Sandfort reflects on official visit to Iowa

Pryce Sandfort has been to the Iowa campus many times.

As the younger brother of a current Iowa player, Sandfort was around for many of his visits to Iowa City when he was recruited and attended several games this past season with his parents.

This visit was different for the 6-foot-6 wing prospect from Waukee Northwest High School. It was his official visit to Iowa and according to Sandfort, the Hawkeyes did an outstanding job.

“I enjoyed it a lot and it was a lot of fun,” he said. “It was different because me and JP (Estrella) were the focus of all the attention and they were taking us to all of these different places. I got to see more of the academic side of the campus and the places to eat in town.”

As one might expect, Pryce Sandfort was hosted by his brother, current Hawkeye Payton, on the official visit. The brothers have talked quite a bit about his first year in the Iowa program, but this trip also provide them with the opportunity to wear the Hawkeye uniform together for a photo session.

“It was really cool. I liked those pictures a lot. It hit me that this is high major basketball and we are wearing the same uniform.”

In addition to getting to know many of the current Hawkeye players better during the visit, Sandfort also spent a lot of time with fellow official visitor and four star prospect J.P. Estrella. By all accounts the duo hit it off from the start of the visit.

“We really kind of hit it off. We met right away at the first practice we went to and spent a lot of time together from that point on and I think we got along really well,” Sandfort said.

One of the more important parts of the official visit is when the recruit and their family sit down with Fran McCaffery to look at film and also get a sales pitch from the Hawkeye head coach. Sandfort said McCaffery and new assistant coach Matt Gatens let him know they really want him to be part of the Iowa program.

“They were really good conversations. We went over film and they showed how I would fit in on the offense and how they like to play. They were kind of pushing me to commit and they really let me know that they wanted me there.”

Sandfort says he’s going to take a few days to reflect on the visit and sit down with his parents to discuss the next steps in his recruitment. That could likely include more visits to other schools. He mentioned possible trips to Texas, Nebraska, and Clemson.

“I just have to make the right decision for me,” Sandfort said.