BOTC Interviews K-State Recruit Adam Holtorf

It's been a busy spring semester for Seward (Neb.) High School junior Adam Holtorf. In addition to competing with the Bluejays' track and field team, he has visited no fewer than eight college campuses as a football recruit.

From those visits and other recruiting contact, the 6'5", 265 lb. offensive and defensive line prospect has received eight scholarship offers. On March 8^th, Holtorf visited K-State, where the Wildcats' coaching staff became the first major-conference school to offer Holtorf a scholarship.

Holtorf is an offensive and defensive tackle for the Seward Bluejays, a Class B school in Nebraska. Seward is a town of almost 7,000 people, 30 miles west of Lincoln. On defense, Holtorf tallied 69 tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss, and five sacks in his junior season. He mostly lines up at defensive tackle for defensive coordinator Wade Miller, but sometimes plays end, too. Holtorf also plays basketball and competes in track and field for Seward.

You can view Holtorf's video on Hudl here. SB Nation's Ian Boyd took a look at Holtorf's video and gave the following (excerpted) analysis of his prospects as a defensive player:

"He plays pretty low for a 6'5" kid, which is very good to see ... I love the offer list and what it says about how major programs evaluate him. The Harvard and Yale offers say this is a kid who puts in the work. The Nebraska and Wisconsin [interest] say that good defensive coaches think this kid can two-gap a Big 10 offensive lineman.

I'd say his best attributes are upper-body strength and pad level, which allow him to manhandle high school guards and either fit his gap or shed blockers and get to the ball carrier. If he can get to 280-290 (lbs.) of good weight, I think he can play a Travis Britz-level of 3-tech defensive tackle. If he wants to ensure a starting role and an impact, he'll work on pass-rush moves and the hips to be able to blow past a guard.

The trick in the Big 12 as a 3-tech defensive tackle is that you get a lot of reach blocks on Zone that are tough, and sometimes you get doubled on a Power run. Holtorf can get low enough to create problems for a double team on Power, but he has to be able to either control a guard who's trying to reach him, or move laterally quick enough to stay in his gap. I'm guessing he'll typically opt for the former: drive the guard back and then fit the gap after putting him on skates.

He's got great length and pad level for that, which is why K-State offered him, he just needs the power and moves to do that against the big boys in the Big 12. Ditto for the pass rush."

Boyd is high on K-State's prospect scouting and recruiting. He also took a look at Holtorf's offensive line video and gave me a few thoughts on his ability to play on the offensive line:

"Offensive line is an interesting question, his knee bend and length is pretty good to play there but I'd worry a little bit about his weight. How big is this kid going to get before it's bad weight? His overall athleticism makes him a better fit at OL than DL.

K-State loves length and athleticism in their OL, I'd say he's got enough of both to make for a great K-State OL prospect, assuming he can get above 290 lbs. and still be quick enough on his feet. He might even make a tackle. Currently he's way too light to handle a Big 12 pass rush and he'd be playing on skates.

He'd be a redshirt and a few years away but I think his quick feet, obvious intelligence, and length make him a good bet to grow into a good OL."

Holtorf said K-State is recruiting him as an offensive lineman, but that could be subject to change. He's not worrying about that for right now.

"I don't really have a big preference [between offensive and defensive line]," Holtorf said. "Football is football. I love it, either side of the ball. Whatever way the coaches think I can help the program, then I'm more than willing to listen to them and help them out on that side of the ball."

Holtorf was in Manhattan the weekend K-State's basketball team lost its regular-season finale to Baylor. Despite that unfortunate occurrence, Holtorf enjoyed his time in Manhattan.

"The visit went great. I had a great time down there," Holtorf said. "They gave us a tour of the facilities, then we went up to the training table. Coach [Del] Miller pulled me aside and said ‘hey, I'd like to take you and your dad over to talk to Coach [Bill] Snyder.'"

It shouldn't take long for K-State fans to identify with Holtorf. He's a serious student - just look at his offer list - who's looking to major in agribusiness. And he has a positive impression of the K-State football program.

"With K-State, I knew it was close, I knew they were a storied program, they have a strong tradition." Holtorf said. He sent his video, stats, and other information to the K-State coaches. Del Miller, his primary contact during recruiting, visited him in Seward, and K-State invited him to its Junior Day in March.

If all that's not enough, here is the quote on the Holtorf's Twitter profile: "Hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard."

Sounds like it could be the motto for K-State's football program, doesn't it?