PROVO — June is typically the biggest recruiting month for the BYU football program, with this year proving to be no exception. With team camps ongoing through the end of the month, Cougar coaches are actively evaluating and working to lure the best talent to their program, hoping to land key commitments to strengthen the 2020 signing class and beyond.
The good news for BYU coach Kalani Sitake and his staff is they're very much in play to land a big one who is looking to commit soon.
Andrew Gentry is rated one of the top offensive line recruits in the country and has BYU listed solidly in his top five. He is hoping to decide where he will play by the time July rolls around. The 6-foot-8, 310-pound lineman is the younger brother of current Cougar offensive lineman JT Gentry and is rated as a four-star prospect by the 24/7 Sports Network.
Considering his current ranking of No. 51 nationally on 24/7's list of national recruits, along with being considered as the No. 6 offensive line prospect nationally by the same service, landing the Columbine, Colorado, prospect would play big.
First off, landing a top recruit like Andrew Gentry would look good for the program, while also providing a promising prospect for offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes, who emphasizes top line play. Secondly, he's a stereotypical BYU kid with plans to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Lastly, he appears to check off all the academic and social boxes necessary to play at BYU.
BYU was the first to offer Gentry, with a deluge of other offers coming shortly thereafter. As it stands, the prized lineman could play just about anywhere in the country, although he appears to have honed in on either BYU or Michigan.
So what will play most heavily in Andrew Gentry's mind in making his decision? In an interview done on ESPN960, he laid out some points that are most important.
"The level of football. Who you're playing against and who you're getting coached by. Are you going to be able to progress to the next level," Gentry said. "And then academics. Is it going to be a place where if football doesn't work out, can you get a great eduction?"
BYU's unique niche is its affiliation with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which could play big in Gentry's mind.
"A lot of these schools haven't coached missionaries before and so it's difficult for them knowing I'll be gone for two years," he said.
Other top recruits BYU is pursuing include recently offered quarterback Sol-Jay Maiava (6-0, 190) from the Washington, D.C., area; Nate Ritchie, a 6-3 linebacker/defensive back prospect from Lone Peak who is reported to be deciding between BYU and several other programs, including Stanford, UCLA, Utah and Arizona State; and linebacker Tate Romney, the younger brother of current Cougar wideout Gunner Romney.