From ‘farm kid’ to football star: How a 4-star 2026 Arkansas tackle caught Ohio State’s eye: Buckeyes recruiting
COLUMBUS, Ohio – A little over a year ago, Class of 2026 offensive tackle Evan Goodwin held no scholarship offers and wasn’t sure Division I football was in the cards for him.
Now, the 6-foot-7, 325-pound junior from Arkansas boasts offers from the likes of Notre Dame, LSU, Oklahoma and more, and is now in possession of an offer from the Ohio State Buckeyes.
247Sports.com, is rated the No. 4 overall player in Arkansas and is a top-30 offensive tackle nationally.
Goodwin announced via social media that he had picked up his offer from the Buckeyes, and talked with cleveland.com
about how it went down.
He had just left a gathering with friends and was about to go lift at the gym when he got a call from an unknown number. It turned out to be OSU offensive line coach Tyler Bowen.
“I realize it’s Coach Bowen and I’m like, ‘Wow,’ ” Goodwin said.
“We just start having a conversation and it’s flowing really easily– I really like Coach Bowen. We both come from similar backgrounds: he was a farm kid, I’m a farm kid. About 15-20 minutes into the conversation he just said ‘Hey, I want you to know you’re offered by Ohio State and I really want you here.’ That meant a lot to me.”
Goodwin said his initial reaction was to freak out at the realization that the reigning national champions had extended him an offer.
“And as soon as I got off the phone I went upstairs and started celebrating with my mom, I’ve got to be honest,” Goodwin said. “[My family’s] my No. 1 supporters, so I just went and celebrated with my mom.”
His offer pool has ballooned this winter with power programs around the country taking interest, and his visit schedule has followed suit.
There’s already a visit scheduled with Ohio State for late March, but it’s not just football that Goodwin’s looking forward to learning about while in Columbus.
“Ohio State has really good academics, which is a really big thing for me,” he said. “Football ends and you need to have a degree or something to fall back on. Whether it’s five years or 15 years in the NFL, it ends. It’s not forever.”
He has plenty of visits and offers to consider.
“What excites me the most about all this recruiting is being able to make my choice of where I want to go and the place where I’m going to be developed for the next level. That’s my main goal – I want to learn,” Goodwin said.
“I strive to get better every day, and that’s just what I want to do. I want to go someplace where I can be developed to my full potential so I can make it to the league someday.”
In terms of high school development, Goodwin spent the past three years in the pro-style offense of Pulaski Academy in Arkansas but has transferred to Bauxite High School, which features a run-heavy offense.
He’s shined in pass protection, but is excited to flash his ground skills on the front foot of a run-first, gap-creating offense. Having such a diverse experience in high school is something his prospective schools will keep an eye on.
