It’s the beginning of August and the Hawkeye football team is starting up fall camp coming off their 8-5 season which was a nice turnaround from the 4-8 season in 2012. The offense is looking to replace TE CJ Fiedorowicz, RT Brett Van Sloten, LG Connor Boffeli and some WRs we are unlikely to miss. For the most part the offense returns intact and other than figuring out some depth issues on the offensive line and the pecking order at WR there are not many questions on this side of the ball. There really aren’t any position battles that will be decided in training camp as spring practice gave the coaches a pretty clear view of this side of the ball going forward.
Quarterback
A couple of transfers have left the Hawkeyes pretty thin at the position and while Jake Rudock got the lion’s share of the playing time last season luckily CJ Beathard got some meaningful snaps too. The lack of depth will mean plenty of practice reps for incoming freshman Tyler Wiegers.
Starter: Jake Rudock Junior
While Rudock is certainly the starter going into camp it’s not as though he has a stranglehold on the job. He performed about as well as anyone could expect from a guy with literally no game experience going into last season and with little help from his receiving corps. Too many turnovers and too many check downs last season leaves the door open for backup QB CJ Beathard to make a push for Rudock’s job. Rudock threw 13 interceptions last year which is far too many for a guy that didn’t take very many chances. His completion percentage also should have been better given his propensity for throwing it short although some of that can be blamed on the less than stellar WR group. Rudock is smart and he has the ability to run the offense but last season he looked unsure of himself at times and he lacked confidence in his receivers, two things he hopefully has rectified this offseason.
Backup: CJ Beathard Sophomore
Beathard is athletic and strong-armed and he certainly looks the part and doesn’t lack for confidence on the field. However, the results in his extended playing time when Rudock was injured last year leave a lot to be desired. Rudock left the door to his job open more than once last season and Beathard stumbled trying to walk through it each time. With the exception of Beathard’s bootleg TD run last year to put the final nail in Nebraska’s coffin he didn’t exactly leave a lasting impression. Ferentz likes to say the coaching staff has confidence in both guys this year but he certainly has to have more confidence in Rudock at this point which is why Beathard will remain the backup.
Rest of the Roster: Tyler Wiegers True Freshman
Senior-to-be Cody Sokol finished 3rd in the three man race for the starting job last year and decided to transfer again for a shot at some playing time. Would-be redshirt freshman Nic Shimonek saw two QB’s with multiple years of eligibility ahead of him, a 4-star incoming freshman (Wiegers) behind him and three possible QB commitments for the 2015 recruiting class and decided to head home to Texas (Texas Tech to be precise) leaving Wiegers as the only other scholarship QB behind the top two guys. Wiegers is a big 4-star recruit that already looks the part of a traditional pocket passer at 6’4 215 lbs. The Michigan kid was an early verbal commit to Rutgers but changed his mind and came to Iowa instead. He fits Ferentz’s preferred pro-style offense and while no one wants to see the Hawkeyes on their 3rd QB at any point this year Wiegers is going to get plenty of practice reps since walk-on Justin Joyce is the only other QB on the roster. Obviously keeping Rudock and Beathard healthy and being able to redshirt Wiegers would be preferable but he is going to have to at least be ready to play if need be because he really is the only option the Hawkeyes will have.
Running Back
A team with four RBs that have actually played should feel pretty good but Hawkeye fans have memories of past years when four wasn’t enough. The transfers of Barkley Hill and Michael Malloy probably won’t hurt much but this is one position where fans keep their eyes on the depth and Hawkeye coaches keep their fingers crossed.
Starter A: Mark Weisman Senior
Weisman is the hammer of the Hawkeye’s backfield and unfortunately the coaching staff is sometimes too reliant on their favorite tool. He is an extremely effective back against smaller and slower defenses but teams that have the speed to get to him early can make him ineffective. The coaches’ overuse of Weisman early last year also meant he was beat up too much and that also makes him less effective. Lightening his workload is paramount to making the most use of him. Weisman’s run-them-over style isn’t going to magically change his senior year so finding the best times to use that skill is up to the coaching staff. I’m fairly certain, and if Vegas is taking bets I’d put my money on, the first offensive play of the Hawkeye’s season being Weisman running left behind Brandon Scherff and if that isn’t the plan it should be. We know the Hawkeyes are going to do it, UNI knows the Hawkeyes are going to do it and it’s still going to be good for about 6 yards.
Starter B: Jordan Canzeri Junior
I usually go with the thunder and lightning analogy when talking about a big back and a small back sharing the workload in the running game but since I went with Weisman as the hammer I think that makes Canzeri the nail gun. The Hawkeye running game always has the same agenda and that is to drive the defense back and while Weisman pounds away bit by bit Canzeri gets it done with a whole lot more speed. I promise I’m done torturing the metaphor. Canzeri is small and shifty and runs with great balance, he finds a hole and hits it quickly. His speed is a great complement to Weisman and he proved last year against Purdue that he can carry the load when needed. The coaching staff has some great depth at tailback this year and they need to figure out which backs’ skills match up best against an opponent. Purdue’s defense last year lacked the speed to fill the hole before Canzeri was already through it and that’s what made him highly effective in that game and those are the matchups the Hawkeyes have to take advantage of.
Backup A: Damon Bullock Senior
Bullock is the third down back because he is the jack-of-all-trades guy. He can run, he can catch out of the backfield and he’s the most trusted blocker in blitz pickup. He was once the starting back but he has been passed by both Weisman and Canzeri in the pecking order for carries and sophomore LeShun Daniels is probably going to pass him this year. That doesn’t diminish his importance given his steady play and the coaches’ obvious trust in him. When Bullock is on the field he can be used in so many ways it gives the offense multiple options, which is the definition of a third down back.
Backup B: LeShun Daniels Sophomore
Arguably the most talented runner at the position Daniels doesn’t have the track record of Weisman, Canzeri and Bullock so he is waiting his turn. His talent may end up being too much to ignore and he has a better combination of size and speed than any of the players in front of him. Daniels played as a freshman last season but he only logged 36 carries so it wasn’t a huge sample. The coaches know they have to lighten Weisman’s workload and Daniels has the power to punish defenses in the same way Weisman does so he should get more carries early in the year to take the load off of Weisman. He hasn’t shown an ability to be a pass catcher out of the backfield yet but that is probably a product more of not being needed in those situations than a lack of skill on his part.
Rest of the roster: Jonathan Parker RS Freshman, Akrum Wadley RS Freshman, CJ Hilliard True Freshman
Most teams fifth and sixth string RBs don’t get talked about much especially when they are two redshirt freshmen no one has ever really seen but Parker and Wadley play for a team that was once cursed at their position. Not having seen much of either one I can say that coaches seem to like them and like the rest of us they hope they don’t need them at any point this year. Hilliard comes in a starts his career with the Hawks at RB but he’s going to redshirt and I’m guessing during Bowl prep the coaches will decide if he stays at RB or moves to safety. Hilliard played safety in high school and if the Hawkeyes get a couple of good recruits committed and if academic casualty Merkel Smith (he was supposed to be Hilliard’s classmate) makes it back to Iowa after some time at a prep school Hilliard might find Iowa’s safety depth chart easier to crack.
Fullback
Juniors Adam Cox and Macon Plewa have the position well in hand and while they don’t get a lot of pub they both block quite effectively. The Hawkeyes use a fullback more than most college programs nowadays. There isn’t any depth to speak of here as Cox and Plewa are the only fullbacks currently on the roster but Iowa has a tendency to find a walk-on or covert a LB into a fullback when necessary so when they need one they will find one.
Wide Receiver
The long Hawkeye nightmare, okay my long Hawkeye nightmare, of having to watch Don Shumpert try to catch a football is finally over and it’s time for the Hawkeye receiving corps to step up and help out Jake Rudock. Kevonte Martin-Manley brings leadership and steadiness to the position but it’s the younger guys that have to bring the explosive plays and the Hawkeyes need explosive plays. The list of possible candidates is long so the competition in fall camp should be fierce.
Starters: Kevonte Martin-Manley Senior; Tevaun Smith Junior
Martin-Manley can lineup inside or out but he does his best work from the slot. He is an All-Conference and possibly an All-American as a punt returner and he gives Rudock a very nice security blanket. The problem is that unless someone steps up to take some of the coverage off of him teams will focus their pass coverage on him. Smith is a steady starter but he needs to become a playmaker if he wants to hold onto his starting spot. In his third year he should be ready to make the leap from potential playmaker to actual playmaker. If he doesn’t there is a breakout star waiting in the wings to take his starting spot.
Potential Breakout Star: Derrick Willies RS Freshman
Willies was the talk of the spring practices as he showed enormous potential and at 6’4 210 lbs. he has the size and the speed the Hawkeye passing attack has been missing. Willies made multiple big plays during the open practices this spring and it was enough to separate himself from the pack and give him a shot at a starting spot. He is likely to be the one lining up with Smith and Martin-Manley on any three WR sets with Martin-Manley kicking inside to the slot. Once Willies shows some consistency he will gain the trust of the coaching staff and of Jake Rudock.
Backups: Damond Powell Senior; Jacob Hillyer Junior; Riley McCarron Sophomore; Matt Vandeberg Sophomore
Powell would be a breakout candidate but he recently had hernia surgery that will keep him out of fall camp and on the sidelines at the beginning of the season. He has the speed the team needs and with a year in the system he should finally have a grasp on the playbook. His potential showed in flashes last year but there was no consistency to his play or his playing time. Hillyer stepped up at the end of last season and finally started to show that he could actually be a contributor. He has great size and while he lacks great speed he knows how to use his body and his playing time at the end of last season should help him get back on the field. McCarron was talked about a lot last offseason after a great spring but he seems to have been passed up on the depth chart. He has experience and he’ll contribute on special teams but his reps at WR may fall off quite a bit. Vandeberg was the surprise freshman that didn’t redshirt last season. He impressed the coaches enough to get a chance and he has the ability to leap over both McCarron and Hillyer in the pecking order.
The Future: Derrick Mitchell RS Freshman; Andre Harris RS Freshman; Jay Scheel True Freshman
First thing to know is that Jay Scheel is rehabbing an injury and he is coming in as a WR even though he played QB in high school. Between his rehab, learning a new position and that position having at least 9 players ahead of him I don’t even want to imagine the scenario that would have to happen for Scheel to see the field this year. Unless that scenario is Scheel looking like a young Randy Moss and Kirk Ferentz having no choice but to play him…sorry that’s just not happening…cross your fingers for next year. Mitchell and Harris are the other two redshirt freshmen WR like Derrick Willies but they didn’t make quite the same impact in the spring. Talented players that will most likely have to wait their turn but one of them playing their way into the 5th WR role (behind Martin-Manley, Smith, Willies and Vandeberg) isn’t completely out of the realm of possibility. A healthy Powell and Hillyer will certainly put a fight but both Mitchell and Harris are bigger than Powell and faster than Hillyer.
Tight End
If you start at TE for the Iowa Hawkeyes you have a pretty good chance to make the NFL and if you don’t believe me just ask CJ Fiedorowicz…or Brandon Myers…or Allen Reisner…or Tony Moeaki…or Scott Chandler…or call Dallas Clark he’s got some time on his hands these days. The TE run under Kirk Ferentz has been pretty amazing and there are a few guys ready to keep it going.
Starter: Ray Hamilton Senior
My choice for breakout player of the year is Ray Hamilton. I think Willies will be a big contributor at WR but Hamilton has been biding his time behind Fiedorowicz for years and he’s just been solid and steady. He’s sort of been tagged as the “blocking TE” because Fiedorowicz was always the red zone target and big athletic pass catcher but Hamilton has that skill he just wasn’t asked to use it. Even Jake Duzey (he’s next) got the big highlight reel play last year against Ohio St. with his huge TD catch and run. Hamilton is going to be a big part of Iowa’s offense and I think Rudock will find him to be a very reliable target. And yes in my opinion Hamilton will get drafted in 2015 and play in the NFL next year.
Backups: Jake Duzey Junior; Henry Krieger-Coble Junior; George Kittle Sophomore
I’m listing all of these guys because they will all play and they all have a role. Duzey is a WR that is too big to play WR so he lines up as a TE. He has excellent hands, great route-running ability and if you want to know how fast he is the Buckeyes still haven’t caught him. Krieger-Coble gets to step into Hamilton’s “blocking” TE role while Hamilton steps up. Duzey isn’t really known for it and Krieger-Coble has good size. It’s an unheralded role for sure but an important one nonetheless. Kittle is another undersized TE (or an oversized WR if you prefer) and he fills a role too. He isn’t quite as dynamic as Duzey but he’s still a weapon when he gets on the field. *Redshirt Freshman Jon Wisnieski would have been worth mentioning here but he redshirted last year and then suffered a knee injury during the spring. It seems unlikely he’ll contribute this season.
Offensive Line
Contrary to popular belief Brandon Scherff is not going to play offensive line all by himself this season for the Hawkeyes. Scherff is unquestionably the marquee name for the Iowa Hawkeye team and he has earned it but they do return other starters on the line. C Austin Blythe is seriously underrated in the pivot and RG Jordan Walsh played pretty well last year. RT Andrew Donnal has filled in all over the line the past few years and finally as a senior he’ll get his chance to start at one position. Redshirt freshman Sean Welsh has staked his claim to the LG spot between Scherff and Blythe and the rest of the roster is long on potential and short on experience.
Left Tackle
Starter: Brandon Scherff Senior
Iowa’s next great offensive lineman is the stuff of legends. Scherff’s weight room accomplishments have gone viral, he’s been mentioned as a possible #1 overall pick in next year’s NFL Draft (it’s not a crazy idea) and he is simply the best offensive linemen in the Big Ten and probably the nation. Did I hype him up too much? Was that over the top? Scherff is a monster and last year he was the best run blocking lineman in the country and he returned for his senior year to become a better pass blocker and apparently to lift really heavy things over and over again. NFL coaches, scouts and GM’s are drooling over him and they should be. He is a better pro prospect than Bryan Bulaga, Reilly Reiff or Robert Gallery and I say that with all due respect to those three fantastic former Hawkeyes. The Hawkeye offensive line will follow Scherff’s lead as will this team and as most people know when Kirk Ferentz has a good offensive line he usually has a good offensive team.
Backup: Ike Boettger RS Freshman
One of the strangest quirks in Iowa football recruiting is that between Scherff and Donnal’s recruiting class and Boettger’s Iowa only secured the commitment of one true offensive tackle and that was Ryan Ward, with a lack of depth at the position Ferentz turned to an old trick. He took a tall skinny TE recruit, told him to eat and sent him to Chris Doyle. It’s worked wonders in the past and depending on which report you believe Boettger has gained between 50-60 pounds in the last year but I can say with absolute certainty that Hawkeye fans would rather wait until next year to find out if the trick worked this time.
Left Guard
Starter: Sean Welsh RS Freshman
It’s hard to know much about a redshirt freshman offensive guard but I can tell you that he didn’t win this spot by default. There are older players like Eric Simmons and Ryan Ward that could have slid into this spot and there are other young guys like Colin Goebel, Mitch Keppy and Reid Sealby that had the same chance Welsh did but he won the job coming out of the spring and it looks like he’ll stick.
Backup: Boone Myers RS Freshman
Myers is actually a walk-on and he has been listed at both OT and OG at different times and the coaches seem to really like him. He may kick out to OT if need be but for now he backs up Welsh.
Center
Starter: Austin Blythe Junior
The Hawkeyes have a recent history of sending OT’s to the NFL but it’s been a while since an Iowa center was a big time NFL prospect. Brandon Scherff has all the attention for now but while scouts are watching Scherff they are going to notice Blythe. At 6’3 300 lbs. he’s a prototypical NFL center size and he’s been expertly coached by Kirk and Brian Ferentz. Blythe is strong and agile and he deserves credit for how good he really is in the middle of the offensive line. Scherff sets the tone for the offensive line but Blythe is the guy getting them all lined up where they need to be and he does an excellent job at it.
Backups: Tommy Gaul Senior; Eric Simmons Junior
Gaul and Simmons are both listed behind Blythe and neither is listed as a possibility at OG and that tells me that Ferentz is hopeful that he never has to decide which one of these two to play. History tells a story with Ferentz and he’s always been a coach that plays his best 5 offensive linemen and when one goes down he puts in his sixth man and shuffles them around if necessary. Tackles play guard, centers play guard and guards play center if necessary, if something happens to Blythe I think there will be some shuffling around to find the right combo.
Right Guard
Starter: Jordan Walsh Junior
Walsh was a big time 4-star recruit when he signed with Iowa and he played off and on for a while until he finally solidified a spot last year at RG. He played pretty well and this should be the time where he really starts to shine. He has plenty of playing experience over the past two seasons and he works well inside next to Blythe. If Walsh steps up his play it will go a long way to making Iowa’s offensive line special.
Backup: Mitch Keppy Sophomore
There isn’t a lot to say about Keppy. He’s a good sized kid with no actual playing experience and it might take a number of injuries to see him get a lot of playing time. He’s only a sophomore so he’s got time to work his way in but there are some incoming guys that are going to push him.
Right Tackle
Starter: Andrew Donnal Senior
Patience is a virtue and after swinging around from guard to tackle and back to guard and back to tackle Andrew Donnal finally gets his shot to start after the graduation of Brett Van Sloten. Donnal played left guard pretty well last year and he has filled in at every position except center during his career but he’s a tackle by trade and he should excel at the position. He will be better simply because he knows where he will line up from week to week.
Backups: Cole Croston Sophomore; Ryan Ward Sophomore
Croston is walk-on and Ward was the much heralded 4-star and yet they are both listed as the backup to Donnal. Neither of them has seen meaningful playing time so they are an interesting battle to watch. One of these two is going to be expected to step into the RT job next year.
The True Freshman: Lucas LeGrand, Keegan Render and Ross Reynolds
These three will all redshirt and all three are seen as interior offensive linemen.
Kicker
Marshall Koehn is listed as the starter but that is only because he’s the only one that has been on campus until now. Texas kicker Mick Ellis was brought in on scholarship and Mason City alum Miguel Recinos walked-on and Kirk Ferentz didn’t exactly sing Koehn’s praises when asked about the position. Ferentz noted the need for consistency and said he “had no idea” who his kicker would be at this point. The competition is on and I wouldn’t even begin to guess on this one. Okay that’s a lie I’m going with Ellis.
The Hott Read 