Every year, there are players who take advantage of the transfer portal and emerge upon entering a better situation. Florida G O’Cyrus Torrence might have the upside to follow that path in the 2023 NFL Draft, as his scouting report details. Especially in an unsettled interior offensive line group, Torrence could use his new platform at Florida to reach unanticipated heights.
O’Cyrus Torrence NFL draft profile
You don’t often see players from conferences like the MAC and the Sun Belt leap all the way to the SEC — the top of the college football pantheon. It often takes a dominant lower-conference prospect to earn the interest of the nation’s best. O’Cyrus Torrence also had his connection with new Florida head coach Billy Napier working in his favor. But he doesn’t make the leap to Florida without his performance over the past three years.
Torrence has always been a bigger guy. As a recruit in 2019, he was listed at 6’5″ and over a whopping 360 pounds. He was only a three-star recruit, but already, schools had taken notice of his talent. Torrence had an offer to play at Georgia, and plenty of Group of Five schools also battled for his allegiance. But being from Greensburg, Louisiana, Torrence decided to stay in-state and play for the Ragin’ Cajuns.
From there, it was only up for Torrence. He started almost immediately as a true freshman and logged 13 starts in 2019. He then started all 11 games in 2020 and 12 in 2021 at right guard. Owning 36 starts in three seasons, Torrence topped it off with first-team All-Sun Belt honors in 2021 — a fitting accomplishment for a dominant interior blocker.
- Position: Guard
- School: Florida
- Current Year: Senior
- Height/Weight: 6’5″, 335 pounds
O’Cyrus Torrence scouting report
If any player was worthy of a jump to the SEC, it was Torrence. And a strong year at Florida could truly vault him into the early-round range of the NFL Draft. But looking at his traits, is he worthy of that kind of capital? Let’s find out.
Torrence’s positives
It’s hard to miss Torrence on tape. He has elite size for an offensive guard, sporting a massive, powerful frame with great length. Unsurprisingly, size, power, and strength are all central parts of Torrence’s game. With his length and strength, he has elite power capacity. He can recover control after initial losses and redirect momentum. His core strength allows him to absorb power and keep rushers inside his frame, and with his grip strength, he can effectively latch and neutralize the opposition.
More impressive than Torrence’s raw power is how he channels and maximizes it. Torrence opens his hips through extensions to generate massive amounts of upper-body torque. He consistently gets full rotation when exerting power and can drive defenders into the dirt with devastating force. He’s a mauler who regularly imposes his will on defenders.
Beyond his power element, Torrence has above-average functional athleticism. He has good straight-line explosiveness off the snap and can get upfield fairly quickly, carrying momentum into blocks. With his power capacity and initial burst, Torrence can easily generate displacement in the run game. And with his solid knee bend, he’s shown he can sink and drive into blocks with proper leverage.
When his feet are in rhythm, Torrence is an above-average lateral athlete. He also brings enough hip flexibility to adjust his blocking angle mid rep. He can quickly rotate his hips to wall off defenders, as well as stack hip turns with good urgency. In a phone booth, Torrence is an amped-up blocker. And he’s shown that he can climb the second level and stack blocks on the move.
Run blocking is an area of strength for Torrence, but the Florida G also shows promise in pass protection. There, he keeps a wide base and can align his hips and quickly reset his base to match interior rushers. He leverages his feet nicely, with his back foot consistently placed to absorb rushes. He also flashes the ability to transfer his weight smoothly.
Going further, Torrence flashes independent hand usage. He can extend violently and swat at opposing moves in rapid succession. The Florida G uses his length and violent extensions to prevent rushers from getting inside his frame. He can use independent one-arm extensions and re-load quickly, and more often than not, he has a great sense of timing with those extensions. Torrence can snatch, latch, and roll into his base to stymie rushes.
Expanding on Torrence’s pass protection, the Florida G is able to keep his eyes up and active, and he has an attacker’s mentality as a help blocker. He’s also shown he can shade outside to offensive tackle if injuries require movement.
Torrence’s areas for improvement
Being as big as he is, Torrence sometimes plays too tall. This can impede his ability to maintain balance and sustain blocks on the move. He also shows minor stiffness when changing directions, as well as in recovery. This may stem from his heavy, high-cut frame.
Torrence is an above-average athlete, but he may not be quantifiably elite. He doesn’t quite have the lateral explosiveness to consistently get outside the 3-tech on moving blocks. And his linear explosiveness, while good, is not elite. More explosive defenders can win at the contact point and gain leverage. Torrence also lacks elite range as a pulling guard.
Going further, Torrence’s execution can still improve in several phases. His footwork can be too slow and open off the snap, opening himself to angle manipulation. He sometimes pivots around when attempting to match when he should keep his base uniform. More simply put, his footwork can be staggered at times. Additionally, Torrence can be more consistent with his upper-lower body synergy, as he sometimes extends before his base is set, lurching as a result.
Torrence’s hands also have room for refinement. The Florida G sometimes fails to re-establish his anchor after engaging in hand-fighting, and his hands don’t always strike cleanly on initial punches.
While Torrence has solid awareness, he sometimes loses track of his assignments in congestion as a moving blocker. Furthermore, he can be late to react to stunts and interior blitzers on occasion.
Current draft projection for Florida G O’Cyrus Torrence
On the surface, Torrence appears to have the required physical foundation to be an eventual starter at the NFL level. On the interior, his brand of physicality fits perfectly. And with his size and power, he can be a mismatch in a phone booth. Purely physically, there aren’t many defensive linemen who can go toe-to-toe with Torrence.
Moreover, Torrence isn’t just a power guard. While he may not be an elite athlete, he has good explosiveness off the line, and he can cover ground well for his size. He’s also mobile enough to move through the second level and stack blocks. And laterally, he shows bright flashes. The Florida G can be stiff at times, but there’s reason to believe it’s more of a footwork issue than an athleticism issue.
In close quarters, Torrence is an amped-up mover with excellent raw power and torque, combined with active hand usage, hip flexibility, and a mauler mentality. With his non-elite range as a pulling guard and his lateral inconsistencies, Torrence may fit best in power and gap schemes early on. But there’s reason to believe he can hold his own in zone systems.
Overall, Torrence has the tools to potentially command Day 2 capital. How he fares against SEC competition in 2022 will be the true test of his future. Reviews on Torrence were very positive from Florida in the offseason. If he can carry that optimism through the season and build on his physical foundation, he could keep his starting role at the next level.