Iowa football: Hawks putting finishing touches on class of 2019
By Andrew Wade
Graduate Transfers
Although not historically a high priority for the Iowa football program, there could be a few graduate transfers in play for the Hawks. Although to be honest, I feel like the transfer portal has been more hyped by outsiders then it has been actually explored within the confines of Iowa staff.
That being said, here are the two guys that have been linked to the Hawks.
Jonah Jackson – Jonah Jackson is a recent addition to the transfer portal having announced his intentions to leave the beleaguered Rutgers Scarlet Knight’s football program just over a week ago. Just a week into his recruitment, teams are lining up for his services.
Jackson, a 16-game starter on the offensive line, was team captain this past season during his redshirt junior season which saw the Scarlet Knights limp to just one win this past season. However, his reasons for leaving have less to do with the ineptitude of the program and more to do with exploring academic and personal growth elsewhere.
247 Sports reported that Iowa was pursuing the graduate transfer lineman, but it appears that Ohio State and Oklahoma are currently the front-runners for his services. That being said, it makes sense, if true, that the Hawks would want Jackson. Iowa lost two of it’s three interior offensive linemen (Keegan Render and Ross Reynolds) to graduation and could be looking to add depth to the this unit.
Michael Sleep-Dalton – This is another guy that has been linked to the Iowa football program, and although it wouldn’t be the flashiest graduate transfer signing (Sleep-Dalton is a punter), it would be immensely beneficial to Iowa’s disastrous punting unit. For comparison’s sake, Sleep-Dalton averaged 43.6 yards per punt last season (26th best in the nation) while Iowa’s punter Colten Rastetter averaged 38.9 yards per punt (112th out of 124 teams). It’s obvious the upgrade this would present, but chatter has died down as of late.
UPDATE: Sleep-Dalton officially signed with the Hawks!
Next. Where each former five-star recruit is today. dark
As we get closer to the official signing day on Wednesday, we will keep you posted if anything from the above does change and how that impacts the Iowa football team going forward.