Versatile Florida defensive back Dane Belton is going to be a Hawkeye. After spending the weekend in Iowa City for his official visit, the 6-foot-1, 190-pound Tampa native gave his commitment to the Iowa coaches this morning and announced it tonight after returning home.
"I’ve always heard when you go through the recruiting process you’ll know when you find the right place," Belton told HawkeyeReport.com. "After the going on the visit to Iowa and hanging out with the players and talking to the coaches, it just felt right."
A three-star prospect, Belton chose the Hawkeyes over 25 other scholarship offers with a list that included Pittsburgh, Louisville, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, Rutgers, Vanderbilt, West Virginia, Cincinnati, and South Florida, among others.
"Just talking to my dad and my mom, Iowa is the school that stands out the most to us and nothing is really going to change that," said Belton. "I think it's just the right place."
The Hawkeyes love Belton’s versatility in the defensive backfield, which is something he discussed with Iowa defensive coordinator Phil Parker during the visit.
"They love how I’m versatile and I can play safety and corner," Belton said. "They want me to come in and probably start out at corner and get to know the defense and just go from there. If I work hard enough, there’s a chance to earn some playing time early on."
Belton's host for the weekend was safety Geno Stone, who showed him around Iowa City and introduced him to several of the other current players, who welcomed the Tampa native with open arms.
"The players are really close. It’s like a family really," said Belton. "This year, Geno moved into a house with a couple teammates and they’re like brothers. It felt like a family environment."
Now, Belton will be joining that family and attending the University of Iowa, which is where his father, Danny Belton, was actually a student for a couple years in the late 80's.
"It's cool to go to the same school that he did," Belton said. "It didn't really factor into the decision much, but it's special."
Overall, Belton is commitment No. 12 for Iowa in 2019 as he joins Ezra Miller, Logan Lee, Tyler Endres, Noah Fenske, Jack Campbell, Sebastian Castro, Jestin Jacobs, Desmond Hutson, Jake Karchinski, Alex Padilla, and Jalen Hunt in the Hawkeyes' recruiting class.
See highlights from Belton's junior year at Tampa Jesuit in the video below.
