Ohio State Offensive Lineman Ben Christman Transferring to Kentucky
The quest to cure the worries pertaining to the Big Blue Wall took a step forward on Sunday, as Kentucky landed another offensive line transfer.
After entering the portal following two seasons in Columbus, former Ohio State OL Ben Christman has announced he is transferring to Kentucky:
Coming out of Revere High School in Richfield, Ohio — near Akron — Christman was a 4-star recruit and was the No. 124 overall player in the 2021 class, per the 247Sports Composite.
The 6-foot-6, 300-pounder redshirted in 2021 before playing less than 10 snaps on offense as a redshirt freshman. With the path to playing time not looking great at OSU, he hit the portal and found a program in Kentucky that's craving for OL depth.
The Wildcats have added Marques Cox (Northern Illinois) and Courtland Ford (USC) to the Big Blue Wall, both of whom are expected to be starting tackles in 2023. However, both David Wohlabaugh Jr and Deondre Buford have both since entered the portal, leaving — at the time — a slim OL room at head coach Mark Stoops and OL coach Zach Yenser's disposal.
Christman isn't expected to come in and make a humongous impact for the Wildcats, but whatever impact he does make will be immediate, as his presence can bring some relief to a suddenly thin area. Injuries happen in an instant in the trenches, so bodies will be needed.
247Sports' Allen Trieu projected Christman as a potential NFL draft pick when scouting him all the way back in 2018:
"Tall with good arm length. Already quite filled out and has clearly been in the weight room. Good athlete who also plays basketball. Very strong. Has no issue getting defenders to the ground and driving them backwards. Plays with a mean streak. Has good balance and keeps his feet when drive blocking. Not as refined in pass blocking technique as he is in the run game at the moment. Must improve lateral quickness and overall explosiveness. Could play right tackle or guard in college. Will be a mauler who has a chance to play on Sundays."
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