If/when Olaivavega Ioane makes it to the NFL, he will spend a fortune just buying tickets for his family to see him play. Ioane is one of nine siblings. He has five brothers and three sisters.
The native of Graham, Washington is one of the top interior offensive line prospects in this year's draft. Ioane's success in football began during his high school days. As a senior, Ioane anchored the line for a team that went 15-0 and won a state championship. Ioane, who made varsity as a freshman and became a starter as a sophomore, earned All American honors in his final high school season.
He was ranked the ninth best player in the state of Washington and initially committed to the University of Washington before changing his mind and attending Penn State University.
Ioane saw action in just four games as a freshman in 2022 and was redshirted. He played in 13 games and started five in 2023 and was named All Big 10 Honorable Mention. In 2024, he became the every game starter at left guard and earned All Big 10 Second Team recognition.
Ioane capped off his Nittany Lions career last season with All Big 10 First Team and All American honors. He was also Academic All Big 10 three times during his time in State College.
Ioane stared 32 games in his collegiate career and didn't give up a sack over his last 28 starts. Last season Pro Football Focus gave him a 99.3% efficiency rating. In 613 snaps, the 6'4", 323 pounder had just one penalty and gave up only four quarterback hurries.
Joe Marino provides draft analysis for WGR. His website is thejoemarino.com and you can subscribe to his Locked On Bills Podcast. Here are Joe's thoughts on Ioane:
Positives:
He's awesome. When you watch his tape, it looks like I'm watching teach tape a lot of times. He's controlled, he's powerful, terrific balance and core strength. I love his ability to sit on his hips and really generate force from the ground. He stays leveraged. He stays square. He's powerful. I love his punch. He's got a really compact and powerful punch with excellent grip strength to sustain blocks. He is a controlled technician, but also very powerful. Kind of the total package.
Negatives:
His athletic profile is probably good and not great. I think that leads to some lapses when he's tasked with sliding his feet quickly, laterally, to stay in front of more twitchy rushers. I think he's a very textbook player. So sometimes when his technique fails him and he's stressed in new ways, I think recovering and going off script can be a challenge. But it's very minor. This is a high quality prospect.
The NFL draft will be held April 23-25 in Pittsburgh.
Interior offensive line is one area the Bills could address in the draft. Here is a look at one of the top prospects.
Interior offensive line is one area the Bills could address in the draft. Here is a look at one of the top prospects.
