INDIANAPOLIS — Few people could handle the transition from playing quarterback to playing on the offensive line.
Brandon Scherff was not one of them.
Despite weighing 280 pounds his junior year, Scherff directed the offense of his Denison, Iowa high school football team — and it wasn’t a gimmick. The Monarchs asked Scherff to throw the ball deep, find receivers on screen passes, work in a variety of three- and five-step drops and, yes, occasionally run the ball.
“Second and five,” Scherff said, expressing particular delight when asked about a quarterback sneak. “I told [the center] to go left, and I’d go right, yeah — or vice versa.”
Scherff eventually shed the role, first moving to tight end midway through that third season before settling in as a left tackle during his senior year. Lightly recruited — he was a three-star prospect, according to Rivals.com, who ended his courtship early in the process — Scherff blossomed at Iowa, where he started 36 games over four seasons.
He won the Outland Trophy in December, given annually to the best interior lineman, offense or defense, in college football. And, come April, he will be one of the first offensive linemen chosen in the NFL draft, potentially heading to the Washington Redskins if they keep the No. 5 overall pick.
“Hard work pays off,” Scherff said at Lucas Oil Stadium, where he was participating in the NFL Scouting Combine. “You always want to strive to be the best of the best. That’s what you want to set your goals for.”
Scherff is highly regarded for his athleticism, his strength and his fundamentally sound technique — but it’s that size that has draft analysts puzzled. There is some belief that Scherff may be a candidate to move to guard in the early part of his career because of his abilities as a run blocker, which would allow him to get used to the professional game.
That topic never specifically came up during meetings with team representatives, Scherff said, though he did preach his versatility — he started three games at left guard as a freshman — while reviewing his film with coaches and scouts.
Mike Mayock, the lead draft analyst for NFL Network, compared Scherff to Zack Martin, the Dallas Cowboys’ starting right guard. Martin was the starting left tackle for four seasons at Notre Dame, but adjusted well enough to the new position because of his reach and his athleticism that he was named an All-Pro and selected to play in the Pro Bowl this past season as a rookie.
“When I look at Brandon Scherff, I see a similar example,” Mayock said. “I see a bigger kid with longer arms. That lends you to believe that he could play outside more easily. Again, I believe he can play outside. However, I think his best position, because of his power, his toughness, his football sense, is inside. I think he’s an All-Pro guard, but that doesn’t mean he can’t play tackle in the NFL.”
Scherff measured in at 6-foot-5 and 319 pounds at the combine, but he pulled his right hamstring while running the 40-yard dash — which he completed in 5.05 seconds, fourth among the 53 offensive linemen invited to participate — and withdrew from the rest of the event.
Those who have competed against him said it’s clear why Scherff is regarded as one of the top players at his position. Purdue defensive end Ryan Russell, who faced Scherff in September, recalled Scherff’s strength and remembered how the Hawkeyes used it to set up their run game. Louis Trinca-Pasat, an Iowa defensive tackle, loved going against Scherff in practice because he used those battles to measure his own progress.
“When you see a guy chasing down linebackers and putting them in the stands and driving them out of bounds — you know, he’s taking defensive ends, 280-pound, 300-pound defensive ends, and driving them downfield — that’s what you want,” said Iowa defensive tackle Carl Davis. “You want guys who can drive them off them ball.”
Scherff played five sports in high school, picking up a basketball during the winter months and balancing baseball, tennis and track and field during the spring. He averaged a double-double in basketball his senior year, still holds the school shot put record and has hang-cleaned 480 pounds.
Dave Wiebers, Scherff’s high school football coach, first caught a glimpse of Scherff as a Little League pitcher. Seven years later, that fluidity he displayed helped him greatly as he made the transition to the offensive line, where, size aside, he looked like a natural with his hand in the dirt.
“There’s a lot of great athletes, but not with the athletic skills that he has and his frame combined with his work ethic,” Wiebers said by telephone. “It’s kind of that combination of those things that could get you to that next level.”
On several occasions during his tenure at Iowa, Scherff would relax by grabbing a few teammates, piling into a pick-up truck and navigating dirt roads down to a local farm pond, where he’d spend a few hours trying to hook largemouth bass.
That likely won’t be possible during the NFL season, but Scherff has paid it no mind. He called the combine a “once-in-a-lifetime experience,” appreciating the opportunity to meet several of the nation’s best college football players in addition to a plethora of professional coaches.
The next step is sure to please him as well.
“I’ll be happy where I go,” Scherff said. “A small-town guy in a big city? That’s perfect.”
• Zac Boyer can be reached at zboyer@washingtontimes.com.
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