Asheville High senior OL Kadin Lynch makes D1 commitment

Asheville High senior offensive lineman Kadin Lynch committed to William & Mary on Thursday, he announced on his Twitter.

Lynch, a 6-foot-4, 290-pound tackle, had Division I offers from schools including East Tennessee State, Tennessee Tech, Colgate, Columbia, and preferred walk-on spots from UNC and Charlotte.

He chose to join William & Mary, he told the Citizen Times, because of his relationship with the coaching staff and the balance of football and academics.

"Offensive line coach [Mario] Acitelli is a new hire, he'd recruited me at Elon. ... I know he's a good guy and love his philosophy in the offensive line," Lynch said. "And the education is outstanding, it's one of the best business schools in America. I plan on majoring in business, so that was a big positive for me."

The Tribe initially offered Lynch last month, before Acitelli had been hired, and his arrival helped the program shoot up Lynch's board. William & Mary went 6-5 last season and play in the Colonial Athletic Association, which features FCS powers including James Madison, Towson, Villanova and Delaware.

"I'm looking forward to playing that high-level football at a high-level academic school," Lynch said. "It's a great opportunity."

Lynch's has always had the size to play in college, getting some varsity playing time as a freshman before becoming a mainstay on the line over the next two seasons.

He took his game to the next level by improving his technique with the help of Amos Lamb, who runs a lineman training program in South Carolina.

Armed with a better handle of the nuances of the offensive line, Lynch focused on getting in front of as many coaches as possible, knowing it's relatively rare for college recruiters to come to Asheville on their own.

"I emailed 1,000 coaches a day, every school I could think of in America," Lynch said. "And then I went to camps. ... It's stressful, because you don't want to say one moment defines you, but at a camp it does, if you mess up. It's cutthroat."

The pandemic had also delayed Lynch's recruitment, so he continued the grind for offers into his senior year.

"There were setbacks. ... I ignored what I couldn't control," Lynch said. "There were times offers weren't rolling in like I expected them to. Colleges had been looking at other guys for longer, I was a little late to the party, so to speak. But at the end of the day, I knew I had options and knew I was going to get options."

During the fall, his focus was on Asheville's season, and his performance backed up his work. Lynch earned a first-team All-Mountain Conference selection, captaining the Cougars' first conference championship team since 2014 and then leading them to a 4A playoff win.

"Senior year was one of my proudest years I've ever had," Lynch said. "Getting this community excited to watch Asheville High School football again, watching them pack out the stands. ... Hosting two playoff games in just a fantastic environment, I'm proud that I helped achieve that in this community. I'm excited to see their future as well as mine."

After finishing his Asheville High career, he had to decide where he would go next. The length and uncertainty of the process made deciding on William & Mary a "massive weight" off Lynch's shoulders, he said.

Now that he knows where he'll spend his college career, he's planning on applying the same workmanlike approach he saw pay dividends with the Cougars, and see how far it can take him.

"Giving that call, saying, 'Hey, this is where I want to be,' having the whole coaching staff excited, it was a great time and a great moment," Lynch said. "It's one of the moments on that checklist of playing football."

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Asheville High OL Kadin Lynch commits to William & Mary