2026 Rankings Update 5.0: Offensive Line

As we near the end of April, the 2025 high school football off-season is in full swing! With that being said, we have begun another round of rankings updates for the state of Kentucky, starting with the class of 2026. Now that these rankings have been updated, I have been breaking them down by position. After already covering the offensive skill players, here are our top offensive linemen in the class of 2026 in the state of Kentucky.    [player_tooltip player_id='402549' first='Jarvis' last='Strickland'] continued to establish himself as the top overall player in the state in his class with a strong junior year. Strickland lines up at left tackle where he is dominant in the run game. Jarvis plays with a ton of physicality, showing the ability to using his strong initial punch to knock opposing defenders off their feet with ease. He has also shown the ability to pull from the tackle spot and pick up blocks in the open field as a lead blocker. Strickland is also very reliable in pass protection, showing the footwork to mirror opposing pass rushers along with the ability to use his hands to defeat pass rush moves. Jarvis is committed to Kentucky where I can see him becoming a key piece of their offensive line unit once he gets there.     [player_tooltip player_id='401700' first='David' last='Pellman'] has stayed consistently high in our rankings since his freshman year. Pellman lines up at center where he is very impressive as a run blocker. David is a true mauler, running his feet through contact and finishing his blocks with a ton of physicality, resulting in frequent pancake blocks. He has also shown the ability to get to the second level with a sense of urgency then pick up blocks in the open field. In pass protection, Pellman does a great job of getting the snap off quickly then picking up stunts/blitzes with ease and continuing to find work. David currently holds several Power 4 offers and I expect more to come his way going into his senior year.     [player_tooltip player_id='283977' first='Max' last='Merz'] is another offensive lineman who has been high on our radar for a while now. Merz lines up mainly at right guard but has shown the versatility to play on the left side as well. He is an impressive run blocker, showing the ability to explode out of his stance then drive his feet through contact to create movement off the line of scrimmage with ease. Merz finishes his blocks through the whistle, resulting in a ton of pancake blocks on film. He has also proven to be reliable in pass protection, showing the ability to keep a strong base while absorbing contact, not allowing much penetration into the pocket. Max is committed to Louisville where is can see him developing into a very productive offensive lineman for them at the next level.     [player_tooltip player_id='1584288' first='Bryten' last='Close'] jumped onto our radar this past season with a very strong junior year. Close lines up at right tackle where he is very reliable as a run blocker. He is used very frequently as a puller from the tackle spot where he does a great job of using his speed to get around the edge then follows it up with the strength to destroy any defender in his path in the open field. Close is also very impressive as an in-line blocker, showing the ability to run his feet through contact to drive his man several yards down the field with ease. He is also reliable in pass protection, showing the smooth footwork to mirror opposing pass rushers with ease. Close currently holds several Division I offers and I expect more to come his way heading into his final season.     To wrap up our top five offensive linemen in the class of 2026 in the state of Kentucky, I have [player_tooltip player_id='971531' first='Ben' last='Myers']. Myers lines up primarily at right tackle but has shown the versatility to play on the left side when needed. He is a dominant run blocker, showing the ability to explode out his stance and drive his man down the field with ease. Myers finishes his blocks with a ton of physicality, resulting in frequent pancake blocks. He has also proven to be reliable in pass protection, showing the ability to mirror opposing pass rushers off the edge and fight with his hands to defeat pass rush moves with ease. Myers currently holds multiple Division I offers and I expect that list to continue to grow as he is a very talented prospect.