Every day from now until the start of the season, Land-Grant Holy Land is highlighting Ohio State football players that you should be watching this season. Check out all of our ”Player to Watch” articles to get ready for the season opener against Texas.
As Jeremiah Smith, Carnell Tate, and Brandon Inniss get a lot of the national hype in the passing game, there is another pass-catcher that could have as much of an impact on the offense this season.
Max Klare, the top transfer tight end from Purdue,
joins the Buckeyes after a stellar junior season.
In 19 games for Purdue, including 12 starts, Klare caught 73 passes for 881 yards and four touchdowns. During his breakout junior season, Klare started in all 12 games, recording 51 catches for 685 yards and four touchdowns.
Now, he heads to Columbus to play with some of the best talent in college football, and one of the young stars at quarterback, Julian Sayin. He will join senior Will Kacmarek, graduate Bennett Christian, junior Jelani Thurman and sophomore Max LeBlanc in a crowded and talented Buckeye tight end room.
When Klare committed to Ohio State back in December, he told ESPN that a big part of the reason he wanted to take his talents to Columbus was head coach Ryan Day.
“Really, when it came down to making the decision, Coach Day’s ability to develop players and send them off to the NFL, the developmental process for me was huge,” Klare told ESPN.
He added that the program’s recent success played a role in his decision.
“Just an opportunity to win a national championship and develop into a better player and play against the best competition, day in and day out. And being around a lot of likeminded individuals that are going to push me to be my best.”
According to ESPN, he was the No. 20 overall player in this transfer portal class. He chose Ohio State over strong interest from Texas, Michigan, Louisville and Texas A&M.
Klare was name to the Preseason All-American team by Pick Six Previews, he was a second Team Preseason All-American for Phil Steele, fourth Team Preseason All-American for Athlon, and made the Mackey Award watch list. He was also recently named as a second team preseason All-American by the Associated Press.
Klare raved about playing everyday against Caleb Downs in practice.
“Playing against (Downs) every day and then going out and playing on Saturday makes it a lot easier in terms of the preparation part. Being able to go against the best every day is huge for your development.”
Klare also loved the plan laid out to him by the staff when he visited Columbus and over the phone.
“There was a great connection with Coach [Bailey],” he said. “We see a lot of things the same way. He’s a hungry coach who is going to push me to be my best and get everything out of me.”
Klare could benefit heavily with a young quarterback like Sayin and a crowded reciever room with a lot of NFL talent. He will provide a valuable safety net for Sayin and will be a huge red zone target.
