Iowa True Freshmen Stock Report

As the start of the Iowa football season rapidly approaches, one of the question that Hawkeye fans are curious about are the true freshman. They want to know not only how well they are preforming, but if there is an opportunity for them to play this fall, and how much.

These days how true freshmen and playing time are view is drastically different than it was in the past. With the change to allowing players to participate in up to four games without giving up a redshirt year, it’s very different than one snap essentially means the redshirt possibilities had come to a close.

From an overall standpoint, everything we have heard during fall camp is very positive about this group of true freshmen. They have as well as could be expected and perhaps a couple of players have exceeded expectations and put themselves into a position where they could play more than four games this year.

One thing to also remember is a first year play might see the majority of their snaps on special teams. Most players agree to that role because they want to play a role in helping the Iowa football team win and perhaps it puts them in a better position to play significant snaps next fall.

We will go position by position and we will also be sticking with the scholarship players as we evaluate where the freshman class stands.

QUARTERBACK

Marco Lainez – It’s a bit of an interesting situation for the New Jersey signal caller right now. With Cade McNamara sidelined this past week following a quad injury at the Kids Day practice and Joe Labas still not fully back, Lainez is technically Iowa’s second string quarterback. With that said, once McNamara is back and Labas returns to practice, it’s a redshirt year ahead for Lainez.

RUNNING BACK

Kamari Moulton and Terrell Washington Jr. – It is worth noting that Washington Jr. arrived in January and participated in spring ball, so from that respect, he has a leg up on Moulton. It’s also worth noting that the running back position is pretty stacked right now, particularly amongst the top three of Kaleb Johnson, LeShon Williams, and Jaziun Patterson. Iowa is going to have a tough time feeding three, let along two more. Having said that, Moulton is impressive and really physical runner.

TIGHT END

Grant Leeper and Zach Ortwerth – Right now the tight end position is really loaded. Erick All and Luke Lachey are going to get the bulk of the work. Addison Ostrenga is taking a step forward and there’s a strong buzz about Steven Stillianos in camp. That means there’s no real opportunity for Leeper and Ortwerth this season.

WIDE RECEIVER

Jarriett Buie, Dayton Howard, and Alex Mota – If there is a freshman on the offensive side of the ball that is going to surpass the four game barrier it’s probably at wide receiver. Listening to Kelton Copeland at media day, he raved about Buie and also sang the praises of Howard. Copeland also said he likes wide receivers who have size and Howard stands 6-foot-4. Right now it feels like Buie is the odds on favorite and Howard might get his feet wet.

OFFENSIVE LINE

Trevor Lauck, Leighton Jones, Cannon Leonard, and Kade Pieper – As the old saying goes, the closer you are to the snap of the football, the harder it is to play as a true freshman. While I think that is true, it is certainly changing. Having said that, given the depth that Iowa has up front, it’s hard to see a road to playing time for these guys in year one. It is worth mentioning that the coaches are very high on the potential of these four players.

DEFENSIVE LINE

Maddux Borcherding-Johnson, Chase Brackney, and Kenneth Merriweather – See the comments about the offensive line. Along with that, Iowa is probably about 10-11 deep among the veterans this year. A little note to add, the coaches have been pleased with that they have seen from the potential of Merriweather.

LINEBACKER

Aidan Hall and Ben Kueter – Could we see both Hall and Kueter end up playing this year? Maybe. If it happens, it would almost certainly be on special teams. Kueter seems like an ideal fit to play special teams this year with his speed and mentality. Perhaps Hall could be a four game or under type player this year.

DEFENSIVE BACKS

John Nestor, Teegan Davis, Zach Lutmer, Kahlil Tate – One thing we know is that Davis is not playing this season after knee surgery this spring. Lutmer feels like a possibility, maybe keeping it four games or less and mainly on special teams. The intriguing players will be Nestor and Tate. Iowa is a bit thin at cornerback and it feels like there’s a chance that one or both could find their way on to the field this season.

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