Connect with us

Iowa

Iowa football lands commitment from 2025 5-star specialist Scott Starzyk

Published

on

Iowa football lands commitment from 2025 5-star specialist Scott Starzyk


play

IOWA CITY — The future of Iowa football special teams just got a boost.

Class of 2025 specialist Scott Starzyk announced his commitment to the Hawkeyes on Thursday. Starzyk is the No. 1 ranked kicker and No. 4 ranked punter in the class, according to Kohl’s Kicking. He is regarded as a five-star prospect in both categories.

Advertisement

Starzyk, a product of The Woodlands High School in Texas, picked the Hawkeyes over other offers from Mississippi State, Syracuse, Texas A&M and Oklahoma, among others. Iowa offered Starzyk a full-ride scholarship, which is something it doesn’t always do for high school specialist prospects. He took a visit to Iowa in June.

Iowa kicker Drew Stevens has two seasons of eligibility remaining. So barring something unforeseen, Starzyk will be in his first season in the Hawkeye program while Stevens is in his last. The Hawkeyes also have placekicker Tripp Woody on the roster. Iowa just brought in a freshman punter, Rhys Dakin, to fill the departure of Hawkeye legend Tory Taylor.

Iowa special teams coordinator LeVar Woods continues to do good work for the Hawkeyes. That facet of the game has been a strength for the program. Landing Starzyk is another step in continuing that standard.

Starzyk joins LeVar Woods’ son among the commitments in Iowa’s 2025 class. Iowa City West’s Mason Woods made his public pledge to Iowa in June.

The Hawkeyes continue to make progress in its 2025 recruiting class.

Advertisement

Over the last few weeks, the Hawkeyes have landed verbal commitments from Mason Woods, 3-star offensive lineman Cameron Herron and Lucas Allgeyer, 3-star cornerback CJ Bell and 3-star defensive lineman Brad Fitzgibbon.

Iowa is still trying to fill out the class. Highly touted Hawkeye legacy recruit Iose Epenesa, brother of former Iowa star A.J. Epenesa, has yet to announce his college choice. If Epenensa were to commit to the Hawkeyes, it would be a headliner to Iowa’s 2025 recruiting class. The Hawkeyes are also still in the mix for receiver Terrence Smith.

Starzyk is now the 14th player to commit to Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz’s 2025 recruiting class.

He joins the following verbal commitments in the class:

Advertisement
  • Defensive lineman Brad Fitzgibbon (Marist, Ill.)
  • Cornerback CJ Bell (St. Thomas More School, CT)
  • Offensive lineman Lucas Allgeyer (Mary Institute and St. Louis Country Day, MO)
  • Offensive lineman Cameron Herron (Warren Central, Ind.)
  • Athlete Mason Woods (Iowa City West)
  • Defensive back Drew MacPherson (Loyola Academy, Ill.)
  • Quarterback Ryan Fitzgerald (Loyola Academy, Ill.)
  • Tight end Thomas Meyer (Clear Lake)
  • Linebacker Burke Gautcher (Sycamore, Ill.)
  • Linebacker Carson Cooney (Oswego, Ill.),
  • Tight end Eli Johnson (River Falls, Wis.),
  • Quarterback Jimmy Sullivan (Fort Wayne, Ind.)
  • Defensive lineman Joey VanWetzinga (Pleasant Valley)

Follow Tyler Tachman on X @Tyler_T15, contact via email at ttachman@gannett.com





Source link

Iowa

Iowa State football lands 2027 3-star linebacker commit Keaton Wollan

Published

on

Iowa State football lands 2027 3-star linebacker commit Keaton Wollan


play

After securing multiple commitments on the offensive side of the ball, Iowa State football has landed its first defensive commitment in the 2027 recruiting class.

Keaton Wollan, a three-star linebacker out of Amery, Wisconsin, committed to the Cyclones on April 21. The 6-foot-3, 205-pound linebacker announced his decision on social media.

Advertisement

He chose Iowa State over other offers from Texas Tech and North Dakota State. He previously visited Ames in March, but he also took recent visits to Minnesota and Wisconsin.

As a junior at Amery High School, Wollan was a two-way standout and earned all-state honors for the 2025 season. Defensively, he racked up a team-high 125 total tackles, including nine for loss and 1.5 sacks. He also had four forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries, three interceptions and one defensive touchdown.

Offensively, he had a team-high 932 rushing yards and eight touchdowns on 160 carries. He also caught 15 passes for 179 yards, and he was an impact player in the return game, logging more than 500 kick and punt return yards.

According to 247 Sports Composite rankings, Wollan is the No. 93 linebacker prospect in the country and the No. 11 overall recruit in his class from the state of Wisconsin.

Advertisement

Wollan is the sixth player to commit in the Cyclones’ 2027 recruiting class.

Iowa State football 2027 recruiting commitments

As of April 21

  • Gavin Ericson-Staton, OL | Lombard, Illinois/Montini Catholic
  • Isaiah Hansen, RB | Newton, Iowa/Newton HS
  • Koen Hinzman, OL | Hudson, Michigan/Hudson Area HS
  • Will Slagle, OL | Grinnell, Iowa/Grinnell HS
  • Bryson Thompson, WR | San Antonio, Texas/Claudia Taylor Johnson HS
  • Keaton Wollan, LB | Amery, Wisconsin/Amery HS

Eugene Rapay covers Iowa State athletics for the Des Moines Register. Contact Eugene at erapay@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @erapay5.





Source link

Continue Reading

Iowa

Iowa DOT plans overnight I‑80 closure at northeast mixmaster

Published

on

Iowa DOT plans overnight I‑80 closure at northeast mixmaster


play

Prepare for more overnight closures at the northeast mixmaster as the Iowa Department of Transportation closes the ramp connecting westbound Interstate 80 and northbound Interstate 35.

Here’s what to know.

Advertisement

When will the Iowa DOT close the westbound I‑80 to northbound I‑35 ramp?

The westbound I-80 to northbound I-35 ramp will be closed to traffic from 10 p.m. until 5 a.m. the next morning from April 21-24.

What’s the detour when the Iowa DOT closes the westbound I‑80 to the northbound I‑35 ramp?

During the closures, drivers wanting to go from westbound I‑80 to northbound I‑35 will follow a signed detour.

Instead of taking the closed ramp, motorists will stay on westbound I‑80, bypassing the northeast mixmaster connection. They’ll then exit at U.S. Highway 69, turn around, and head back east on I‑80, where they can connect to northbound I‑35 using the open portion of the northeast mixmaster.

Cooper Worth is a service/trending reporter for the Des Moines Register. Reach him at cworth@gannett.com or follow him on X @CooperAWorth.

Advertisement



Source link

Continue Reading

Iowa

Iowa women’s basketball transfer portal visitor commits to Big Ten foe

Published

on

Iowa women’s basketball transfer portal visitor commits to Big Ten foe


An Iowa women’s basketball transfer portal visitor committed to one of the Hawkeyes’ conference foes instead. Former Iowa State guard Kenzie Hare took a visit to Iowa during her transfer portal recruitment, but the 5-foot-9 guard committed to Indiana on Sunday night.

Hare had several visits throughout her transfer portal recruiting process, including trips to Michigan and Illinois State, but the Des Moines Register’s Chad Leistikow reported that Hare also visited Iowa.

On3’s Talia Goodman reported Hare’s commitment to the Hoosiers.

Hare has one year of eligibility remaining. This past season with the Cyclones, in 32 games played and 31 starts, Hare averaged 6.0 points and 2.5 rebounds per game on 40.5% field goal shooting and 40% from 3-point range. A hip injury limited Hare to just 10 games during her first year with the Cyclones in the 2024-25 season.

Advertisement

The soon-to-be redshirt senior transferred to Iowa State before the 2024-25 campaign after spending two seasons at Marquette from 2022-24. Hare averaged a career-best 14 points per game on 45.5% field goal shooting and 42.5% 3-point shooting during the 2023-24 season with the Golden Eagles.

Had Iowa been able to lure the Naperville, Ill., native to Iowa City, Hare would have been another valuable addition to the Hawkeyes’ backcourt depth. But, Iowa has landed other backcourt reinforcements throughout this transfer portal cycle.

The Hawkeyes inked both Dani Carnegie and Amari Whiting.

Carnegie was a first-team All-SEC selection this past season at Georgia, averaging 17.8 points per game on 42.7% field goal shooting, 35.4% from 3-point range and 83.3% from the free-throw line. Whiting averaged 9.6 points, 5.9 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.8 steals per game on 42.5% field goal shooting, 32.1% 3-point accuracy, and 71.6% free-throw shooting.

As Hare joins a promising core of players in Bloomington, the Hawkeyes will once again face the former Cyclone at least once this upcoming season as part of their Big Ten regular-season slate.

Advertisement

Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes, and opinions. Follow Scout on X: @SpringgateNews



Source link

Continue Reading
Advertisement

Trending