Ideal 2024 California OT Michael Schneider being overlooked
Written by Ryan Wright
Twitter: @RyanWrightRNG
Southern California is loaded with fantastic high school football programs which dominate the fans’ conversations and the vast majority of scouting attention. Outside of the usual spotlight in the Trinity and Mission Leagues, and the alike, there are very talented players waiting to be discovered. At Harvard-Westlake, Michael Schneider is one of those talents in the 2024 class.
In Los Angeles’ Del Ray League, Schneider has been dominating the line of scrimmage for the Wolverines. Growing up playing basketball, Schneider moves his 6-foot, 8-inch, 330-pound, frame with quick feet and aggression at the point of contact.
Because of his abilities, the coaches at Harvard-Westlake have been and will continue to use him on both sides of the ball.
“This season I will be playing left tackle and on defense you will be seeing me at end, nose guard, and tackle,” Schneider stated.
Reporting a 5.7 40-yard dash time, getting up and down the field in a hurry is an every snap thing in Studio City.
“We have a new offensive coordinator, we will run a hurry up offense this season,” Schneider said. “The plan is to have a play every 15 seconds. We will run a no-huddle, fast-paced offense. I think we will be about 60 percent run and 40 percent pass this year; a little run heavy.”
Receiving extra offseason o-line work with Giant Skillz [sic], Schneider spoke about his abilities in the trenches, “Since I played basketball my whole life, my footwork and speed separates me. Kids my size don’t run five second 40s, a lot of them cannot move that well. My biggest strength is moving well for my size.”
California 2024 OT Michael Schneider.
Seeing is believing. Portland State took in a Wolverines’ practice three days ago giving Schneider his first D-I offer immediately.
“One of their coaches came to our school and talked to my coaches,” Schneider said. “He watched video of me, and an hour or two after practice I get a call. He said, “I like what I saw at practice. I showed our offensive line coach your film; I want to offer you a full ride to Portland State. Congrats, I will give you time to celebrate with your family”.”
Receiving an offer from the Vikings was motivating and moving for Schneider.
“It was really awesome,” Schneider shared. “That was my first D-I offer; it was touching. There was a lot of emotion. I was very happy. My whole family was really happy. It was really nice.”
Harvard-Westlake is well known for being a top academic high school; Schneider’s 1430 on the SAT and 30 on the ACT helps drive the point home. The academic background also speaks to the list of teams showing interest.
“I have a good amount of Ivys that are showing interest,” Schneider stated. “Columbia, Brown, Cornell, Yale, Princeton, U-Chicago, Northwestern, a lot of high academic schools have been showing interest. Colgate, Wingate, Georgetown, Amherst, Middlebury, Trinity, Hamilton; that’s all I can think of right now.”
Virtual and in-person visits have been taken this offseason.
“I have been to a lot of Junior Days, both virtual and in person,” Schneider shared. “The virtual ones are nice; they are not as expensive. I have been to Columbia, Brown, Penn, and I am going to U-Chicago on Saturday. I have been to Pomona Pitzer, Yale, Amherst, Middlebury, Princeton, Cornell, and Georgetown.”
The visit with the Quakers was in-person.
“It was good,” Schneider said. “I feel like I have been talking to their coaches for a while. I camped there last year; I think they like me. UPenn is a really great school.”
The Bears also got Schneider on their Providence campus.
“It was really cool,” Schneider stated. “I really liked it. Brown is another really good school. They are different from each other, and great in their own ways.”
Schneider previewed his Saturday visit with the Maroons.
“U-Chicago, I have received handwritten letters from them,” Schneider shared. “That is another high academic school. I know there are a lot of kids from Harvard-Westlake that go there. There are a lot of people there I know. The coaching staff has done a good job of building a relationship with me.”
For those college programs unfamiliar with Schneider, he is setting up his summer college camp circuit.
“I know I am going to a Stanford Big Man Camp and I am going to the UPenn Redlands camp,” Schneider said. “I don’t know the dates for the others, but I will be at a lot of the Ivy camps and at a Georgetown camp.”
*Michael Schneider’s Hudl link: https://www.hudl.com/profile/14657537/Michael-Schneider