Cardinal Ritter OL jumps on radar of regional programs
ST. LOUIS — From the back of the Cardinal Ritter chapel, Kevin Gilyard Jr. drew the eyes of classmates and parents as he thanked the seniors on National Signing Day.
Gilyard, a Missouri native, moved to North Carolina at 9 years old. He grew up in South Charlotte, but by the time high school rolled around, Gilyard lost his home to an accidental fire. He moved to Concord, and the 6-foot-5, 328-pound offensive tackle met his best friends there.
But by the time his sophomore year ended, Gilyard and his family moved back to Missouri. He showed up to his first Cardinal Ritter football practice June 29, one day after settling back in St. Louis. While earlier this month he reminisced on a memorable first semester, Gilyard admitted it wasn’t smooth sailing right away.
“When I first got here, I was nervous,” the Class of 2027 lineman said. “I didn’t know who was who, what was, what would I be getting into, but coming to Cardinal Ritter was probably my best choice.”
Even with the tenured guys on the team making him feel at home right away, Gilyard found himself butting heads with Jocques Felix. A Class of 2026 Missouri signee, Felix had one of the more fun-natured spirits on the team, but Gilyard didn’t see that right away.
“Not knowing who Joc was, there was some competition,” Gilyard said. “My first day here, Joc and I actually got into it a little bit, just running our mouths, because I didn’t know who he was. … It’s a high level of competition here.”
Gilyard visits Missouri for home finale
Gilyard, who hasn’t reported any collegiate offers, got his first opportunity to visit Missouri this past November. Former director of player personnel Ryan Trichel invited Gilyard for the Mississippi State to meet head coach Eli Drinkwitz and offensive line coach Brandon Jones. Drinkwitz also visited Cardinal Ritter in January amid the NCAA Contact Period.
“Coach Jones, oh, man, he’s just funny,” Gilyard said. “They’re just a good coaching staff, because they know when to be serious and they know when to turn it down a notch and have fun.”
With the expanded scholarship limit, Missouri had an opportunity to reevaluate four in-state recruits for offers in the 2026 class. Depending on Gilyard’s spring development and senior season, the Tigers could take a similar route with the offensive tackle, who favors any opportunity to be close to home, including Kansas.
“My focus for spring ball is to focus on the team first,” Gilyard said. “I don’t really want it to just be all me. I want to put the other guys first and push them to be better. … By the time we get to summer and we’re going to all these contact camps, it comes easy. So by the time we get to Aug. 28 against Lutheran North, it’s a breeze.”