BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Lenox, Iowa, isn't quite the midway point between Des Moines, Iowa, and Omaha, Nebraska. It's simultaneously on the way and out of the way; venturing off Interstate 80 to stop in the small town of 1,400 people adds about an hour and change onto what is normally a two-hour drive.
But Northern Iowa coach Mark Farley was making good time on his recruiting trip from Des Moines to Omaha and figured he could spare the hour to check out the 6-foot-6 kid he had heard about in Lenox.
Six years after meeting coach Farley, that kid from Lenox -- offensive tackle Spencer Brown -- was selected in the third round of the 2021 NFL draft by the Buffalo Bills.