Why every coach who’s worked with Caleb Lomu believes the Patriots drafted someone extraordinary

Feats of Lomu

Those at Highland High School were already familiar with the Lomu family before the future NFL tackle entered the hallways.

Lomu’s older brother, Tyson, was an outside linebacker and graduated from Highland in 2021. A year before Lomu arrived at the school, the two brothers played in a charity golf tournament. Tyson was a sophomore, and his younger brother was in eighth grade.

“They won it because he’s such a good athlete,” Farrell said. “He’s almost a scratch golfer as well as a first-round tackle. That was like my first introduction to him. And then he came here as a freshman. Our O-line coaches on varsity saw it right away... They knew he was going to be special.”

The teenager’s athletic abilities were rare for a kid this size.

Terry Fair, who also coaches the offensive line, has been at Highland for 35 years. He’s seen a lot of talented kids come through the program. Fair saw that Lomu was different.

The teenager took advice from his coaches to heart. As an underclassman, he’d practice his offensive line stance in his bedroom at night before going to sleep.

When the team practiced, Lomu did things that made his coaches shake their heads.

“He’s just a phenomenal athlete,” Fair said. “I don’t know if (the Patriots) coaching staff does any razzle-dazzle stuff, but you’re going to see how athletic he is. He can throw the ball 70 yards downfield on a dime. He is that athletic.”

Added Critchfield: “He threw the football better than our quarterback did.”

After his sophomore season, Lomu’s dreams of being a future defensive end subsided. Critchfield, who played football at Texas A&M, told him to join the track team in the spring to add more speed.

The coach had all his offensive linemen race in the 100-meter dash.

“We timed all the linemen. And I want to say he ran an 11.7,” Critchfield said. “I was like, holy crap, this guy’s fast. And he was. At that time, he was probably 250 pounds. But I was blown away that he ran that fast, and it didn’t even look like he was trying.”

By his senior season, he was a four-star recruit and one of the best tackle prospects in the nation with dozens of scholarship offers.

The feats of Lomu didn’t stop in Gilbert.

Lomu’s high potential

During his redshirt freshman year at Utah, Lomu played on the scout team, where he drove defensive coaches crazy. At the time, offensive line coach Jim Harding’s focus was on the starters and top backups.

When he’d retreat to his office after practice, he’d find a note from head coach Kyle Whittingham waiting for him.

“I would get darn near weekly reports from Coach Whittingham,” Harding said.

“Hey, ‘Caleb’s special.’”

Lomu was never perfect, but he understood that better than anyone.

The ultra-focused ultra-athlete arrived at Utah ready to work, learn, and improve. When Harding recruited him, Lomu told him his goal was to play in the NFL. Following his redshirt year, the Utah offensive line coach gave him a list of things to improve the next spring.

The focus was on being more physical with his punch. Learning to be less reactive and more aggressive. Lomu had the athletic ability to get beaten by a defender and recover, but Harding wanted him to strike first.

“Every kind of bar or challenge that I put in front of him that spring, he met and was ready for the next step,” Harding said. “I just had an inkling early on when he was being redshirted by the defensive coaches. But then, when I finally got my opportunity to really focus on working and developing him, just the way he approached anything I asked him to do that that spring, I thought this kid had a real chance to be special.”

By the time the 2024 season arrived, Lomu was Utah’s starting left tackle and eventually a Freshman All-American. He knew the learning couldn’t stop. To get to the next level, he turned to the NFL’s best.

Last year, Lomu approached Harding about studying the top offensive tackles in the NFL. He wanted to see how they approached pass protection against the best pass rushers in the world.

Harding gathered game film of Trent Williams, Lane Johnson, Penei Sewell, and Tristan Wirfs. During the summer, Harding, Lomu, and future first-rounder Spencer Fano got together and watched the best in the NFL go to work.

“We wanted to see different things that maybe we could take from that film,” Harding said. “That was completely brought on by Caleb. ‘Hey, let’s watch this.’ That goes to the point that I think this kid has a desire to be great. He’s willing to put in that extra time and is humble enough to learn from others.”

Will Lomu excel at right tackle?

When his time at Highland High School was over, Lomu was one of the best tackle prospects in the nation. He had some versatility, but mainly anchored at left tackle.

At Utah, following his redshirt year, Lomu was named the starting left tackle and excelled for two seasons. In 2025, he didn’t allow a sack en route to becoming a first-round draft pick.

After predominantly playing on the left side, will Lomu turn into the Patriots’ answer at right tackle?

The only offensive line coaches he’s ever had believe the rookie won’t have an issue.

“I just believe in cross-training the kids,” Harding said. “If you went through the archives, there’s reps of him taking snaps at right tackle in practice. Now, he’s going to have to sharpen those skills, those techniques. It’ll be a little bit of a change for him, but I have no doubt he’ll be able to transfer that over.”

As the first round unfolded, the Patriots were surprised Lomu was still on the board. So they traded up to No. 28 to pick him.

This pick isn’t about the present, but securing long-term protection for quarterback Drake Maye. Starting right tackle Morgan Moses turned 35 in March. Lomu is projected to eventually succeed him, as the long-term starter opposite left tackle Will Campbell. This season, Lomu profiles as the top backup who has a year to develop at right tackle.

“He played right tackle a little bit for us,” Critchfield said. “Caleb was a lot quicker on the, on the blind side, so we moved him back. But I know that Caleb’s very flexible with that. I think he just wants to compete and learn. He’s a very studious type of kid.”

As he proved at Highland and Utah, when Lomu has a goal or a focus, he comes out on top. It’s been a while since he doubted his own abilities. After gaining confidence in high school, there was nothing that could slow him down.

His former coaches see it unfolding the same way with the Patriots.

“I think he’s going to look at it as an opportunity to get better at his craft, especially if he can play both sides,” Fair said. “I’ve always told him, the more marketable you are, the more successful you’re going to be, whether it’s in football or in life. I think he’s really going to attack this with passion and challenge himself.”

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