Iowa and The Portal.

MelroseHawkins

MelroseHawkins

Well-Known Member
Will Iowa have success poaching former Nebby and Iowa St. players who may enter the portal? I saw Nebby has a freshman RB who just entered. He rec'd playing time as the #2 prior to getting injured. Both teams will undoubtedly have other players entering, who some could be quality. I suppose many will follow the NIL $$ and Iowa may be limited.
 
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MelroseHawkins said:
Will Iowa have success poaching former Nebby and Iowa St. players who may enter the portal? I seen Nebby has a freshman RB who just entered. He rec'd playing time as the #2 prior to getting injured. Both teams will undoubtedly have other players entering, who some could be quality. I suppose many will follow the NIL $$ and Iowa may be limited.
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Just my opinion but RB is not a position I would spend much time on. WE lose Jazz but we still have Doll and some new guys plus the three that had time this year. I think they need to focus on OL/DL line depth, A WR with return experience and some secondary depth which seems like we always need. Not sure where Iowa sits on roster numbers but not sure how crazy they can really get barring a ton of guys leaving.
 


kameltoez102 said:
Just my opinion but RB is not a position I would spend much time on. WE lose Jazz but we still have Doll and some new guys plus the three that had time this year. I think they need to focus on OL/DL line depth, A WR with return experience and some secondary depth which seems like we always need. Not sure where Iowa sits on roster numbers but not sure how crazy they can really get barring a ton of guys leaving.
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No, I realize Iowa is fairly deep there now, but I think this player will have 4 yrs left. If he's a top recruit or is really good, may be worth it sec to the years he has left. But, in general, I agree with you about the RB at Iowa now. I was more thinking of other positions in need, but seeing the RB entered made me think to start a thread about potentially getting some top players entering sec to coaching changes.

And yes, as I understand it, Iowa will have many holes to move players up or fill next season.
 
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Any validity the freshman running back from Texas that entered the portal is looking at Iowa? I wouldn't mind snagging an offensive lineman or two or what about Iowa State's tight end? My buddy swears Rocco has always had a soft spot for Iowa, would grabbing another 1 year wonder at quarterback be even worth it?
 




HawkPowerlifter said:
Any validity the freshman running back from Texas that entered the portal is looking at Iowa? I wouldn't mind snagging an offensive lineman or two or what about Iowa State's tight end? My buddy swears Rocco has always had a soft spot for Iowa, would grabbing another 1 year wonder at quarterback be even worth it?
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It might be worth taking 1 more yr on a QB who has P4 experience who may be interested in Iowa. But, not sure Iowa wants to spend the NIL on a QB with who they have and have to fill other positions of need. It will be interesting to see if Rocco follows MC to Penn St., stays at IA St. or moves on to another.
 




Fryowa said:
Need linebackers.

Go after Kooper Ebel. From HMS up here in NW Iowa and has lots of P4 experience.

Tied for most tackles, 8 TFL, and a sack this year.
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Definitely would be nice to have a couple linebackers. Harrell and Sharar are both lost to graduation aren't they? That leaves Montgomery. And youth. What's the story with Keuter?
 


I guess my take on the portal is with how Iowa plays the importance of the lines are everything. We can have stud running backs, a stud QB and a poor line we won't get anywhere. The passing game relies on how well we can run and pass pro. While we may have 4-5 good guys now capable of doing a good job what happens if they go down? This year we had 5-8 guys that could start with not a lot of drop off between all the combinations. Maybe some new guys can plug some holes but that may not be realistic

Same can be said about the D line. I know the staff is high on some of the young LB play but without guys up front eating blocks it won't matter. Without the ability to maintain gaps and without pressure on the QB it really limits what we can do in the back end.

Bottom line it is still too early to tell as we don't know who is 1) Interested 2) and Who is coming back. Is Fitz kids staying? Is Hank Brown Staying. If those guys leave then the hand will be forced to get a QB. If they stay does it makes sense in our other needs?
 
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Chad Liestikow of the DM Register has reported that Tyler Barnes said that Tim Lester is happy with what they have at QB. Sounds like they won't be adding one from the portal.

As for linebacker, I don't see that as a position of need. Montgomery is back and there were three redshirt freshmen that the staff is very high on. Lot of people wanted to see Cam Buffington in the lineup more. And Preston Ries and Derek Weiskoff are highly thought of as well.

But having said that, if someone that is an instant high-performing starter that's knocking down your door, you probably don't turn them away. I just don't think those two positions will be where we spend a lot of extra NIL $$. I think D Line and WR will be the two positions that we focus on in the portal.
 




With our OLine and DLine pretty much set last season, it was easy to put a ton of NIL $$ into the QB position. Very different situation in '26.

The OLine will have 2 returning starters, so the Hawks will probably be in the market for at least 1 proven P5 Olineman. Problem is, we've added a transfer Olineman the previous 2-3 years, and the transferee has rarely seen the field due to injuries or just not being able to adjust and beat out other guys. Nonetheless, given that Iowa had three (!) 1st Team BTen OLinemen this season, we should have our pick of the litter if we want.

I think the heavy Hawk focus in the upcoming portal will be DLine. They have Epinesa and Hawthorne, but rumor is Hawthorne may not be sticking around. It's easier to pick up Iowa's DLine scheme than OLine, so proven players should be able to step right in. A huge need, and vital to the team's success -- but every other P5 team is looking for DTackles too. The good news is, with Lester apparently Ok with the current QB room and recruits, they should have $$ to spend on the DLine.

On defense, also maybe add 1 experienced LB to join Buffington.

Iowa likes to reward returning players with serious cash, and on Offense I'm guessing the 2 returning OLine starters, RBs Moulton & McLain, and 6'5" WRs VanderZee and Howard are gonna get some serious incentive bucks to stay put in ICity.
 


haydensly said:
Chad Liestikow of the DM Register has reported that Tyler Barnes said that Tim Lester is happy with what they have at QB. Sounds like they won't be adding one from the portal.

As for linebacker, I don't see that as a position of need. Montgomery is back and there were three redshirt freshmen that the staff is very high on. Lot of people wanted to see Cam Buffington in the lineup more. And Preston Ries and Derek Weiskoff are highly thought of as well.

But having said that, if someone that is an instant high-performing starter that's knocking down your door, you probably don't turn them away. I just don't think those two positions will be where we spend a lot of extra NIL $$. I think D Line and WR will be the two positions that we focus on in the portal.
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That’s why I thought about Ebel. He’s an Iowa kid and might not want to stay at ISU with a brand new staff and 90% brand new starters. To me if that’s the case why not stay in stater and go to an NFL factory?

But…I have zero idea what the staff is looking for, who they’d take, or what Ebel is planning on. Pure unadulterated speculation by me.
 


Fryowa said:
Need linebackers.

Go after Kooper Ebel. From HMS up here in NW Iowa and has lots of P4 experience.

Tied for most tackles, 8 TFL, and a sack this year.
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I wouldn't turn down LB experience, but I also have confidence in those young guys (Weisskopf, Buffington, and Ries will all be entering their 3rd year on campus; Burke Gautcher is a freshman this year and a 4*). We still have juniors Montgomery (a revelation this year) and Van Kekerix for leadership.

In the front-7 (really front-6, these days), it is all about spending money on space-eaters and edge-rushers. The LBs will be fine.
 


Fryowa said:
That’s why I thought about Ebel. He’s an Iowa kid and might not want to stay at ISU with a brand new staff and 90% brand new starters. To me if that’s the case why not stay in stater and go to an NFL factory?

But…I have zero idea what the staff is looking for, who they’d take, or what Ebel is planning on. Pure unadulterated speculation by me.
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This would make sense and he could get some NIL $$ or increase what he has been getting. Wonder how many IA St. or Nebby players or any college with a new coach will enter the portal just fishing for a NIL or better NIL opportunity? Not only teams with new coaches, but any existing player looking to get paid.

There was just a freshman IA St. player d-back who announced he's entering the portal. He announced on X that after prayerful thought he has decided to enter but than goes on to state that during the process, he's excited to meet and get to know the new Iowa State coaches and staff??????????? This tells me he's going in to fish for NIL while keeping his options open at IA St. I mean, WTF?? If you were serious about moving on, why would you state you are excited about meeting the new coaches/staff coming in? He was initially a 3 star recruit.

The portal was huge with numbers last year. Just wait to see how many more thousands will be this year for this reason, players fishing. It's out-of-control.

Here it is.
1765307399056.png
 


Grady said:
Iowa likes to reward returning players with serious cash, and on Offense I'm guessing the 2 returning OLine starters, RBs Moulton & McLain, and 6'5" WRs VanderZee and Howard are gonna get some serious incentive bucks to stay put in ICity.
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What do most teams do with NIL and returning players? Do they wait for guys to get offers from other schools, and then try to compete with it (that is how it works in many sectors)? Are most teams pro-actively taking care of their own to promote culture and retention?

I honestly have no idea how programs handle returning players and NIL, and I would be curious to know more.
 




CP87 said:
What do most teams do with NIL and returning players? Do they wait for guys to get offers from other schools, and then try to compete with it (that is how it works in many sectors)? Are most teams pro-actively taking care of their own to promote culture and retention?

I honestly have no idea how programs handle returning players and NIL, and I would be curious to know more.
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The portal is now a leveraging tool for players to get or increase NIL. There are no guard rails for this entire thing.
 




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