Rowan Byrne maintains a high level of interest in Rutgers football, boosted by the fact that one of his former teammates is now in the program.
A class of 2025 recruit, Byrne is a 6-foot-6, 285-pound offensive lineman at Iona Prep (New Rochelle, N.Y.). He was part of an offensive line that protected Ajani Sheppard, who committed to Rutgers in November.
In his class, he is ranked the No. 23 offensive tackle in the nation according to Rivals.
Rutgers offered Byrne last summer during a camp. Sheppard, who enrolled at Rutgers in January, has been talking with Byrne about his experience in the Big Ten.
“Ajani told me that the coaching staff really does treat you like family when you get there, as long as you work hard,” Byrne told Rutgers Wire.
“So the coaches treat you with respect and like family as long as you work hard, which is definitely a fair trade to me. I want to go to a program where hard work is the expectation, the standard.”
Recruiting remains a work in process for Byrne, who just announced a visit to Minnesota this week. He was recently offered by the Golden Gophers.
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He holds offers including from Boston College, UConn, Minnesota, Pittsburgh, Rutgers and Syracuse.
As for Rutgers, they remain the closest program to Byrne and he plans to visit in the spring.
“I’m definitely interested in the program, and yeah it’s practically down the road from me about 45 minutes from my house depending on the George Washington Bridge traffic of course,” Byrne said.
“I’m really not even close to knowing where I want to go – I do like Rutgers a lot right now, and it definitely is somewhere I’m interested in playing at, and it’s a part of the Big Ten so that’s a big plus.”