Top junior in the state and top 300. Sounds like a great get.
4 star OT Wirfs commits
- Thread starter ichawk24
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Don't forget about Coy (Kirkpatrick) - he has a very intriguing upside too!
This guy has a wiiiddeee frame and he's athletic. Huge get - he will turn into a 3 or 4 year starter LT millionaire under Kirk
Very good get. Not surprised at all that T Wulf chose the best Offensive Line University in America. Thanks to Kirk and Brian Ferentz, along with Chris Doyle.
Sean Foster? I apologize if I'm just late or out of the loop. Any news on Sean Foster, the 6'8" 285 lb. Minnesota OT decommit? One site wrote that the "Crystal ball" had him 'falling' to Iowa, though he had apparently not received an official offer yet - and that when he decommitted, Minnesota's class dropped by twelve slots. Sounds like the power of the season is changing some minds...and not just sportscasters. Will appreciate any news.
I don't he has the blue collar work ethic that's needed to be an Iowa lineman...guess that why no offer yet.
The words is that Sean, who will soon be 19 years old in HS (Jan birthday) is bit on the soft side and Ferentz has an eye on someone else. Ferentz is a better position to land OTs next year, starting with Tristian Wirfs who throws discus and shot and wrestles. Sounds a bit like Brandon Scherff.
Never trust 247's crystal ball. It's as bad as Paul Finebaum for opinions.
The staff have had 24 months to offer this player and haven't. They've had him at camps, so have seen him up close along with film from his sophomore, junior and senior seasons. I get that he has many reported offers and was committed to Minny, but I think you just have to trust the coaches on this one. Seems that he doesn't fit what the staff is looking for in an OT, I'm guessing the kid doesn't have the athleticism and toughness they are looking for in a tackle. Offensive line isn't a position of need in this recruiting class after brining in 5 last year, so I suspect we either get one of our top targets or we'll regroup for next year(already started the 2017 class with TW committing) instead of settling for a player they've already evaluated and determined wasn't the best fit. Now is the last time for this staff to settle for a player they don't feel 100% positive about. With our success this year and a team on paper that is set up to repeat next year, we should be able to appeal to some bigger fish between now and signing day in 2017.
For the last time, we aren't going to offer Foster.
The SD kid, Jackson from MI, and OL Royce Newman (MO Commit) are all OL that we have above Foster. These are 3 that we know about- could be others that we are looking at.
We only have 1 or 2 rides to give. If we somehow strike out on the guys listed above, I fully expect Ferentz to use the scholly on a DB or Athlete.
Keep in mind, there is a talented group of instate Lineman next year. We just landed Wirfs, and have to be considered leaders to land Coons and Kallenberger. I think they'll invite Nagel, Newell, and Dykstra to next summer's camp.
Top 2017 Iowa Prospects
1. Juan Harris 6'3 390 DT (Iowa commit, Iowa decommit, Iowa commit, Iowa decommit, Iowa commit)
2. Coy Kirkpatrick 6'4 255 DL (Iowa commit)
3. Tristan Wirfs 6'5 260 OL (Iowa commit)
4. Jacob Coons 6'4 240 LB/TE (Offers from Iowa and Iowa State)
5. Mark Kallenberger 6'6 240 OL (Offers from Nebraska and Iowa State)
6. Rocky Lombardi 6'3 200 QB (offers from Virginia and Iowa State)
7. Devon Moore 6'4 210 QB (ISU commit)
8. Colin Newell 6'5 260 OL (offer from Iowa State)
Others names:
Bo Black 6'2 200 LB
John Nagel 6'6 230 OL
Zach Dykstrka 6'5 285 OL
Isiah Trousil 5'11 180 RB
The SD kid, Jackson from MI, and OL Royce Newman (MO Commit) are all OL that we have above Foster. These are 3 that we know about- could be others that we are looking at.
We only have 1 or 2 rides to give. If we somehow strike out on the guys listed above, I fully expect Ferentz to use the scholly on a DB or Athlete.
Keep in mind, there is a talented group of instate Lineman next year. We just landed Wirfs, and have to be considered leaders to land Coons and Kallenberger. I think they'll invite Nagel, Newell, and Dykstra to next summer's camp.
Top 2017 Iowa Prospects
1. Juan Harris 6'3 390 DT (Iowa commit, Iowa decommit, Iowa commit, Iowa decommit, Iowa commit)
2. Coy Kirkpatrick 6'4 255 DL (Iowa commit)
3. Tristan Wirfs 6'5 260 OL (Iowa commit)
4. Jacob Coons 6'4 240 LB/TE (Offers from Iowa and Iowa State)
5. Mark Kallenberger 6'6 240 OL (Offers from Nebraska and Iowa State)
6. Rocky Lombardi 6'3 200 QB (offers from Virginia and Iowa State)
7. Devon Moore 6'4 210 QB (ISU commit)
8. Colin Newell 6'5 260 OL (offer from Iowa State)
Others names:
Bo Black 6'2 200 LB
John Nagel 6'6 230 OL
Zach Dykstrka 6'5 285 OL
Isiah Trousil 5'11 180 RB
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Iowa can afford to be "picky" when it comes to OT recruiting. While we're possibly still recruiting him - as others have indicated, we have other guys higher on our board. The Hawks really seem to place a premium on guys having the requisite athleticism, along with demonstrating toughness and a nice mean-streak. The intangibles are really important ... because the coaches know that they can develop excellent linemen if the guys have the right base-ingredients.
Right now the Hawks have Croston (JR), Myers (SO), Boettger (SO), Render (FR), Ferguson (FR), Waechter (redshirting), and a Paulsen (redshirting) .... all of whom are explicitly tagged at OT. Furthermore, in a pinch, Welsh has shown that he can be effective at RT too. The point here being that the Hawks are "fishing" for OT recruits who can push the current group NOW ... not for more developmental guys. If they can land such a guy now ... then that is fabulous. If not, then as another poster indicated, they'll spend the 'ship at another position of need (or else they'll bank it).
It doesn't matter where Kirkpatrick is ranked ... it only matters how much he ends up contributing to the team. If he helps to make the team better ... then that is all that matters.
Also, I'd have Coons tabbed more as a TE or DT - probably more the latter than the former. He'd have to have ridiculous speed to remain at LB or TE given his growth potential.
Kallenberger is supposed to be pretty solid as well. Is there a reason we haven't offered yet? Has he not been to a camp?
Didn't he commit to ISU? This kid is a gamer, he broke his leg mid season this year. He has a strong arm and is mobile. I think he will be a good one for ISU.
There are some good Iowa prospects in the 2017 class. I know Michigan was in our the Mt Vernon Linemen. I heard he was also being looked at by other Big 10 teams. So this kid must be a gamer if all these Big 10 schools are wanting him. Good get for KF and crew.
I think that Kallenberger was a bit of an "emerger" coming out of this high school season. The coaches have definitely been recruiting him. As is often the case, I'd guess that they'd want to get a longer look at the young man. It is still quite early ... and, not surprisingly, the coaches had been rather preoccupied lately with coaching the guys who are currently the roster. I'm sure that when they're not prepping for the bowl, they'll be ramping up their player evaluations ... and as we get deeper into the winter, they'll be in full-out recruiting mode.
If he has in fact visited Nebby 7 times without a commit, I think that is a positive as it relates to Iowa. Perhaps he grew up a Husker fan, so they have a huge advantage, but after seeing them 7 times on campus, he is still unsure if they are the best fit for him. I consider that a positive.
I think its tough for Iowa to appeal to stud offensive tackle in this years class. If they look at the depth chart, we have 3 tackles in Croston, Boettger and Myers that played this year that have two years of eligibility remaining, so it will be difficult for a 2016 recruit to get on the field within two years of being on campus. I'm sure there are similar situations at other schools, but that is probably something the staff is having to combat on the recruiting trail right now. I'm sure every other school we are competing with for these OT prospects, is pointing out Iowa's depth chart at OL right now and quite frankly, its a good problem to have in that we look good on paper for the next couple years along the OL.
Welcome Tristian! We have not received a verbal from a MVHS athlete in a long time. Glad you are one the one to change that!
Anyone else watch the state title game?
I came away from that wondering if iowa would actually pull the offer and send it elsewhere.
Why you say? Motor and effort. Very, very poor.
Physically he looks alot like Jordan walsh and he seems to be pretty athletic but go watch the game. Very little effort or motor and didn't see a mean streak at all.
Hope the light goes on for him
I came away from that wondering if iowa would actually pull the offer and send it elsewhere.
Why you say? Motor and effort. Very, very poor.
Physically he looks alot like Jordan walsh and he seems to be pretty athletic but go watch the game. Very little effort or motor and didn't see a mean streak at all.
Hope the light goes on for him
Yes, Cougar 63, if AJ was waiting to see where Iowa was headed after five years of going nowhere, it would seem the evidence is clear: You CAN win Big Ten AND national titles at IOWA. Although it would be a lot easier if there were a more effective approach to offense. Still, no real reason for AJ to wait now. Pull the trigger, lad.
You evaluate JRs quite a bit differently than you would a SR. Furthermore, when you evaluate the ability of someone - you have to be careful to not do it solely from a static snapshot. Moreover, there is a frequent dialog between the high school head coach and the college recruiters. Even game-tape can be a limiting evaluative tool - particularly with a position like OL. What you also worry about it whether the guy puts forth regular effort in practice and how receptive they are to coaching. Also, you can try to see what sort of competitive fire burns in a guy on a consistent basis. That's part of the reason why the coaches mine multi-sport athletes so often. Some guys might not yet be refined football players ... but they might be excellent athletes who are great competitors.
Respectfully disagree. While Iowa fans like to call Iowa OL U, We typically and inexplicably suffer from a lack of depth on the offensive line.
Also, many if Iowa's NFL lineman were under the radar guys that developed.
When Reese Morgan switched over to coach the OL after Philbin left - it seemed that way too. However, as he got acclimated to the position - he proceeded to have shockingly few "misses." From essentially the 2006 recruiting class to the 2010 class - the only guys who remained healthy and on campus who didn't manage to have a significant impact on the field were Casey McMillan and Drew Clark. All the same, I bet Coach Morgan would even be able to argue that those guys were still valuable squad members ... and he'd probably have a good point too.
As for Brian Ferentz, I think that it's initially a little too early to tell. Probably not unlike Reese's initial few years. The 2011 OL recruits were both "hits." From the '12 class, Simmons has been a consistent contributor, albeit not in a starting capacity and Croston has been consistently developing in the background until finally really "breaking through" this year. Admittedly, the '12 class otherwise has proven to be surprisingly underwhelming ... Sealby left and neither Keppy nor Ward have made strong moves for playing time. However, as I've indicated above, that's not to say that those guys haven't been important contributors ... it just could be that their contributions have mainly been behind the scenes. From the '13 class, Goebel has already left ... but Welsh, Boettger, and Myers have all really emerged. From the '14 class, Render and Ferguson have been making waves ... and from the '15 class, Daniels has been making waves. It's obviously way too early to pass any judgments on either the '14 or '15 OL classes - however, the early indications don't at all seem bad.
More importantly, the quality of Brian's coaching has clearly been improving ... as evidenced by the improved quality of OL play that we've been observing through the past several years. The performance by the '15 OL was especially impressive given all the adversity that the unit faced.
Please explain. I frankly think that Iowa's past mediocrity in the passing game, combined with completely abysmal retention/attrition at running back made it appear as though Iowa's OLs were poorer than they were.
For example, Iowa's offense was statistically bad in 2009 ... however, even decent defenses had to stack the box in order to stop Adam Robinson and Brandon Wegher ... both freshmen at the time from having success on the ground. If you look through a myriad of different years - even as a pro-set team the sack numbers against us typically aren't too bad ... and that's with us releasing the TEs from the line of scrimmage (so that they're not always providing max-pro). We gave up 20 sack in 2010 and only 15 in 2013. Those are pretty decent numbers.
You can't have too many linemen in the bank. Ol' Saban signs at least 5 OL and 4-5 DL every year, and look where that has gotten him
But getting an under the radar guy to develop is not a whiff that is a hit. I would bet that on the offensive line that Iowa has comparatively fewer whiffs than the vast majority of schools in the country. Which is even more impressive considering that a lower percentage of 2 and 3 star guys work out than 4 and 5. For every Ryan Ward there are 3 under the radar guys that end up being really good olineman. How many starters on Iowa's oline at least make an NFL roster. It has to be a ton? Lack of depth is from being a developmental program usually and not from recruits not panning out.
Also, there have been many pretty highly recruited guys on the OL who have had success at Iowa too. Dace Richardson, given his injuries, was still a success story. Bryan Bulaga was a highly touted guy. Neither Riley Reiff nor Brandon Scherff were considered lowly-rated recruits ... although they weren't exceedingly highly rated because they were from small-town middle-America. Also, both Jordan Walsh and Austin Blythe were 4-star recruits ... both of whom have developed nicely at Iowa. Lastly, I think that it is fair to say that we're all excited about James Daniels. My bet is that he turns out to be a pretty good player for us.
its too bad the staff didn't take your advice and revert back to old school timing route systems used in the 60's. MSU would have had no chance in that case. Fire Ferentz!
No doubt, but Saban also signs about 30 guys/year, so there are more at every position.
Greatest name in the history of football? Never seen a second of highlights on this kid but he is easily my #1 target for this class.
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