You've probably heard of most of the top NFL draft prospects at offensive tackle by this point: Iowa's Brandon Scherff, Texas A&M's Cedric Ogbuehi, Florida State's Cam Irving and so on.
One you might want to put on your radar for 2015 or 2016? Try little-known Utah left tackle Jeremiah Poutasi, who recently caught NFL Media analyst Daniel Jeremiah's eye while doing some work in the film room on the Utes.
For those not too familiar with the Pac-12 or Utah, Poutasi was a highly regarded recruit who picked the Utes out of high school over a number of top programs. He's a 6-foot-6, 330-pound junior who has experience at both tackle and guard in the program and has been scratching the surface of the All-Pac-12 team after grabbing honrable mention honors as a freshman and sophomore.
Poutasi's development hasn't been what some thought it should be considering his high four-star ranking coming out of high school, but he's been part of a strong unit that has paved the way for running back Devonate Booker and kept the quarterbacks upright when dropping back to pass this season.
Longtime NFL and college head coach Dennis Erickson, who is on the staff in Salt Lake City, told College Football 24/7 last year during spring football that Poutasi has the physical tools to turn into the best offensive lineman he's ever coached. That's high praise from a veteran coach who's been around the block quite a bit with some terrific pros manning the blind side.
Based on Jeremiah's observations, Poutasi has the skills and is rounding into form, but still has work left to do in order to live up to expectaions. If he does, watch out.
Surely NFL scouts are doing just that.
You can follow Bryan Fischer on Twitter @BryanDFischer.
