2023 HSSN football position-by-position breakdown: Scouting the offensive line

By: Chris Harlan
Saturday, August 19, 2023 | 2:41 AM

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TribLive HSSN will break down the top players at one position per day until Week Zero. Here’s a look at the top offensive linemen for the 2023 season.

1. Ryan Cory

Pine-Richland

Senior, 6-4, 290

Pine-Richland had one of the state’s best running attacks last season, and the blocks Cory made as the team’s right guard played a big part. The Rams offense scored 44 of their 52 touchdowns by running the football, a strategy that won them WPIAL and PIAA Class 5A titles. The Wisconsin recruit earned first-team all-state honors for offensive line. Rivals.com ranks him as the 25th-best guard nationally in the 2024 class. He committed to the Badgers over offers from Pitt, Penn State, West Virginia, Stanford, Oregon and Miami (Fla.), among others.

Watch Ryan Cory highlights

2. Zach Tomosovich

Penn-Trafford

Senior, 6-5, 305

The Army recruit will be a three-year starter at right tackle for the Warriors, who won WPIAL and PIAA Class 5A titles his sophomore year. The team has had a number of big linemen in recent years, and Tomosovich might be the biggest. He earned first-team all-conference honors a year ago when Penn-Trafford averaged 194 yards rushing and 142 passing per game. He committed to West Point in June, choosing the Black Knights over offers from Akron, Bowling Green, Eastern Michigan, Kent State, Miami (Ohio), Temple, Toledo and UMass, among others.

Watch Zach Tomosovich highlights

3. Rico Steele

West Mifflin

Senior, 6-4, 290

Steele grew up around game as a coach’s son, and puts that football knowledge to use on Friday nights. He earned first-team all-conference honors a year ago, helping West Mifflin reach the Class 4A playoffs. An aggressive blocker, he’ll be counted on heavily this fall as the Titans try to become WPIAL contenders. He has around a dozen college offers, including FBS schools Akron, Bowling Green, Eastern Michigan, James Madison, Kent State, Miami (Ohio), Toledo and UMass.

Watch Rico Steele highlights

4. Kelsey Hundley

Penn Hills

Senior, 6-4, 265

Hundley missed some time last season to injury, but the left tackle has come back fully healthy for his senior year. He impressed in workouts this summer, and earned eight of his 10 college offers since May. He now lists offers from Bryant, Bucknell, Colgate, Duquesne, Fordham, Georgetown, Maine, New Hampshire, Richmond and Sacred Heart. Hundley anchors a line that will be blocking for an all-conference quarterback and an all-conference running back.

Watch Kelsey Hundley highlights

5. Jack Yatchenko

North Allegheny

Junior, 6-3, 290

While the tackles and guards get much of the fanfare, don’t overlook the guys in the middle. Yatchenko centered a North Allegheny line that won a WPIAL title last season and earned first-team all-conference honors as a sophomore in Class 6A. He’s very strong (can bench more than 400 pounds/squat lift 475), and proved his strength again in the spring by placing fourth in shot put at the WPIAL track and field championships.

Watch Jack Yatchenko highlights

One to watch

Braeden Helmkamp

Trinity

Senior, 6-5, 270

Helmkamp has the measurements college recruiters are looking for. He drew around a dozen Division I offers before committing to Army earlier this month. The Hillers are hoping to see him use that size to cause mismatches for opponents on both sides of the ball. He chose the Black Knights from a list that included many FCS teams from the Ivy and Patriot leagues.

Watch Braeden Helmkamp highlights

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Position breakdowns

QB | RB | WR | OL | TE | DL | LB | CB | S | K

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Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.

Tags: North Allegheny, Penn Hills, Penn-Trafford, Pine-Richland, Steel Valley, Trinity