New Story **Hawkeyes land LB Seth Benson**

[Blair Sanderson]

Hawkeyes land LB Seth Benson

South Dakota linebacker Seth Benson is headed to Iowa.

Blair Sanderson • HawkeyeReport.com
@BlairRIVALS

After picking up a new scholarship offer from Iowa on Sunday, linebacker Seth Benson needed some time to evaluate his options. The 6-foot-1, 210-pound Sioux Falls native was previously going to sign with South Dakota State this week, but an opportunity to play in the Big Ten was just too good to pass up. Today, Benson committed to the Hawkeyes and will sign his national letter of intent with Iowa.

"I felt like Iowa was a great fit for me and I could not pass up the opportunity," Benson told HawkeyeReport.com. "It feels great to finally be done and officially become a Hawkeye."

With family ties to South Dakota State, including his father, Chuck, a former football player there, it was not a decision that Benson made lightly.

"Every day I prayed a lot and talked to my family a lot," said Benson. "Coming to the end of this week, I talked a lot with the coaches and players that are there now."

The two-star prospect will come in and inside linebacker for the Hawkeyes and looks forward to working his way up the depth chart.

"They see me redshirting and then playing the MIKE or WILL," Benson said. "I will have to work hard to play the next year on special teams and keep moving up."


Overall, Benson is commitment No. 18 for the Iowa Hawkeyes in the Class of 2018.

A three-time state champion during his career at Sioux Falls Washington, Benson was named Gatorade player of the year in the state of South Dakota after racking up an impressive 105 tackles and 13 TFL his senior season.

See highlights from Benson's senior year in the video below.

 

[scotthawk1964]

2 stars huh, The next Josey Jewell maybe?

 

[EpenesaEpenesa]

Good call kid. Good get hawks. Nice

 

[JoelBittner]

Third gatorade POTY . . . right?

 

[pacnorthhawkeye]

 

[omahawk1]

odd time to announce it at 11:32 P.M.
He must be up drinking like me

 

[pacnorthhawkeye]

odd time to announce it at 11:32 P.M.
He must be up drinking like me

Odd time for us to be up.....

 

[Hawks_Rock_12]

These are the kind of kids the Iowa staff see's and that others miss. They don't think in terms of the player he is today but the player he will be in 2-3 years. Welcome to the swarm young man !

 

[SWIowahawks]

Nice. I liked his speed in his videos.

 

[Harbinger273]

Good luck to Seth. Hope hes a good one.

 

[Eternal Return]

It sucked to lose Honas, but Iowa desperately needed another LB in this class. Good pickup and at the least he provides depth. If he brings more to that over time then it's gravy. Sounds like he's willing to work hard to improve.

 

[Quintana]

the kid knows how to stay clean getting to the ball carrier. looks like he has some football smarts.

 

[Blair Sanderson]

 

[Dick Rambone]

glad to get a LB ,welcome aboard .

 

[David1979]

I like any kid Reese Morgan recruits. He has an incredible eye for talent. That's 3 Gatorade Player of the Year kids. Tracy, Benson and Evans.

 

[Blair Sanderson]

 

[anon_2zMXH429BhxV1Npk]

Definitely like his knack for getting straight to the ball. Will be interesting to see him develop, you can tell in a lot of his clips that he goes either unblocked or barely blocked. If he can put on some weight, and keep that motor and vision for the ball carrier, he'll need it when he faces Big Ten linemen where he'll actually need to shed blocks.

He could turn into the next Josey. Also really like his mobility, should be good to play inside or outside.

 

[David1979]

Rob Howe has a good interview with his coach on Hawkeyenation. Talks about how good of a leader he is and how it comes naturally to him. Said he was a leader on the team when he was a freshman. Sounds Jewel-like.

 

[nu2u]

Heads up: Benson is not Greenway, he is not Jewell, but he shares their personal traits: work ethic, football intelligence, devotion to success. He will be at practice half an hour early and in the film room until the janitor tells him to go home. He will excel in the classroom too. Bet everything you own that he will be a team captain.

He will get bigger, stronger and quicker with a tailored strength and conditioning plan - the next poster boy for Iowa's developmental program. My early prediction is that he will play special teams as a freshman, make the two deeps as a sophomore, and start at MLB in 2020 (god willing no major injuries).

 

[Blair Sanderson]

Here's an updated look "Inside the rankings" on Iowa's 36th ranked recruiting class after Seth Benson's commitment last night http://rvls.co/2BMWqkO

 

[HawkIDrummer]

Heads up: Benson is not Greenway, he is not Jewell, .....

Perhaps not. But we didn't think Greenway was going to be "Greenway" or Jewell was going to be "Jewell" when they came on board either.

Overall this looks like a pretty solid class.

 

[nu2u]

Perhaps not. But we didn't think Greenway was going to be "Greenway" or Jewell was going to be "Jewell" when they came on board either.

What I meant to convey is that Benson brings different physical skills to the field but he shares their personal characteristics ....the so-called "intangibles". His coaches, his teammates, people that know him all agree about that.

 

[EvilMonkeyInTheCloset]

National championship.

 

[nu2u]

National championship.

EvilMonkey stamp of approval. It doesn't get any better than that. If the Monkey had any reservations, he would have claimed a B10 championship and left it as that. Its time for all Hawk fans to get on board.

 

[ChuckThomas12]

2 stars huh, The next Josey Jewell maybe?

He could turn into the next Josey. Also really like his mobility, should be good to play inside or outside.

Rob Howe has a good interview with his coach on Hawkeyenation. Sounds Jewel-like.

Heads up: Benson is not Greenway, he is not Jewell, but he shares their personal traits: work ethic, football intelligence, devotion to success. My early prediction is that he will play special teams as a freshman, make the two deeps as a sophomore, and start at MLB in 2020

we didn't think Greenway was going to be "Greenway" or Jewell was going to be "Jewell" when they came on board either.

Can we please stop comparing every recruit lacking offers to Josey Jewell?


Yes, it possible - but VERY VERY unlikely - that we take a kid without a single Power 5 or Group of 5 offer, and turn him into the best defensive player in college football.


More than likely, this was a reach to fill a spot left by Honas to nebbie or Van Sumeren to michigan. This kid was SDSU bound without a single legit offer until Kirk called. He sure doesn’t need to unnecessary pressure to become the next Butkus Award winner.

 

[David1979]

Can we please stop comparing every recruit lacking offers to Josey Jewell?


Yes, it possible - but VERY VERY unlikely - that we take a kid without a single Power 5 or Group of 5 offer, and turn him into the best defensive player in college football.


More than likely, this was a reach to fill a spot left by Honas to nebbie or Van Sumeren to michigan. This kid was SDSU bound without a single legit offer until Kirk called. He sure doesn’t need to unnecessary pressure to become the next Butkus Award winner.

Debbie downer. No one is saying he is automatically the next Jewell. Just pointing out similarities. On thing that is not similar. Benson is a higher rated recruit and has more offers.

 

[nu2u]

Yes, it possible - but VERY VERY unlikely - that we take a kid without a single Power 5 or Group of 5 offer, and turn him into the best defensive player in college football.

Please.....can you identify any poster making this claim?

You quoted my post where - in the very first sentence - I specifically stated: "he is not Greenway, he is not Jewell". ....and now you are claiming that I am making him the next Jewell? WTF?

If you read my post more closely, you would have noticed that I shared my thoughts about Benson's personal traits when making a comparison to Jewell. I have followed the Washington HS program for the past several years and have watched several of his games. At no point did I proclaim Benson as the next Hawkeye All-American. I like his potential, so does Reece Morgan -and that should be good news for Iowa fans.

 

[MepoDawg#]

Can we please stop comparing every recruit lacking offers to Josey Jewell?


Yes, it possible - but VERY VERY unlikely - that we take a kid without a single Power 5 or Group of 5 offer, and turn him into the best defensive player in college football.


More than likely, this was a reach to fill a spot left by Honas to nebbie or Van Sumeren to michigan. This kid was SDSU bound without a single legit offer until Kirk called. He sure doesn’t need to unnecessary pressure to become the next Butkus Award winner.

There are more examples than just Josey. There will be more examples. Will he be one, we’ll find out later.

 

[anon_2zMXH429BhxV1Npk]

Debbie downer. No one is saying he is automatically the next Jewell. Just pointing out similarities. On thing that is not similar. Benson is a higher rated recruit and has more offers.

This. I was just pointing out he's coming in with little fanfare and has some of the same qualities (nose for the ball, quick decision making, likes to hit).

No one in their right mind is saying "He could be the next Josey" because they expect him to turn into an All American. That's just over-analyzing a message board post.

 

[jimbob22]

Heads up: Benson is not Greenway, he is not Jewell, but he shares their personal traits: work ethic, football intelligence, devotion to success. He will be at practice half an hour early and in the film room until the janitor tells him to go home. He will excel in the classroom too. Bet everything you own that he will be a team captain.
as
He will get bigger, stronger and quicker with a tailored strength and conditioning plan - the next poster boy for Iowa's developmental program. My early prediction is that he will play special teams as a freshman, make the two deeps as a sophomore, and start at MLB in 2020 (god willing no major injuries).

Benson offers more upside than Honas. Benson had offers from the North Dakotas along with SDSU. All three are good at spotting and attracting big-time talent. I'm sure that if Iowa had offered early, other power 5 schools would have jumped in. Honas was average at Bishop Carroll. He had a great year (one year) at Butler CC. And, you have to wonder about his cognitive ability in picking NU over Iowa.

 

[Buffhawk]

Can we please stop comparing every recruit lacking offers to Josey Jewell?


Yes, it possible - but VERY VERY unlikely - that we take a kid without a single Power 5 or Group of 5 offer, and turn him into the best defensive player in college football.


More than likely, this was a reach to fill a spot left by Honas to nebbie or Van Sumeren to michigan. This kid was SDSU bound without a single legit offer until Kirk called. He sure doesn’t need to unnecessary pressure to become the next Butkus Award winner.

It's what we do!

 

[NorthDSMHawk]

If I've learned one thing the last 19 years, it's to never count out a low rated guy that was offered by Iowa last minute. It's going to come down to how hard this kid wants to work.

 

[ChuckThomas12]

Benson offers more upside than Honas. Benson had offers from the North Dakotas along with SDSU. All three are good at spotting and attracting big-time talent.

Holy sh*t Batman

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA


ONLY ON THIS BOARD would someone claim a consensus #1 JUCO LB, on every service that ranks recruits, to be inferior to a guy like Seth Benson whom we gave his first real offer to at the literal “11th hour”.

I HAVE SEEN IT ALL NOW. Our fan base is full blown homer 1000 mode.

 

[HawkAttackDial911]

If I've learned one thing the last 19 years, it's to never count out a low rated guy that was offered by Iowa last minute. It's going to come down to how hard this kid wants to work.

That, and he's from a state in which talent scouts typically underestimate/underevaluate players.

 

[Fan In Black]

Id like to point out that I always thought Greenway would be Greenway and Jewell would be Jewell.

 

[Hans81]

Holy sh*t Batman

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA


ONLY ON THIS BOARD would someone claim a consensus #1 JUCO LB, on every service that ranks recruits, to be inferior to a guy like Seth Benson whom we gave his first real offer to at the literal “11th hour”.

I HAVE SEEN IT ALL NOW. Our fan base is full blown homer 1000 mode.

So how long have you been a Nebraska fan?

 

[Dick Rambone]

Geno Stone sure was a crappy late reach , this staff hits at a remarkable rate on their late offers .

 

[MepoDawg#]

Dez King says hi.

 

[ChuckThomas12]

So how long have you been a Nebraska fan?

Ah yes, same old same old same old response when any type of negativity is shown towards our recruiting results. same old husker fan troll unl troll come back.

 

[anon_8rcdnbko1jbe0]

Good speed in those clips. It will be interesting to watch his development