Chad Byers, a 6-foot-2, 220 pound quarterback from Blue Ridge School recently concluded his high school career in grand fashion. Byers, a 4-year starter for the Barons, earned all-district and all-state honors at the quarterback position after throwing for over 2500 yards (22 TD's) this past season. Byers was also selected as the ODFC Offensive Player of the Year and finished his career as the Central Virginia All-Time Career Passing Leader with 6,472 yards, breaking the record previously held by Brad Starks who is now at West Virginia University. Byers also ran for over 400 yards (6 TD's) this past season and finished his career with over 1500 yards rushing. Byers finished his career at Blue Ridge with 65 TD's through the air and 27 TD's on the ground.

Byers also played defense for the Barons and earned all-district and all-state honors from his safety position. On the season Byers had 66 tackles and led his team with 6 interceptions, returning one for a TD. While most of the accolades for Byers has come from his quarterback play, his coach Daryl Hayes has praised him for his defensive play as well, "He's one of the best defensive players I've seen and is the type of kid you want 25 of in your program. He won't shy away from the opportunity on defense. He's the sort of kid that breaks people up and comes in at 100%. He has great instincts for the ball and is comfortable in the box. For me, it's like having a coach on the field. He's super football savvy and is just a really smart kid. He makes all the calls for coverages and knows what's going on."

Byers is currently playing for the Barons basketball team which has kept him busy juggling his schedule between exams, basketball and the recruiting process. Byers has taken a number of visits since the season ended but has yet to decide on a college choice. He added, "One of the factors that I am dealing with is trying to decide between playing quarterback or linebacker in college. I love playing quarterback and last year was a lot of fun, especially after coming off of the injury that I got early in the summer. I was kind of bummed that I injured myself on the first day of my first camp and I didn't perform very well at the camps, but it did allow me to take it easy over the summer and go into my senior season at 100%."

Byers added, "There are a number of schools that are still evaluating me for linebacker because of my size and speed but unfortunately they don't have a lot of film to look at. While I played safety at Blue Ridge, our defensive scheme allowed me to walk-up and play from the linebacker position so hopefully they will be able to see that I can play the position. I am very comfortable at linebacker but I really haven't been able to work much on my technique. I am excited about getting the opportunity to play either position in college and it will be nice to finally focus on one position. I have been playing practically 48 minutes every game for the past two years. Playing both ways has been a lot of fun, but when I can leave it all out on the field for one position, it will be even better".

City, State: Blue Ridge, VA

Position: Dual-threat quarterback

Class: 2008

Media: Video

Click on video clip link to view prospect videos:

Note: Rivals.com recommends a high speed

connection (cable, DSL, etc.) when attempting to download video files. When

using a dialup connection, users will experience extended download times. This

service is primarily intended for users with broadband connectivity. If video

delays during buffering stage, please allow video to completely load before

playback.

Have an athlete that you would like to have

featured on this site? Please contact us for more details at VaPreps@aol.com