O’Cyrus Torrence raising eyebrows throughout Senior Bowl week
Florida Offensive Lineman O'Cyrus Torrence prepares to line up before a play during Senior Bowl practice Wednesday February 1, 2023 at Whitney Hancock Stadium. (Lynn Harrington/stayaliveinpower5)
MOBILE, Ala. — Florida’s offensive lineman has been turning heads all week in practice leading up to Saturday’s Senior Bowl.
There’s no denying O’Cyrus Torrence is a flat-out, beast in the trenches, and one of the most feared guards to come out of the SEC this year. After all, he’s coming off a first-team, AP All-American campaign in 2022. Not to mention it was his first and only season playing in the almighty league.
The former three-star prospect started 35 games over a three-season span at Louisiana prior to following Coach Billy Napier to Florida. He thought the Sun Belt was a competitive Group of Five conference. However, he had no idea what the SEC had in terms of the fans, speed and physicality. Regardless, Torrence was able to swiftly adjust from the Ragin Cajuns’ to the Gators, which made it a smooth transition.
“Being there, even though it was the same coaching staff, the culture was different than what I was used to because of the fans,” Torrence said. “It’s just a different culture they have with each game, and how big it was, even the rivalries, it was a different feel out there.”
The Louisiana native believes the SEC has prepared him for the next level. Every week there was a quality opponent Florida faced. The league is dubbed the ‘Baby NFL’ for a reason. The SEC is also filled with four and five-star talent. Playing against that level of competition brought out the best in Torrence.
“I feel like it prepared me a lot, no knock on the Sun Belt, but it’s a different league compared to the SEC,” he said. “It helped me improve my game overall to be quick, fast, strong and finding a balance between all of those things.”
The six-foot-four, 337-pounder is massive, with the second-largest hands of all the offensive linemen at the Senior Bowl. Torrence is also tied for the third-longest wingspan. He has been applying what he learned in the SEC all week in practice too. Torrence can’t get enough of matching wits with South Carolina’s defensive lineman Zach Pickens during the process. He’s been getting rave reviews all week with his style of play. And there’s nothing like giving the NFL scouts a taste of what an athlete can bring to the table.
“I rely on my power, I feel like I’m a pretty strong guy for an offensive guard,” the 23-year old said. “Just being able to move my feet, and bend with the defense, and keep my feet in a base stance.”
Once Torrence is planted, he becomes a brick wall to defensive linemen. He’s all about mauling blitzers and whoever wants to come between the gaps on the interior. Torrence understands hand placement is going to be vital in the NFL, as well as technique. In the pros defensive linemen are just as strong as him, so he’ll have to rely on more than just his brute strength.
Torrence is one of the biggest names participating in the event, so all eyes will be on him Saturday afternoon. And he plans on taking advantage of the spotlight. Most importantly, the big fella wants to prove to everyone on the field that he’s as good as advertised.
