement, and overall line play are all strengths of this staff. Cantwell isn't just arriving with elite physical tools. He's arriving in arguably the best environment in America to maximize those tools.

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History tells us that five-star offensive tackles have one of the highest NFL success rates of any position. Jackson Cantwell isn't just another 5 star. His combination of size, strength, athleticism, intelligence, pedigree, and coaching situation is almost unprecedented.

That's why I don't think we're simply watching another future first-round pick, but a once in a lifetime player.
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Man, these boards are gonna be hilarious if the kid has a bad game with these expectations…lol. He has to be **** near perfect as a freshman.

….and I expect him to be…
 
Kn[]_[]ckles3o5 said:
He may struggle with speedy athletic edge guys but CiCi tossed some fools as a frosh and Cantwell is on another strength stratosphere. He is definitely going to give somE dudes a wakeup call on what real strength is this season.

I think Cantwell could be the physical equivalent of ST at safety.
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he’ll get use to it in practice , he’s arguably facing the best de he will see all year every day in proactive .
 
Hstokes1447 said:
This is very simple.

1. He has Olympic DNA

2. The work ethic of Malachi Toney

3. Extremely smart, 98th percentile on the ACT

4. If he would have participated in the 2026 combine he would have posted the 2nd highest bench press numbers and 3rd highest shuttle time.

5. He is being coached by Mario and Maribal

Again this is not a normal human. He has the potential to be the 1st over all pick when his time comes.
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Who would beat him on the bench numbers I’m actually just curious .
 
Fightinibis said:
Man, these boards are gonna be hilarious if the kid has a bad game with these expectations…lol. He has to be **** near perfect as a freshman.

….and I expect him to be…
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That’s what I’ve been thinking. There will likely be a few FR hiccups. And people will go nuts.
 
BALLHAWKU said:
he’ll get use to it in practice , he’s arguably facing the best de he will see all year every day in proactive .
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A reasonable hypothesis and word out of camp is consistent with that assumption but sometimes a dude figures something out and has your number that day. Think how Patrick Payton sort of worked Proctor when Bama played FSU.

All I’m saying is it isn’t inconceivable that as a TF he may have a bad match up where he struggles and given his strengths and weaknesses you would expect the type of player to do that to him would be a dude that relies on speed and not strength.
 
Memnon said:
The best ever???

Like ever???

Jonathan Ogden, Orlando Pace, Walter Jones, Joe Thomas, Willie Roaf...

He's better than all of them?

Really?
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As a prospect coming out of high school, I would say so.

He has better or equal measurable and testing numbers right now at 18, than any of them posted at the combine when they were college JRs or SRs
 
The best out of high school I’ve ever seen is Tyron smith at USC and he was maybe 260 soaking wet.
 
Memnon said:
The best ever???
t
Like ever???

Jonathan Ogden, Orlando Pace, Walter Jones, Joe Thomas, Willie Roaf...

He's better than all of them?

Really?
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Agreed. This is typical offseason forum posting. I'm interesting in what he does on the field in actual college games. Let the kid prove it on the field. Yes, there's a high probability he's successful. But he's got to actually do it.

It's like the other extreme of the guys laughing at Annis ('28 QB commit). it's certainly a low probability that he'll beat out Abrams or Cypher. But those guys have to get it done. It's what you do, not your H.S. accolades, that matter.
 
Hstokes1447 said:
His father did 72 reps of 225. There is tons of room left in this kids development. This isn’t normal human.

Also I don’t think you are considering just how massive it was for Cantwell to get on campus for the CFP run, practicing against Bain and Mesidor. In addition to that I don’t care who CiCi faces at IMG when he arrives at Miami in spring of 2023 Miami did not have the level of talent on the edge that it does now.

So with the CFP practices and spring going against a JR Bain, 6th year Mesidor, JR Leightfoot, JR Blount, SR Wilson and so on.. it’s safe to say Jackson at this same stage has more high level experience than CiCi did.
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Not here to argue, regarding development I wish bench Press doesn't translate to being a **** football player, if that were the case then just go to the gym, but I absolutely here your counter and it's certainly an indicator.

I did not know they about his father. That's demi-god like haha

I don't know if I would argue he got better experience but it's an argument worth having. Coco has IMG coaching for years, Jackson has coaching for 9 month at Miami, so might be a wash.

I think it's fair to saw he's gonna be well supported. They both play different positions, but nonetheless Cici really set the bar high for a freshmen tackle so if he's near it at LT then I think we'll be good at OL.
 
Arehel said:
Not here to argue, regarding development I wish bench Press doesn't translate to being a **** football player, if that were the case then just go to the gym, but I absolutely here your counter and it's certainly an indicator.

I did not know they about his father. That's demi-god like haha

I don't know if I would argue he got better experience but it's an argument worth having. Coco has IMG coaching for years, Jackson has coaching for 9 month at Miami, so might be a wash.

I think it's fair to saw he's gonna be well supported. They both play different positions, but nonetheless Cici really set the bar high for a freshmen tackle so if he's near it at LT then I think we'll be good at OL.
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No argument at all. I agree that CiCi set the bar, but I think it’s more to do with the work of Maribal.

He did the exact same thing with Penei Sewell as a true freshman at LT in Oregon. Both had no where near the physical tools of Jackson and Maribal turned them both into freshman All Americans and top 10 picks.

Now put that same level of development into Jackson with the added bonus of the extra playoff practices.

The kid legit has the DNA of two Olympians in the one Olympic sport that directly translates to offensive line play and he personally was well on his way to being the 3 Olympian in the family.

I love CiCi too but facts are facts 🤷🏾‍♂️
 
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