Meet Bryce Foster, a five-star OL with the nickname to prove it
KATY, Texas — Bryce Foster doesn’t get caught up in the hype.
He’s a laid-back dude, a 300-pound mauler that when he’s not rocking shoulder pads and helmet likes to lift weights and bring impressive report cards home to Mom. In terms of being a student-athlete, Foster perfectly fits the bill with him performance both on and away from the field, and personality-wise, could fit the bill of a gentle giant with the curly hair and tenacity of Dustin Henderson from “Stranger Things.”
As his junior season creeps up, Foster is a new five-star on Rivals, a ranking he made a convincing case for over the spring at RCS Houston and an even better follow-up performance on the big stage in Atlanta at the Five-Star Challenge. Foster carved up 26 reps of 225 pounds in the Strongest Man Challenge in Mercedes-Benz Stadium in June, looking the part of a college lineman prepping for the NFL Combine more so than a sophomore two months away from lining across from Atascocita defensive tackles Week 1.
That was more than enough ammo for Foster to vault up the Rivals rankings and emerge as the nation’s top offensive guard in the Class of 2021. He also stands as the No. 4-ranked prospect out of Texas in the class and the No. 11 overall player in the country.
Color Foster as truly shaken.
“Whenever I was in class and I got the Twitter notification, I was pretty excited. I was kind of freaking out,” Foster admitted. “I was texting my whole family. I did pretty well at the Five-Star (Challenge) and the camp, and I expected to move up a little bit, but I was not expecting to get that big of a jump.”
Foster’s first text was to his brother, Braden Meador, a former Texas A&M offensive lineman and a two-star recruit (three-star Composite) in the Class of 2012. Foster already held bragging rights from when he debuted as a four-star in the initial Rivals100 for 2021, so the fifth star was simply icing on the cake.
The two brothers celebrated the occasion as only a former and current offensive lineman would.
“My brother was the first to text,” Foster recalled. “He was a three-star recruit in 2012 and he was really excited I was a four-star. So when he got the news I was a five-star, he texted and came over and that night, we had a blast. We went out to a buffet and we got a lot of food.”
Fitting … to say the least.
Meador is more than just Foster’s biggest fan. He’s the author of arguably the best nickname in the country.
Foster’s weight lifting prowess was put on a national pedestal over the summer in Atlanta when he beat out a bevy of upperclassmen in the Rivals Five-Star Challenge’s Strongest Man Competition. He has the belt to prove it.
Meador, who fancies himself as quite the fan of HBO series “Game of Thrones,” anointed his little — yes, little — brother as “The Mountain,” a character famous for his brute strength and merciless rampages throughout the show. The character is played by Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson, who famously is the first person to ever capture the Triple Crown of weight lifting — taking home the hardware in the Arnold Strongman Classic, Europe's Strongest Man and World's Strongest Man — all in the same calendar year.
Foster has stumbled upon videos of Björnsson online — not for his portrayal of Ser Gregor Clegane wreaking havoc on Westeros — but for his prowess inside the weight room.
“My brother is a big Game of Thrones fan. He kind of wanted me to have that nickname. I don’t know the character because I haven’t seen the show, butI love weight lifting. It’s a heavy part of football and you have to learn to love work out to play football, otherwise college isn’t gonna be very fun,” Foster explained.
“It was funny at first and I wasn’t taking it that seriously, but when I caught onto it I changed my Twitter name and Twitter profile pic. I guess that’s just how it is now. It’s exciting because I watch weight lifting videos and Björnsson is a really strong big guy and I see myself in him as well.”
When Foster takes the field on Friday night in a battle of Houston-area football powers, he’ll do so with the weight of a five-star ranking and a famous nickname to uphold.
As you’d expect, the laid-back jumbo-sized Dustin-esque lineman isn’t stressing it.
Foster, a priority target up front for schools like Oregon, Oklahoma, Texas, Texas A&M, Stanford and LSU, among others, understands the intangibles of being a nationally ranked prospect and the expectations that come along with it. He knows that he inevitably commands the attention of opposing teams and coaches — and that’s perfectly fine.
He’s psyched for the opportunity.
“It’s a little of both,” Foster began, referencing the pressure and expectations. “Of course I embrace the title. It puts a little bit of pressure on defensive linemen, so I’ll be able to use it against them. It puts a little bit of pressure on myself to live up to the expectations at practice and every game I go to … I think some people are gonna wanna say, ‘I beat The Mountain,’ and I’m excited about it. I like having a target on my back because it means I’m gonna bring out the best of them, so that’ll bring out the best in me, too.”
Opposing defensive tackles better prepare right away.