The Lowe Impact

Ohio State landed one of its top recruiting priorities in the 2025 class on Saturday afternoon with the pledge of Toledo (Ohio) Whitmer offensive tackle Carter Lowe. The 6-foot-5, 290-pound prospect is a huge early win for the Buckeyes.

What Ohio State is Getting

Lowe is a big-time pure tackle prospect that should be able to slot in as a left tackle in Columbus. Lowe has tremendous athleticism and quickness and has made his mark during his high school career as an elite pass protector.

But Lowe’s junior season saw him bring a different dimension to the run-game. His added strength and power was evident and he was able to consistently move guys in the run game and create lanes for the Whitmer running backs. He has also continued to improve his ability as a finisher, getting much better with his leg drive as a junior than he was as a sophomore.

With the physical gifts that Lowe possesses, combined with continued improvements in strength and toughness, Lowe is the type of prospect who could be a two or three-year starter at left tackle in Columbus and is, in my opinion, the best pure left tackle prospect to come out of Ohio since Paris Johnson in the 2020 recruiting class.

What it Means for Recruiting

There are very few true ‘must gets’ in a given recruiting class, especially at a place like Ohio State where there are always secondary options if a Plan A doesn’t work out.

But Lowe certainly feels like a must get for the Buckeyes in 2025. The Buckeyes need a couple of cornerstone tackle prospects moving forward and Lowe certainly fits that bill. As one of the best O-Linemen to come out of Ohio over the past five years, losing him to rival Michigan would have been a bad look during a time where the Buckeyes are trying to regain momentum in the rivalry.

It’s also not a cycle (stay tuned for 2026, though) where the Buckeyes are in strong position for an abundance of out-of-state targets. The core of this O-Line class will most likely need to come from the Midwest and Lowe is clearly the top guy on the board.

While some may be hesitant to credit Justin Frye for this commitment since Lowe is an Ohio kid, it was not very long ago where even the top Ohio linemen were slipping away so there is something to be said for locking down the state’s top linemen.

This is about as big of a pick up as it gets given where Lowe is from, the premium position that he plays, and the ability he has. This is Ohio State’s first offensive line commitment of what should ultimately be around four total when the dust settles on the 2025 class.