Son of NFL punter getting interest
Kickers and punters don't often garner much recruiting attention, but if you can double as a 6-foot-1, 180-pound cornerback with 4.4, 40-yard dash speed and have NFL bloodlines recruiters will take notice.
Bry Roby of Cy Falls (Texas) is the son of the late NFL punter Reggie Roby, who once launched balls deep into the night most notably for the Miami Dolphins.
"We weren't really that close," Bry says of his father. "He remarried and always lived far away."
Bry has been raised by his mother but has the athletic attributes from his father, and then some.
"Bry is a great athlete and is a big cover corner that everyone likes," Cy Falls coach David Raffield said. "He really blew away people at the U of H combine. He was clocked as a 4.4 and had a 38-inch vertical jump."
As a junior Roby earned first-team, all-district honors as a punter but played behind Ricky Price, who signed with Oklahoma State. He will be leaned on heavily this season to replace Price and Andre Sexton in the Cy Falls' secondary.
Roby was offered this spring by the North Carolina and is being recruited by Missouri, Kansas State and Indiana among others. He participated in several kicking camps and also unofficially visited the Tar Heels last week.
"It's a very nice school and very strong academically," he said. "The football team is not as strong as it could be but it is rebuilding. They like me at corner but said they would also give me a chance as a kicker and punter too. I really wouldn't mind going there.
"I'm really not too picky about which school I choose," he said. "Where ever I can get a scholarship, good education and help out my parents is great."
Roby's story isn't the only compelling storyline at Cy Falls. Who will play quarterback this season for the state semi-finalist is another interesting question?
J.P. Tillman (6-2, 240) transferred to Cy Falls last spring and has recently committed the Missouri while returner David Brekke led the Eagles on a playoff run last year.
"Who will start? That's a good question," Raffield said. "Who every can lead this team will run with it. J.P is huge with a big arm and David is a rocket scientist of a quarterback."
Also receiving recruiting interest at Cy Falls is defensive end Xavier Richard, the brother of University of Houston starting defensive lineman Gerald Richard.
"Schools are watching him real close," Raffield said. "He is huge and is a Division I player. If he can get his grades in order, he'll be a good catch."
Houston, Arizona and Central Florida are tracking Richard the closest.