There was a time when Jeff Byers actually believed he would be a defensive player. At least he thought that would be an option as he moved on to college football and hopefully into the NFL.
It seems a little strange now as the USC center/guard waits to hear his name called during the NFL’s draft this weekend.
But the Loveland High School graduate had one of the all-time, remember-when seasons in prep football history when, as a senior, he was named the national high school player of the year as a center.
He was then, and still is, the only offensive linemen to earn that kind of award, the most notable of which is presented by Gatorade.
As an offensive lineman, he did not allow a sack in his prep career for a two-time state champion and was once credited with 34 pancake blocks in one game.
But on defense, his statistics were simply boggling in his final season of prep football. As a senior, he was credited with 203 tackles, a staggering total for a defensive lineman that included 56 tackles for loss.
He also forced 14 fumbles that year, which would be two careers’ worth for many of even the most notable prep recruits.
But when Byers arrived at USC, Pete Carroll’s coaching staff had other ideas for him and quickly outlined them to Byers before he got too settled into his new surroundings in Southern California.
“Coach Carroll and some others made a pretty compelling argument as to why I should be an offensive lineman. They were very upfront about it and laid it all out right away,” Byers said. “They outlined that, from the beginning, why they believed I should play on that side of the ball. And looking back now, it was certainly a very good call. Things have worked out.”
Yes, things do work out, just not always as planned.
Colorado Springs’ Lamarr Houston arrived at Texas as a running back who had gained 3,325 yards in his career at Doherty High School and scored 49 touchdowns, including 1,770 yards and 28 rushing touchdowns as a senior.
He had been the state’s player of the year as a linebacker but said he arrived in Austin with designs on working in the offensive backfield as a 276-pound bruiser of a running back, taking handoffs from the likes of Vince Young and Colt McCoy, and feeling the glory of a Big 12 runner.
“But then I tried it in my first training camp, lined up there and got ready to do some things, but found out pretty quickly it just wasn’t for me,” Houston said. “I was jumping offside, missing some blocking assignments, all kinds of stuff. So they found something else for me to do.”
What they did was send him over to the other side of the line of scrimmage.
Houston went on the play two years at defensive end for the Longhorns and two years at defensive tackle. He did so well enough that if all goes right for him this week, he could be a mid-to-late third-round pick for most teams.
There is also a smattering of teams who have said they would consider him as the second round draws to a close.
But the board is littered with those who dealt with the vocational audible.
TCU defensive end Jerry Hughes was a prep running back. Kansas wide receiver Kerry Meier was a quarterback, one good enough to start eight games there for the Jayhawks in 2006. And Miami tight end Jimmy Graham played for the Hurricanes’ basketball team for four seasons before deciding to give football a try despite the fact he had not played organized football since he was a freshman in high school before this past season.
So every player who comes off the draft board this week has a story to tell. But for many of them, some of the chapters were a little unexpected along the way.
Jeff Legwold: 303-954-2359 or jlegwold@denverpost.com
