Iowa or Stanford.

David Parry had two choices for college football when he was a senior at Linn-Mar High School two years ago.

He could stay close to home and play for the Hawkeyes, or he could move closer to his second home in California and play for Stanford.

Both schools invited him to join their programs as preferred walk-ons, but neither one offered a scholarship.

He picked Stanford.

"I have a bunch of relatives throughout the Bay Area in California. Both of my parents are from out here in Daly City, which is pretty close," Parry said.

"I came out here a lot growing up. In a sense it was almost like coming back home."

Parry, a 6-foot-2, 295-pound defensive tackle, has not regretted his decision for a second.

Stanford (5-0) is ranked No. 5 in the country, he's getting to play as a redshirt freshman and Coach David Shaw gave him a scholarship before the 2011 season began.

"Right toward the end of camp he brought us in and said he was rewarding three or four of us with scholarships, and I was one of those guys," Parry said. "I didn't expect it, but I was definitely hoping for it."

Stanford has been cruising with easy wins over San Jose State (57-3), Duke (44-14), Arizona (37-10), UCLA (45-19) and Colorado (48-7). The Cardinal have outscored their five opponents, 231-53, stand 3-0 in the Pac-12 Conference and have won 12 straight games since last year, the longest winning streak in the country.

Parry is a second-team defensive tackle and has played in all five games. He's made six tackles, including 1 1/2 tackles for losses, and is in the rotation.

"If we're playing a passing team I won't see as many plays," he said, "but if it's primarily a run team, I'll get in the mix probably every third series."

Parry said his parents, George and Elaine, lived in California, Wisconsin, Texas and Wisconsin again before moving to Marion before his eighth grade year in school. He developed into an all-state lineman at Linn-Mar and was recruited by Iowa and Iowa State.

"A good amount by Iowa," he said. "Iowa State early, but then I kind of closed the door on them. It came down to either being a preferred walk-on here or at Iowa.

"They (the Hawkeyes) brought me in on an official visit. They treated me well, but they didn't end up offering me."

Parry was also a top-notch student at Linn-Mar, with a GPA of approximately 4.0 and an ACT score of 29. He's leaning toward a degree in political science with an eye on law school.

Right now, he's helping Stanford chase a Pac-12 title.

"Things are going well," he said. "I think we haven't played our best game yet, but we're working everything out every single week."

Meanwhile, his old team at Linn-Mar has a 7-0 record and is ranked No. 3 in Iowa heading into Friday's big home game with Iowa City High. Parry keeps tabs on the Lions from California.

"I try to," he said. "I check to see how they do, I check to see if they won or lost. I'm pretty happy that they're doing well."

Parry has his own fan club at Stanford games with his relatives in the area. Even his brother George, who played football at Harvard, takes a break from his job in New York and flies to games.

Parry wasn't sure if he'd get to play this year, but that was his goal in training camp.

"I've been pleased," he said. "Any time you get on the field and help contribute to the team, it's been great."