Fryar has two on top

Going into the Elite College Combine, little was known about Irving Fryar Jr. other than he was the son of the former NFL receiver by the same name. After the event, the 6-foot-1, 185-pounder has made a name for himself and scouts definitely took notice.

"It was a great environment there," he said. "I thought it would be all stuck up, but it was well put together and well operated. I feel I did my best there, I put everything I could into it and I couldn't get out of the bed the next day. I ran a 4.26-second shuttle and 4.56-second 40-yard dash. I was pretty happy with how I did."

What did the North Burlington (N.J.) North Burlington Regional receiver think of the one-on-one drills?

"Those were the best, I love those things," he said. "The defensive backs were getting upset, jumping offsides and holding. I think I had at least 10-12 reps and I caught at least eight balls."

What skills did Fryar show scouts at the combine?

"I think I showed my ability to run patterns," he said. "I have more experience from learning from my dad. I showed I could run patterns and I can get down the field."

Currently, Fryar has received interest from Nebraska, Notre Dame, Virginia, West Virginia, Rutgers, Iowa and Louisville. The receiver's favorites right now are Louisville and Nebraska.

"I just like the way that Louisville throws the ball a lot, because not a lot of schools do. I want to go somewhere where I can catch the ball and not just be a blocking wide receiver," he said. "I've seen Nebraska before and my dad went there. It's kind of cool to go to Nebraska and they have a nice campus."

Fryar is expecting to take visits to Louisville, Penn State and Rutgers this summer.

The wide receiver hasn't received much in the way of calls during the evaluation period, but he has had visits from West Virginia, Rutgers and Virginia.

"I would say Virginia stuck out from the visits," he said. "The coaches, there was something about them, they just clicked and made me think about going there and visiting."

Of course being the son of a former NFL All-Pro receiver can have its advantages, like advice on how to improve his game and more.

"My dad knows what it takes and I know a lot of other players have dads who have played ball, but not many have players that made it to the next level. With him telling me what to do means more coming from him than my coach. My dad will tell me a better way how to do something and that means a lot.

"I would say that everything comes from him and my brother," he said. "He works me really hard four days a week. Wednesdays are my days off, but every day I have track until 4:30 and then Mondays and Thursdays I work on my upper body and Tuesdays and Fridays I work on my legs."

Fryar says that track has also helped him a lot.

"That helps me a lot running track and it gets you into shape," he said. "I know my 40 time dropped from 4.68 to 4.56. We're 1-3 on the season, we're not that bad, we just need to have everybody come together and people need to show up and run good times, we're not consistent. I run the 200, 400, 4x4 and the long jump. I feel like everyone should do track because it helps you a lot."

As for a decision, Fryar wouldn't mind making it early.

"I'd probably like to do it sooner if a school offers," he said. "I'm not going to decline an offer because that's what I'm trying to go for and I'll take my chance to get into college."

This summer Fryar plans to camp at Western Michigan where his brother Londen attends.

"I want to go to camp there while my brother is out there," he said. "Notre Dame has asked me to come out and Iowa and Michigan State have too. I'm still up in the air where I'm going to go."

Next season, Fryar is definitely looking to help turn things around for North Burlington Regional.

"This season we won one game, I'm hoping for at least six or seven wins next year," he said. "Usually we'd be winning at halftime and then get racked up on in the second half. I've got to work on stop rushing my routes and make sure they are crisp instead of lazy. I'd like to get 1,000 yards and like 50 catches. We're going to have a new offense with three wide receiver sets and hopefully we'll be passing more."

Fryar caught 12 passes for 500 yards as he was named second team all-conference as a junior.