The football journey of 2019 offensive lineman John Olmstead started three years ago, but it doesn’t look to be ending any time soon.
Olmstead, who stands at 6-foot-6 and 290-pounds, is a rising junior at Saint Joseph High School in Metuchen, N.J. After playing lacrosse for most of his childhood, the future collegiate player decided to take up football in eighth grade, and boy was that the right move.
Olmstead holds tons of scholarship offers so far, most of which are from Power 5 institutions. Rutgers, his hometown school, was the first to pull the trigger but since then, schools across the country have offered him. Virginia Tech joined the fray on Monday.
Blessed to receive an offer from Virginia tech🏈😈💪🏻🙏🏻#gohokies pic.twitter.com/7mLTxL1Mv5
— John Olmstead (@JOHNNYO_72) May 30, 2017
“I was in school actually, I was in lunch,” Olmstead said. “My coach told me and it was an amazing feeling. As a sophomore, with all the offers I’ve gotten, and Tech is a big one for me, so it’s amazing.”
Olmstead said that area recruiter Brian Mitchell has been his primary recruiter so far, and that the two are getting along.
“He’s a great guy,” Olmstead said. “He’s really excited about me and I’m really excited about Virginia Tech.”
Olmstead will be a tough pull for Virginia Tech, as it will be for most schools. Ohio State and most of the Big Ten have already offered, and more will likely come before Olmstead’s senior season. Ohio State is one of three schools that Olmstead has visited so far, and the Buckeyes figure to be in contention for the long haul.
“Of course I’m interested in Ohio State,” Olmstead said. “They’re contenders for the national title, they’ve won, I believe, it is 35 Big Ten championships, or something like that, and eight national titles. It’s always a good program, and it’s an academic and athletic school.”
Olmstead also visited Penn State this spring for their spring game, and enjoyed the atmosphere at the game.
“It was great,” Olmstead said. “It was awesome, because we watched Penn State and Rutgers when I was a little kid, so it was great. It was my first time there. I got to see the stadium and it’s amazing. It holds 110,000 people. Just for the spring game, it was 71,000 people.”
Olmstead has visited Rutgers many times, and grew up right around the corner.
“When I was a little kid, we went to the games a lot,” Olmstead said. “It was a big program that we could drive to, it was only 5-10 minutes away. It was a big offer for the first one.”
Olmstead is currently unranked by Rivals, but it would surprise no one if he’s at least a 4-star recruit. When you combine his size with the fact that he’s only played three years of football, it’s easy to see why Olmstead is so highly recruited. Olmstead said that right now, his footwork is the reason he’s had success.
“I have very good footwork,” Olmstead said. “I’ve only been playing football for three years. I started in eighth grade, but I have good footwork. I played lacrosse my whole life, so that’s where it comes from. My speed and my footwork are my best parts of my game.”
It’ll be a busy spring for Olmstead and his family. He plans on visiting Northwestern and Notre Dame in June, and hopes to visit several other schools after the dead period in July, including Virginia Tech.
Tech Sideline is Presented By: