First visit to Maryland “surpassed” expectations for four-star tackle

Maryland had been tracking St. Cloud (FL) four-star tackle Connor Howes heading into the spring after sporadic contact, but after the two sides reconnected last month, the 6-foot-6, 300-pound lineman took a trip north for a visit that ended up exceeding expectations.

“The furthest north I had been before was North Carolina,” Howes told IBG. “Coach [James Thomas] texted me and said ‘excited to get you up here, man’ so that’s what made me want to set that visit up.” Without an offer in hand, Howes had an inkling that an offer was coming his way before the Terps officially jumped into the picture on Saturday.

“I was expecting it but not really because I hadn’t really been talking to the coaches, but I had a feeling they wanted me up there for a reason. Obviously, they wanted me to watch the practice, but as a Florida boy, I knew they didn’t want me to just watch practice so when they pulled the trigger, I was blessed.”

After a full day in College Park, Connor Howes said Saturday’s trip “surpassed” what he expected. “I was not expecting it to be that good. The way they ran practice, the coaches, the facilities. Everything about it was top tier.”

A big part of the visit impressing Howes was his interactions with offensive line coaches Brian Braswell and Damian Wroblewski before and after practice. “We had a good talk. I just enjoyed talking with them. I talked with the head coach after the scrimmage, but I was mainly talking to coach Merci [Falaise] the whole time. I sat in with the offensive line [meetings]. It was funny, when I’m sitting there with my mom, she doesn’t know what they’re saying but I understand everything they’re talking about. It’s really easy to catch on to how he coaches so I think that’s a plus.”

How Howes fits into the program and where he fits in the room are things he’ll look to learn more about with Maryland looking to become a bigger player in his recruitment this summer. The Terps will look to bring the towering Florida native in for a visit as they work to fit themselves into his schedule. Houston and NC State are among the schools that have offered so far, but two visits are set with one up in the air.

“I’m going to Houston then I have USF on [June] 14th and Arkansas on the 21st. I may switch USF. If I schedule something to Maryland, then I’ll switch it. I’ve been to USF so much that I don’t know if I need to take an official there.”

Before Howes takes a deeper dive into the final stage in his recruitment, the junior lineman will compete in the state championships for heavyweight weightlifting on Friday.

“I’ve been doing it all through high school. I got the chance to go to states last year and placed like eighth. This year I can place second. I can play for first, but it’s going to be a battle.”

Connor Howes is rated a four-star prospect and a 91 overall by On3, checking in as the 131st-best prospect in the country and 13th-best offensive tackle in the 2025 class.

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