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Top OL in the Nation to Visit Iowa

The number one offensive line recruit in the nation, five star prospect Jeff Byers, will make a trip to Iowa City in the coming weeks. Byers, a 6-foot-4, 270-pound center from Fort Collins, CO, will be on campus with his father for a one day visit the first week in July. It will be his first trip to the Iowa campus since attending a game at Kinnick Stadium as a youngster.

According to Byers, his family holds several connections to the state of Iowa.

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“Actually, my dad was born and raised in Newton, Iowa. I lived in Dubuque for 6 years and my grandparents are still in Newton. I also have a cousin that lives in northeast Iowa.”

Additionally, his father played football in the 70’s at Drake University in Des Moines and his sister attended Drake as well.

Byers currently holds 31 offers from basically the who’s who list of college football programs. That list includes such schools as Oklahoma, Texas, Michigan, Ohio State, Notre Dame, USC, Miami, UCLA, Washington, Nebraska, Iowa, and of course a couple dozen more. He contends that his recruiting is as wide open as could be right now and no one schools holds an advantage over another.

What are Byers thoughts on Iowa at this point?

“I think Iowa has an equal shot just like everyone else. They have a great tradition, a great program, and they compete with everybody. They also have a great O-Line tradition.”

Byers thoughts on Iowa head coach and former NFL offensive line guru Kirk Ferentz?

“Coach Ferentz called last month and we’re getting to know each other. He’s a great head coach and I’m glad he came back to college football.”

In addition to his upcoming visit to Iowa, Byers has kept very busy trying to hit as many of the schools recruiting him as he can. Some of the schools he has seen include Colorado, Colorado State, Oklahoma, Texas, Nebraska, USC, UCLA, and Stanford. Notre Dame, Michigan, and Ohio State will be added to the list of unofficial visits before the end of the month.

According to Byers, other than meeting the coaches, touring the facilities and campus, etc., there are a couple other details to gather from a visit to a program.

“You get a real sense of their team chemistry. You can see how they workout and get a great feel for how the team works and practices together.”

Byers has been timed at a very impressive 4.76 in the forty. He also boasts a 30” vertical, a 385-pound bench, and a 515-pound squat. In addition to being an all state football player and national recruit at Loveland high school, he is also an all conference center on the basketball team and a state qualifier in track where he throws the shot put and javelin. Equally as impressive is Byers’ outstanding achievement as a student at Loveland. He carries a 3.9 grade point average and lists academics as the most important factor in his recruiting.

“I am looking for academics first - I would like to major in business. I’ll also look at the coaching staff - I want to relate to them well and know that they are stable. They are not going to leave for the pro’s three years down the road. I also want a school with good team chemistry.”

Byers added that he has no time preference on when he will narrow down his list or ultimately make a decision.

For Ultimate Ticket subscribers, please take a chance to view film on Jeff Byers by following this link - Jeff Byers Film

Stay tuned to HawkeyeReport.com for future updates on Jeff Byers. We will be in touch with him in the coming weeks for news on his visit to Iowa City.

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