DFW’s top 10 high school offensive linemen recruits

Being an offensive lineman is often a thankless job.

Take it from this Star-Telegram writer. The o-line gets no love and seldom the attention of the “skilled” position players, yet it’s arguably the most important position group on any football team.

Some of the top high school prospects in the country are lined up front, many of them deciding to sign during the inaugural Early Signing Period, which ran from Dec. 20-22. Those that didn’t will be able to sign their National Letter of Intent on Feb. 7 during National Signing Day.

For the next week, the Star-Telegram will break down the top 10 DFW recruits at each position. We started with the top quarterbacks on Tuesday, running backs on Wednesday and wide receivers on Thursday.

Here is a look at the top offensive linemen

1. Darrell Simpson, 6-7, 335, Justin Northwest: Signed with Oklahoma. Playing in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl.

2. Rafiti Ghirmai, 6-4, 290, Frisco Wakeland: Signed with Texas. Held 34 scholarship offers, 26 from a Power Five school.

3. Trey Stratford, 6-4, 270, Allen: Signed with Stanford. Also considered TCU, Baylor UCLA and Nebraska.

4. John Lanz, 6-2, 295, Denton Guyer: Signed with TCU. Also considered Baylor, Arizona State, Texas Tech and Purdue.

5. DeMarcus Marshall, 6-3, 330, Grand Prairie: Signed with Texas Tech. Also considered Missouri, Kansas State and Illinois.

6. Esteban Avila, 6-4, 310, South Grand Prairie: Signed with TCU. Also considered Utah, North Texas and Kansas State.

7. Jack York, 6-5, 270, Dallas First Baptist Academy: Signed with Minnesota. Held 24 scholarship offers.

8. Thomas Shelmire, 6-3, 285, Dallas Highland Park: Signed with Boston College. Also considered Navy, SMU and North Texas.

9. Mike Ruth, 6-7, 300, Coppell: Signed with Missouri. Also considered Miami, Texas Tech, Kansas State and Vanderbilt.

10. Braeden Daniels, 6-4, 260, Hebron: Signed with Utah. Also considered Illinois, Houston, North Texas and San Diego State.

This story was originally published January 5, 2018 at 3:23 PM with the headline "DFW’s top 10 high school offensive linemen recruits."