George Kittle. T.J. Hockenson. Noah Fant. Sam LaPorta. Dallas Clark. Tony Moeaki. C.J. Fiedorowicz. All NFL tight ends that the Iowa Hawkeyes have produced year after year that have gone on to have successful professional careers.
But, ESPN has snubbed the Hawkeyes from the crown of “Tight End U” in its Position U rankings. A bit curious to say the least. Few schools produce as consistently as Iowa does at the tight end position. To call this debatable decision-making by ESPN would be nice.
Nonetheless, Iowa has proven its ability to develop talent on both sides of the football time and time again. The Hawkeyes do find themselves among some of the top-10 teams at multiple other positions. Admittedly, there are some additional snubs by ESPN, but that is their mistake.
Have a look at where the Hawkeyes have flexed their muscles among some of the best programs at developing talent.
Tight End U
Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports
Simply put, this is the most egregious miss by ESPN in these rankings. Iowa is slotted at No. 3 in the “Tight End U” rankings behind No. 1 Miami and No. 2 Notre Dame.
If these rankings were from 2000, there might be a case here, but it is the year 2023 and these rankings are a complete and utter miss. Iowa is your “Tight End U.” End of discussion.
Offensive Line U
Syndication: HawkCentral
Making an appearance in the “Offensive Line U” rankings are the Hawkeyes at No. 9. Spurred on by recent stars, Tristan Wirfs and Tyler Linderbaum, Iowa has shown a propensity to develop NFL starting-caliber offensive linemen.
The Alabama Crimson Tide come in at No. 1 taking home the “Offensive Line U” title and that is a claim that is hard to argue.
Linebacker U
Syndication: The Des Moines Register
While Iowa isn’t cracking the top 10 of the “Linebacker U” rankings yet, they are rapidly ascending thanks to Iowa’s favorite son, Jack Campbell. He has shot the Hawkeyes up the board faster than any team in America.
Inside the top 25, the biggest mover was Iowa, with first-rounder Jack Campbell helping boost the Hawkeyes from No. 23 up to No. 17. Given how much Campbell had to do to overcome Iowa’s offense, it feels like he should’ve earned some extra credit here, too. – Hale, ESPN
The top dog in the “Linebacker U” rankings goes to some dogs, the Georgia Bulldogs. This is simply the standard of linebacker play and remains at the top of the food chain.
Kicker U
(Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
Tied for Iowa’s highest ranking of any position, the Hawkeyes are No. 3 in the “Kicker U” rankings. Last year saw Drew Stevens develop into a true weapon. He came on the heels of Caleb Shudak and Keith Duncan, who each had fantastic careers. Spurred on by Nate Kaeding leading the pack, Iowa’s kickers have been in good hands over the years.
Snubbed from Punter U and Defensive Back U
(Photo by David Purdy/Getty Images)
Two positions Iowa was completely left off of include “Defensive Back U” and “Punter U.”
Let’s start with the punters. Tory Taylor alone has been good enough to warrant Iowa cracking the list here. He is lethal with his distance and accuracy. He truly is a game-changing type of player.
As far as “Defensive Back U” goes, no one is going to claim the Hawkeyes are competing against the top-ranked team, LSU, for this position, but Iowa is sneakily producing NFL talent in the secondary. To not even acknowledge them is a gross snub. As it stands, there are nine defensive backs in the NFL that hail from Iowa, and another one in Cooper DeJean is on the way.
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