The Iowa Hawkeyes just finished up their spring work with an open practice for fans to take in.
Iowa fans got an extended look at quarterbacks Jackson Stratton, Hank Brown and Jimmy Sullivan and a number of other players stood out. As the Hawkeyes wrap the spring phase of their offseason, attention now turns toward summer workouts and then fall camp.
Though Iowa is still linked to several defensive backs in the transfer portal, most of the roster reconfiguring has already concluded for both the Hawkeyes and across college football.
With spring practices and the transfer portal window in the rearview, analysts are now unveiling their updated post-spring top 25 rankings.
Iowa made the cut in On3’s post-spring top 25 rankings, checking in as the nation’s No. 25 team per Andy Staples.
The Hawkeyes took a slight step back on defense last season and the quarterback play was as abysmal as it had been the previous few years, but as usual they put together a solid season. Now they bring in QB Mark Gronowski from South Dakota State. Gronowski, the 2023 Walter Payton Award winner, might be able to turn Iowa into a functional offense. If that happens, watch out. The Hawkeyes might rise from fringe top-25 team to CFP contender. – Andy Staples, On3.
Gronowski threw the football a bit during warmups of Iowa’s open spring practice over the weekend, but the 6-foot-3, 230 pound quarterback is still on the mend after an offseason shoulder surgery.
Gronowski is expected to be a full participant for the Hawkeyes’ summer program, though, and, once the program gets him up to speed, the expectation is that the former SDSU signal-caller can provide a dimension to the Hawkeyes’ offense that has been lacking.
A native of Naperville, Illinois, Gronowski was a prized transfer portal addition for Iowa after throwing for 10,308 yards and 93 touchdowns and rushing for an additional 1,767 yards and 37 scores. Gronowski’s 49 wins at South Dakota State are tied for an FCS record as the most of any quarterback.
With Gronowski set to pull the strings, there’s a hope that the Hawkeyes have found the proper quarterback to unlock the passing offense which will highlight receivers Reece Vander Zee, Jacob Gill, Seth Anderson, Sam Phillips and Kaden Wetjen among others.
Iowa is replacing six starters defensively. That group includes defensive linemen Yahya Black and Deontae Craig, linebackers Jay Higgins and Nick Jackson and defensive backs Sebastian Castro and Quinn Schulte.
Iowa registered the No. 11 scoring defense (17.8 points per game) and the No. 20 total defense (318.4 yards allowed per game) a season ago. The Hawkeyes are looking to shore up a defensive backfield that slipped to 42nd nationally in passing yards allowed per game (203.1) after ranking No. 5 in the country in that category during the 2023 campaign.
On3’s top five features No. 1 Texas, No. 2 Notre Dame, No. 3 Clemson, No. 4 Penn State and No. 5 Ohio State. Other ranked Big Ten teams include No. 6 Oregon, No. 9 Illinois, No. 17 Michigan and No. 22 Nebraska. Indiana was among On3’s next five teams to watch outside the top 25.
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