IOWA CITY, Iowa – Isaiah Pryor’s talent as a football player has taken him all over the country, with one of his latest trips to California.

Now the question is, where will it take him for college?

Pryor, the son of former Iowa defensive lineman Richard Pryor, is one of the most heavily recruited players in the 2017 class. The 6-foot-2, 190-pound defensive back from Lawrenceville, Ga., already has at least 35 scholarship offers from schools that include Iowa, Auburn, Florida, Florida State, Ohio State, Georgia, Clemson, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Penn State and Stanford.

He wants to eventually trim his list to 10 schools, but isn’t ready to say who will make the cut. He also hopes to make a verbal commitment to a college before his senior year of high school.

“I don’t know right now,” Isaiah Pryor said Monday night in a telephone interview. “I’m just trying to take as many visits as possible and see what everyone has to offer. I haven’t made a list quite yet.”

Pryor said it’s too early to say whether Iowa will make his top-10, but he still is seriously considering the Hawkeyes.

In addition to his father playing defensive end at Iowa from 1984-86, Pryor’s older brother, Richard Pryor, also currently attends the University of Iowa and used to play football for the Hawkeyes as a walk-on offensive lineman.

“It definitely helps,” Pryor said of Iowa’s connections. “I’ve been going up there since I was a kid.”

Pryor said he keeps in touch with Iowa assistant coach LeVar Woods, who recruits in the state of Georgia.

“I call coach (Woods) as many times as I can,” Pryor said. “I talk to him a little bit to keep the relationship going.”

Pryor just recently returned from a trip to California where he took unofficial visits to Southern California, UCLA and Stanford.

He said he feels blessed to be in his situation.

“I’m still enjoying it a lot, getting to visit all these places and meet new people,” Pryor said of the recruiting process.

Pryor said his father gives him great advice, but isn’t trying to push him to any school, including his alma mater.
Richard Pryor was a heavily recruited defensive end from New Jersey when he signed with the Hawkeyes three decades ago.

“Definitely, my parents are going to help me decide,” Isaiah Pryor said of picking a college.

Iowa already has received two verbal commitments from recruits in the 2017 class, both of whom are from in state. Coy Kirkpatrick, a defensive end from Madrid, committed to Iowa earlier this month, while four-star defensive tackle Juan Harris, who attends North Fayette High School, committed to Iowa for third time last week after twice de-committing.

Pryor is one of two star recruits in the 2017 class with a connection to Iowa.

Four-star defensive end A.J. Epenesa, who is from Edwardsville, Ill., and the son of former Iowa defensive lineman Epenesa Epenesa, already has received nearly 20 scholarship offers from schools that include Iowa, Florida State, Michigan State, Michigan, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Notre Dame, Tennessee and Wisconsin.

The 6-5, 230-pound A.J. Epenesa is also familiar with the Iowa program and with the UI campus because of his father’s connection to the school.