Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1516624
2 6 M A R C H 2 0 2 4 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M / / / / / / / T H E C L A S S O F 2 0 2 4 / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / O ffensive lineman Eagan Boyer would be the first to tell you he had no idea what he thought he would find on his initial visit to Penn State last April. Having earned an offer from the Nit- tany Lions three months prior to his trip, Boyer built an early connection with of- fensive line coach Phil Trautwein. Still, being a native of the Charlotte, N.C., area, he was much more familiar with schools in the ACC and SEC. Penn State did have something going for it, though, back when Boyer was try- ing to sort out his spring visits. His step- mother, Lisa, had graduated from Penn State in 2003. She enjoyed her time in State College, so Boyer thought, why not at least check out her alma mater? Going into the visit, he admitted that he was more focused on programs like Auburn, Clemson and Tennessee. He even had official visits scheduled to two of those schools. However, by the time he left State College on April 2, his mindset about playing closer to home quickly changed. "I had no idea. I didn't know what to expect when I went there," Boyer said. "I didn't expect them to coach their guys the way that they did, treat them the way that they did. I didn't expect their facilities and their staff to be as good as they are." Boyer's head coach at William A. Hough High, DeShawn Baker, described him as a "big, long guy [who] is very pas- sionate about the position." The three- star tackle prospect is confident that Trautwein will be able to help him reach his full potential. "I've kind of developed a certain way I want to be coached, and he definitely matches that," Boyer said. "He blew us away with his position meeting presen- tation and the level of detail. He coaches the small stuff hard and as well as anyone I've seen yet." Once he got back home, Boyer took one more visit to Notre Dame on April 6 but ended up canceling his plans to visit Tennessee and Wisconsin in the weeks that followed. Most observers thought it was because he was close to committing to the schools he was previously leaning toward, but it ended up being the Nit- tany Lions who surprised everyone on April 25. The 6-foot-8, 251-pound offensive tackle never wavered after that, even though some schools tried to get him to visit at different times over the past year. A big draw that helped the Lions win him over was their mechanical engineer- ing program. Like so many who live in the Charlotte area, Boyer is a big fan of NASCAR and hopes to work for a race team one day. "I've wanted to do that since I was 10," Boyer said. "I didn't really know what I was going to do in college, but I always knew that I wanted to work on cars." He went on to add, "I'm not going to college just for football. I'm going to col- lege to get my degree to set me up to go into a money-making job if I don't get to the NFL. Some places didn't have it. Some places were new with it, but [education] was a big draw for me." — Ryan Snyder Boyer was considering Auburn, Clemson and Tennessee before the Nittany Lions turned his head during a visit to campus last spring. PHOTO COURTESY EAGAN BOYER EAGAN BOYER Academic offerings entice North Carolina lineman to Penn State OT | 6-8 | 251 William A. Hough High Cornelius, N.C. Rankings Stars Nat. Pos. State On3 Industry ★★★ 544 35 19 On3 ★★★ — 32 17 ESPN ★★★ — 65 19 Rivals ★★★ — 45 15 247Sports ★★★ — 48 18 Statistics • Led Hough to an 11-2 record and a conference championship in 2023 • Team averaged nearly 300 yards of offense his senior year Notable • Team captain his senior season • Second team all-state pick in 2022 and third team selection as a senior. Recruitment • Committed to Penn State on April 25, 2023 • Recruited by offensive line coach Phil Traut- wein and tight ends coach Ty Howle • Picked Penn State over Michigan, Notre Dame and Pittsburgh • Officially visited on June 9, 2023 2024 Projection We wouldn't be surprised if Boyer were to eventually outplay his high school ratings and start multiple seasons for the Nittany Lions at offensive tackle. But at 251 pounds, he'll need time to add strength and size. We expect him to redshirt in 2024. They Said It BWI analyst Thomas Frank Carr: "Boyer looks like a player who can develop into a high-quality pass protector at the college level. His length, positional skills and quick feet are encouraging. I'm leaning toward right tackle as his likely position, but if his profile develops correctly, Boyer is more than capable of being a left tackle eventually. He'll need to work on his mobility and recovery skills, but the height and length will allow him to make significant strides as a blocker. No matter where he lands, the obvious caveat is that he'll need to add the proper weight and strength to ensure his level of play doesn't dip in the future." T H E B O Y E R F I L E