And ISM wants to return punts!!
These excerpts are from a HawkCentral column:
On Tuesday, Hawkeye players spoke to the media for the first time in more than 2½ months. Eleven Hawkeyes — 10 on offense, plus the star kicker — met for 10-minute shifts on a Zoom call.
What are the odds third-year sophomore Spencer Petras will be really good in this late-arriving season? With a Big Ten-only, nine-game schedule, he's going to be tested from the get-go. And he's got a lot on his shoulders.
“He just has a commanding personality," roommate, friend and starting center Tyler Linderbaum said. "What you’re looking for in a leader. As each day goes on, he’s building more and more confidence.”
Tyler Goodson thinks Iowa "can" (not "will") win the B1G Championship. He has two interesting distinctions. One, he became the first true freshman to lead Iowa in rushing yards last fall with 638. Two, Iowa has never lost with him as the starter. His four starts coincided with Iowa's season-ending, four-game win streak to finish 10-3.
Alaric Jackson is 6'6", 320 lbs, and is vegan (no meat). There was a legitimate feeling within the program that Jackson might not return to the field for the Hawkeyes. But the 34-game starter at left tackle is back for Year 4 in Iowa’s starting lineup
"I never left or went anywhere. There was no defined choice, whether there was a season or not," Jackson said. "I wasn't going to (consider an) opt-out until there was a defined choice. Now we're playing football, so I'm here."
And a pair of wide receivers brought up Charlie Jones as someone who’s been making waves and practicing with the first team.
“He’s making plays all over the place in practice right now,” Tracy said. “I’m very excited to see what he can do on Saturdays. He’s fast, and he’s very athletic.”
A native of Deerfield, Illinois, Jones transferred to Iowa from Buffalo of the Mid-American Conference the same summer that Oliver Martin arrived from Michigan. While Martin got all of the attention then, Jones (5-foot-11, 187 pounds) was a forgotten man of sorts while redshirting.
Daily Testing
The Hawkeyes have been practicing five days a week, typically in the morning.
Each Big Ten school is capped at 170 daily tests per day and cannot purchase more. Iowa has 124 players and 46 support-staff members (including coaches, trainers and managers), so the math is about right.
Gamedays will be different, with tests required four hours prior to kickoff. The benefit of daily testing is that players who test negative don't have to be subject to contact tracing.
Cole Banwart started the final five games at right guard in Iowa’s 2018 season, but his 2019 was limited to three games (two starts). He had season-ending knee surgery in October after playing his final snaps in Iowa’s 10-3 loss at Michigan in Week 5. In fact, he said he was on the receiving end of "The Wave" at Kinnick as he recovered during the Purdue game Oct. 19.
The recovery, he said, took eight-plus months. But now Banwart is back in the mix for what is expected to be an experienced front five. Practice photos have shown him running at times with the first-team offense. He said he's close to 100%.
ISM want to be a punt returner. After last year’s experiments with Nico Ragaini and Max Cooper, there's room for improvement. Considering Smith-Marsette averages 29.9 yards per kickoff return, he's certainly got difference-making octane that Iowa needs in the punt-return game.
Keith Duncan converted a B1G record 29 FGs last season. He was 29 of 34 in field-goal attempts — including 14 of 18 on distances of 40-plus yards Long snapper Jackson Subbert and holder Colten Rastetter need to be replaced.
Austin Spiewak (a walk-on senior from Rolling Meadows, Illinois) is the front-runner to snap darts back to holder Ryan Gersonde (a fourth-year junior punter from Milwaukee) for the right-footed Duncan, who also converted 32-of-32 PATs last season.
What about the culture?
“The main thing for us is leadership," Goodson said. "Our leadership has grown, and I think our leadership will take us far."
Many players affirmed a strong culture, with veteran lineman Cole Banwart adding, "I think we’re the closest we’ve been in my five years here."
Link to FULL Story: https://www.hawkcentral.com/story/s...ce-charlie-jones-emerges-receiver/3626134001/
These excerpts are from a HawkCentral column:
On Tuesday, Hawkeye players spoke to the media for the first time in more than 2½ months. Eleven Hawkeyes — 10 on offense, plus the star kicker — met for 10-minute shifts on a Zoom call.
What are the odds third-year sophomore Spencer Petras will be really good in this late-arriving season? With a Big Ten-only, nine-game schedule, he's going to be tested from the get-go. And he's got a lot on his shoulders.
“He just has a commanding personality," roommate, friend and starting center Tyler Linderbaum said. "What you’re looking for in a leader. As each day goes on, he’s building more and more confidence.”
Tyler Goodson thinks Iowa "can" (not "will") win the B1G Championship. He has two interesting distinctions. One, he became the first true freshman to lead Iowa in rushing yards last fall with 638. Two, Iowa has never lost with him as the starter. His four starts coincided with Iowa's season-ending, four-game win streak to finish 10-3.
Alaric Jackson is 6'6", 320 lbs, and is vegan (no meat). There was a legitimate feeling within the program that Jackson might not return to the field for the Hawkeyes. But the 34-game starter at left tackle is back for Year 4 in Iowa’s starting lineup
"I never left or went anywhere. There was no defined choice, whether there was a season or not," Jackson said. "I wasn't going to (consider an) opt-out until there was a defined choice. Now we're playing football, so I'm here."
And a pair of wide receivers brought up Charlie Jones as someone who’s been making waves and practicing with the first team.
“He’s making plays all over the place in practice right now,” Tracy said. “I’m very excited to see what he can do on Saturdays. He’s fast, and he’s very athletic.”
A native of Deerfield, Illinois, Jones transferred to Iowa from Buffalo of the Mid-American Conference the same summer that Oliver Martin arrived from Michigan. While Martin got all of the attention then, Jones (5-foot-11, 187 pounds) was a forgotten man of sorts while redshirting.
Daily Testing
The Hawkeyes have been practicing five days a week, typically in the morning.
Each Big Ten school is capped at 170 daily tests per day and cannot purchase more. Iowa has 124 players and 46 support-staff members (including coaches, trainers and managers), so the math is about right.
Gamedays will be different, with tests required four hours prior to kickoff. The benefit of daily testing is that players who test negative don't have to be subject to contact tracing.
Cole Banwart started the final five games at right guard in Iowa’s 2018 season, but his 2019 was limited to three games (two starts). He had season-ending knee surgery in October after playing his final snaps in Iowa’s 10-3 loss at Michigan in Week 5. In fact, he said he was on the receiving end of "The Wave" at Kinnick as he recovered during the Purdue game Oct. 19.
The recovery, he said, took eight-plus months. But now Banwart is back in the mix for what is expected to be an experienced front five. Practice photos have shown him running at times with the first-team offense. He said he's close to 100%.
ISM want to be a punt returner. After last year’s experiments with Nico Ragaini and Max Cooper, there's room for improvement. Considering Smith-Marsette averages 29.9 yards per kickoff return, he's certainly got difference-making octane that Iowa needs in the punt-return game.
Keith Duncan converted a B1G record 29 FGs last season. He was 29 of 34 in field-goal attempts — including 14 of 18 on distances of 40-plus yards Long snapper Jackson Subbert and holder Colten Rastetter need to be replaced.
Austin Spiewak (a walk-on senior from Rolling Meadows, Illinois) is the front-runner to snap darts back to holder Ryan Gersonde (a fourth-year junior punter from Milwaukee) for the right-footed Duncan, who also converted 32-of-32 PATs last season.
What about the culture?
“The main thing for us is leadership," Goodson said. "Our leadership has grown, and I think our leadership will take us far."
Many players affirmed a strong culture, with veteran lineman Cole Banwart adding, "I think we’re the closest we’ve been in my five years here."
Link to FULL Story: https://www.hawkcentral.com/story/s...ce-charlie-jones-emerges-receiver/3626134001/
