Oregon's Mark Helfrich: Colt Lyerla's athleticism 'at top of charts'

Published: Oct 30, 2013 at 11:58 AM

There are serious concerns about former Oregon tight end Colt Lyerla's off-the-field behavior. On the field, there is no doubting Lyerla, as Ducks head coach Mark Helfrich said on the College Football 24/7 Podcast.

"He is a phenomenal athlete, and hopefully everything gets squared away and he will have another shot. But he is a phenomenal talent," Helfrich said. "I've had the fortune of being around a bunch of great tight ends going back to (my time as an assistant at) Arizona State and certainly at Oregon having a bunch of guys that could really play that position. Just from a purely athletic, dynamic standpoint, he is at the top of those charts."

Lyerla caught 34 passes for 565 yards and 11 touchdowns in 28 games at UO before leaving school earlier this month to focus on a professional career.

Lyerla was arrested on cocaine possession charges last week and is waiting for a Lane County court to rule if he will be allowed to attend drug treatment.

Follow Dan Greenspan on Twitter @DanGreenspan.

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