Iowa football head coach Kirk Ferentz is not known to be aggressive on the NCAA’s transfer portal, but there are a few guys he should consider for 2019.
The Iowa football team suffered an unusual amount of underclassmen attrition this offseason. Sure, there are always guys who decide to transfer, and maybe one or two that decide to declare early for the NFL, but this offseason was a little bit more unique. Because of the departures, the Hawks were left pretty thin in a few areas, most notably in the trenches and at tight end.
I mean, how often do yo lose your entire starting defensive line to graduation or early NFL declaration and then turn around lose one guy to retirement, one guy to the offensive line, and possibly another to transfer? All in all, that’s seven guys that might leave the Iowa football program in one year and then there’s tight end where the Hawks lost not one but two All-American tight ends in Noah Fant and TJ Hockenson.
Finally, for some reason the offensive line group has gotten somewhat thin despite losing just two starters from this five-man unit.
With the way the Iowa football program recruits, these positions are not typically positions that are freshman can step right in and make an impact at either, which is why I believe Kirk Ferentz should be exploring the transfer market, which to some degree he has.
The Hawks signed punter Michael Sleep-Dalton, who was on the transfer portal. They’ve been linked to a few others, but will they take the plunge? If they do, here are five guys that could shore things up for the Hawks immediately.