Iowa
After flipping commitment to Iowa, safety Ethan Headings will head to UND after all
GRAND FORKS — The latest recruiting movement of safety Ethan Headings is icing on the cake for UND’s 2026 recruiting class.
Headings, a first team all-state wide receiver, was committed to UND in April before switching his commitment near signing day to the in-state Iowa Hawkeyes. Iowa announced his addition as a preferred walk-on in early December.
On Sunday, Headings announced he’s coming to Grand Forks after all. As a preferred walk-on at Iowa, Headings was able to change course without penalty.
“I really missed all the coaches at UND and all the love I got from them,” Headings said of his decision. “It’s just a real great place, and it felt like I was leaving behind a great opportunity they gave me.”
Headings, who’ll arrive in Grand Forks in June, chose UND originally over offers from Northern Iowa, Army, Western Illinois and Air Force.
“I knew (committing back to UND) is what I wanted, so I was just like really hoping they’d give me a second chance,” Headings said. “It took a week … I was waiting to see if I could get a spot on the team. They eventually got back to me, and it was amazing, and I’m so happy I’m accepted at North Dakota.”
Headings, 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds, had a breakout senior season for Iowa City West in 2025. He caught 56 passes for 1,202 yards (No. 1 in Iowa 5A) and 13 touchdowns (No. 1 in Iowa 5A). Defensively, he had 46.5 tackles and 7.5 tackles for loss. He also had two interceptions and a kickoff returned for a touchdown.
Headings hasn’t played much safety before. He played linebacker at Iowa City West during his senior year and played safety some of his junior year.
“I’m just an all-around athlete that’ll perform at any position I’m put at,” Headings said of his strengths. “I feel like I can make an impact on the game wherever I’m at. The coaches see me best at safety, so I’m going to work at safety and see what happens.
“It’s definitely kind of nerve-wracking. I’m going to be trying a whole new position. I trust (UND safeties coach Keaton Wilkerson) to pour into me and teach me everything I need to learn to get me to the point I’m performing well. I’ve been over this with coach Wilkerson. He’s fine with me playing linebacker (in high school). He just wants me to play what helps us win. He said he’ll teach me everything I need to know about safety.”
When it comes to the Iowa Hawkeyes 2026 football season, it doesn’t get much bigger than Ohio State coming to Kinnick Stadium.
No one knows at this stage where the Buckeyes will be come Oct. 3, but Iowa has a chance to make an early impression against a team that is no stranger to winning the big one.
Iowa’s B1G schedule couldn’t get off to a worse start as they head to Michigan and then welcome the Buckeyes to Kinnick.
Hopefully for Iowa’s sake, their first three games against Northern Illinois, Iowa State, and Northern Iowa are enough to get them prepared. If not, things could get ugly.
ESPN Believes Ohio State is Iowa’s Biggest Opponent in 2026
The Michigan game will certainly be a test, but hosting the Buckeyes is a different animal. That gives the Hawkeyes an advantage like no other, and if there was ever a time to give OSU a run for their money, it’s in Iowa City on Oct. 3.
“The Hawkeyes haven’t faced Ohio State at Kinnick Stadium since 2017, when Nate Stanley threw five touchdowns as they stunned the Buckeyes 55-24. An early October win over Ohio State could propel Iowa into the Big Ten title and playoff conversations,” Jake Trotter wrote.
To put things into perspective, Indiana and Oregon were the other two teams that had the Buckeyes listed as their defining game in the 2026 season. Shockingly, Iowa was actually selected against a team, that being Minnesota. Seeing as that’s for the Floyd of Rosedale, it makes complete sense.
Iowa Can’t Let Regular Season Opportunities Go To Waste
Last year was seemingly the Hawkeyes’ first time to actually make the College Football Playoffs. They came up short as their losses to No. 16 Iowa State, No. 11 Indiana, No. 9 Oregon and No. 17 USC all added up. Sure, those were by a combined 15 points, but that doesn’t matter, as it’s bad enough that a three-loss team made the playoffs.
Iowa ended with a bang as they took down No. 14 Vanderbilt in the ReliaQuest Bowl, 34-27. Now, all eyes are on either Jeremy Hecklinski or Hank Brown. One of those men will have a chance to make their first B1G start at the Big House in Michigan.
It doesn’t get any tougher than that, as Iowa is immediately putting their new QB into deep water. They’ll have three games prior to that to get up to speed, but other than that, it’s go time as OSU awaits after their trip to Michigan.
Don’t forget to bookmark Iowa Hawkeyes on SI for the latest news. exclusive interviews, recruiting coverage and more!
MANCHESTER, Iowa — The state of Iowa lost a titan of the prep coaching world this week. Former Kee High School baseball coach Gene Schultz died on Monday at the age of 80.
Schultz spent 45 seasons as the baseball coach at Kee, helping turn the program into an Iowa dynasty. He won 9 State championships (not counting 2 fall titles, which the IHSAA doesn’t recognize in the record books), and took the Hawks to 19 State tournaments, which is also the most in Iowa history.
His 1,754 wins are not only the most in Iowa history, but the most of any high school baseball coach in the country.
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