Thanks to solid depth in all classes at the quarterback position, Iowa State can afford to be selective in who it brings in for the Class of 2015. It appears the staff's number one focus right now is a prep quarterback from Ohio with several family ties to the city of Ames.
Athens' Joe Burrow claims several major college offers to date, including ISU, Boston College, Cincinnati, Kentucky, Maryland, NC State, Vanderbilt and West Virginia. But it's one school that stands out above the rest right now.
"I have a lot of offers and I am considering everybody right now," said Burrow, who completed 218-of-306 passes for 3,732 yards and 47 touchdowns to just seven interceptions as a junior last fall. "Iowa State is at the top of the list. I'm the only quarterback that they've offered and I'm excited about them. I know the town and university well. I was born there, my dad used to coach there and my brothers grew up there."
Burrow's father Jimmy, currently the defensive coordinator at Ohio University, was the Ames High School head coach during the 1999 and 2000 seasons, and before that served as an assistant coach with the program for four years. Joe's older brothers Jamie and Dan went on to play at Nebraska after playing for the Little Cyclones.
But the 6-foot-3, 200-pound quarterback's interest in I-State goes well beyond just the fact he was born in Ames. Burrow likes the way the program is headed under new offensive coordinator Mark Mangino.
"I like what Coach Mangino did at Kansas, bringing a horrible program to be successful," Burrow said. "I'm excited about what he could with me at the quarterback position. I'm a pass-first guy that can run when he has to, and he says that fits exactly with what they have to do."
Burrow's most recent stop in Ames was for an unofficial visit in late March. Although he had planned on hitting a spring practice, it was canceled when Coach Rhoads was stranded out of town due to weather. Although the circumstances weren't ideal, Burrow made the most of it and got a good feel for the rest of the coaching staff and current Cyclones.
"The facilities were amazing," Burrow said. "I didn't get to watch a practice, but they showed me around the facilities and I had lunch with the coaches and players. They said that I'm the only guy they've offered and they're going to give me some time to make my decision. I understand they're going to have to start offering some other guys here in the near future. I'd like to make my decision before the season."
Ideally, Burrow says he would have a decision made by the start of his senior season. He mentioned coming up with a small list of favorites to work from for another round of visits.
"I'd still like to take visits to Virginia Tech, Kentucky, North Carolina State and Boston College," Burrow said. "I'll take a couple more visits and then I may narrow it down to two, three or four. Then I'll maybe take visits again to those schools before making a decision."
Another school recruiting Burrow is Ohio, which has the unique connection with his father on staff. The rising senior quarterback is leaning on his father a lot for advice on handling himself through the recruiting period.
"I would say in regards to the process, (having my dad around) has matured me faster than everybody else," he said. "I understand the recruiting process, understand what coaches are trying to tell me and understanding what to say when I talk to the media. On the football side of it, I understand schemes a lot better than other people."
