[Herky] Iowa hangs on to its class of 24
Sue Bailey
minburnsb at gmail.com
Thu Feb 4 12:00:54 PST 2016
IOWA FOOTBALL RECRUITING
Iowa hangs on to its class of 24
By Marc Morehouse,The GazetteIOWA CITY - Recruiting is like life on a
fault line. Everything looks pretty fantastic on the California coast
along the Pacific Ocean, but then there's that San Andreas Fault
churning things beneath the surface.
Menomonie, Wis., quarterback Nathan Stanley was Iowa's first commitment
for the 2016 recruiting class,which signed on the dotted line when the
national signing period began Wednesday. The 6-5, 215-pounder who leads
Menomonie High School basketball in scoring and who has a 90 mph
fastball said yes to Iowa all the way back on Nov. 11, 2014.
Stanley's first camp stop, however, was Pittsburgh, where Paul Chryst
then was head coach. Chryst was the first to offer. Then, Stanley next
went to camp in Iowa City. His mom, Donita, is from Iowa. Donita and Jay
Stanley went to Wartburg. The family saw a fit and said yes to Iowa.
'We were fortunate that he camped here,' Iowa assistant coach Seth
Wallace said Wednesday. 'We really were. It was obvious when he got here
that this kid was a big-time quarterback. Once we started learning more
about him, it became obvious that we really, really wanted Nate
Stanley.' Stanley was one of 24 high school prospects to sign a letter
of intent with the Hawkeyes on Wednesday. Iowa filled needs with three
tight ends, including Cedar Rapids Kennedy standout Shaun Beyer, and
five potential defensive ends. Butmaybe more than in a lot of recent
classes, Iowa found itself with a bunch of versatile football bodies (11
players measure 6-4 and above) that might be able to plug in anywhere.
Take Beyer, for instance. He's 6-5, 210 pounds. He played everything
from wildcat quarterback to running back to tight end to punter for the
Cougars. At Iowa, you can take quarterback and running back off that
list, but that's about it.
'Not sure what he's going to play yet, and that's a
Kirk Ferentz
Iowa football coach
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Injuries to recruits don't scare off Iowa coaching staff
'Not sure what he's going to play yet, and that's a
good problem, too,' head coach Kirk Ferentz said. 'He's one of the guys
to me an athlete category-type player, but I think tremendous growth
[potential], attitude.' The earth didn't stop moving for Iowa's class
until early Wednesday morning. Offensive lineman Alaric Jackson was set
to commit to Iowa on Monday, but received late interest from Michigan
and decided to put an announcement on hold. The 6-7, 285-pounder signed
with the Hawkeyes early Wednesday morning.
'I'm not going to say I wasn't worried about it or concerned about it,
but anything can happen in recruiting, I realize that fully,' Ferentz
said, 'but his consistency throughout the whole process really has
impressed me a great deal and makes you feel better about him as a
football player, too.'Iowa expected to sign 25 players, but New Jersey
wide receiver Frank Darby needs to retake the SAT on Feb. 20 before he
can proceed. NCAA rules prevent coaches from commenting on unsigned
players, but Ferentz did say there still is room in this class when
asked about Darby, who was scheduled for an SAT on Jan. 23 but a
snowstorm forced postponement.
In addition to Stanley and Jackson, running back Toks Akinribade and
tight end Noah Fant also count as pretty terrific 'hang ons.'
Akinribade, who rushed for 1,500 yards and 16 TDs as a senior at
Brownsburg (Ind.) High School, heard a lot from Indiana, held an offer
from Michigan and lost his primary contact at Iowa when former
linebackers coach Jim Reid left for Boston College last month.
Fant, an Omaha, Neb., native, held an offer from the homestate Huskers
and almost took a visit to Minnesota.
Akinribade or fellow running back Toren Young (Monona Grove, Wis.) could
end up seeing time next season at running back, Wallace said.
Defensive end prospects Romeo McKnight and Austin Schulte suffered torn
ACLs after they committed to Iowa. This has happened in the past and
Ferentz and Iowa have never backed out of the commitment.
'Once we make an offer, a commitment to a player and they make a
commitment to us, it's a two-way street,' Ferentz said. 'That's just
something we believe in ... We just tried to do our best to make sure
they're getting good medical care, and when they get here if they need
to go through the rehab process with our people, that'll start in June.'
•Comments: (319) 398-8256; marc.morehouse at thegazette.com
<mailto:marc.morehouse at thegazette.com>
*IOWA SIGNEES *
•Toks AkinribadeRB 6-0 205 Fr. Brownsburg, Ind. Brownsburg
•Cole BanwartOL 6-4 280 Fr.
Ottosen, Algona
•Shaun BeyerTE 6-5 210 Fr. Shellsburg, Cedar Rapids Kennedy
•Lance BillingsDB 6-0 176 Fr.
Lorain, Ohio Clearview
•Cedric BoswellDB 5-11 175 Fr. Beverly Hills, Mich. Groves
•Noah FantTE 6-5 220 Fr.
Omaha, Neb. Omaha South
•Chauncey GolstonDE 6-5 227 Fr. Detroit, Mich. East English Village
•T.J. HockensonTE 6-5 230 Fr. Chariton, Iowa Chariton
•Amani HookerDB 6-0 203 Fr.
Minneapolis, Minn. Park Center
•Alaric JacksonOL 6-7 285 Fr.
Detroit, Mich. Renaissance
•Amani JonesLB 6-0 215 Fr.
Chicago, Ill. Phillips
•Cedrick LattimoreDE 6-5 260 Fr. Redford, Mich. East English Village
•Romeo McKnightDE 6-5 235 Fr. Crystal Lake, Ill. Crystal Lake Central
•Nick NiemannLB 6-4 220 Fr.
Sycamore, Ill. Sycamore
•Emmanuel RugambaDB 6-0
172 Fr. Naperville, Ill. Naperville Central
•Austin SchulteDE 6-4 250 Fr.
Pella, Pella
•Brandon SimonDE 6-1 236 Fr. Newark, N.J. Don Bosco Prep
•Nathan StanleyQB 6-5 212 Fr. Menomonie, Wis. Menomonie
•Kyle TaylorLB 6-2 220 Fr.
Silver Springs, Md. Gonzaga, Washington D.C.
•Barrington WadeLB 6-1 210 Fr. Skokie, Ill. Niles North
•Kristian WelchLB 6-3 220 Fr.
Iola, Wis. Iola-Scandinavia
•Spencer WilliamsOL 6-3 290 Fr. Cedar Falls, Cedar Falls
•Devonte YoungWR 6-0 195 Fr. Waldorf, Md. North Point
•Toren YoungRB 5-11 220 Fr.
Madison, Wis. Monona Grove
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