About Tristan

Tristan Wirfs grew up in Mount Vernon, Iowa and attended Mt. Vernon High School where he played football, wrestled, and completed in track and field. Not only did he compete, but he excelled in all his sports as well. He is a 3x State Champ in discus, a state champion wrestler, and a U.S. Army All AMerican football player. 247Sports would rate him as a 4-star prospect, and rank him as the 3rd best player in the state of Iowa. On Dec. 7th, 2015 of his junior year of high school, WIrfs would commit to the University of Iowa and stay committed throughout the rest of his career.

Wirfs wouldn’t take long to find his way into the starting line up for the Hawkeyes, and was starting at right tackle within five games into the season. He would become the first true freshman to start for Iowa in the “Kirk Ferentz” era who has been coaching there since 1999. The Hawkeyes would go 7-5 his freshman season, which would earn a bid to 2017 Pinstripe Bowl vs Boston College.

2018 would be better for Iowa as they would go 9-4 and make it to the Outback Bowl vs Mississippi State, but start off a little rocky for Wirfs. He was suspended for the season opener against Northern Illinois due to an OWI arrest earlier in July. This would flip the switch in Tristan, and gained his teammates trust back after showing an increased work ethic. The Hawkeyes would rush for nearly 150 yards and a touchdown a game behind Wirfs and Co.

That work ethic would pay off in the form of many things, but the first was breaking Brandon Sheriff’s hang clean record at Iowa with 450 Lbs during the off season. Wirfs would be listed on the Preseason watch list for the Outland trophy, and then later be selected First Team All Big-Ten and the Big-Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year. He would be a part of an offensive line that not only has another NFL caliber tackle on the opposite side of him, but also was able to rush for over 136 yards a game. The Hawkeyes would go 9-3, tying for 2nd in the Big-Ten West and earning a bid to the Holiday Bowl vs USC. Wirfs would forgo his final year at Iowa to enter the 2020 NFL Draft on January 14th, 2020.

Per his IG, Iowa OT Tristan Wirfs officially enters his name into the 2020 #NFLDraft https://t.co/xs8AFxmONu pic.twitter.com/LQkqCdESRu
— Jordan Reid (@Jordan_Reid) January 14, 2020

Strengths and Weaknesses

Strengths

Tristan Wirfs is going to kill the combine, and that is one of the reasons why I love him so much as a tackle prospect. He has very nice feet that help him control his defenders in pass blocking. His power and wrestling background make him a monster in the run game, and will very rarely lose the battle of leverage.

He is very young, which means he has a lot more growing room than the other tackles in this class. His arm length isn’t the best, but with that being said, Wirfs has amazing potential if moved inside as well. His size and athleticism gives him a very solid floor as a blocker.

Weaknesses

Even though he is a very good tackle prospect, Wirfs doesn’t project to be able to play both left and right tackle. He can move inside, but doesn’t have the prototypical length you would want from a left tackle.

NFL Draft Projection/NFL Player Comp

NFL Draft Projection

Many scouts have pushed Wills Jr. as OT2 and even made the case for OT1, but I believe Wirfs is the true OT2 in this class. He might be my favorite run blocker in this class, and has enough athleticism to control his defenders in pass protection too. With teams like the Panthers, the Jags, and the Jets scattered throughout the Top 10, I find it hard to see Wirfs slip past the Browns at 12th.

The Cardinals are in big need to protect Kyler Murray and I think Wirfs is the perfect fit for them. This team is going to want to air it out, and drafting this Iowa product is going to boost their passing attack with ease.

NFL Player Comp

A long time ago, Duane Brown was attending high school in Richmond Virginia, being a multisport athlete just like Tristan Wirfs. He came into college a 3-star tight end, but was transformed into a super athletic offensive tackle at Virginia Tech. Even though Brown plays left tackle, can could flip over and play right if needed.