Iowa football: Hawks have 4th most 2019 NFL Draft picks in Big Ten

NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - APRIL 25: T.J. Hockenson of Iowa poses with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell after being chosen #8 overall by the Detroit Lions during the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft on April 25, 2019 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - APRIL 25: T.J. Hockenson of Iowa poses with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell after being chosen #8 overall by the Detroit Lions during the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft on April 25, 2019 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

The 2019 NFL Draft was a ton of fun for the Iowa football program as four players heard their name called, the 4th most in the Big Ten.

It’s quite apparent that the Iowa football program is entering a new age of Hawkeyes football. Prior to the 2019 NFL Draft, four underclassmen declared, setting a program record. Then, over this weekend, all four of those players heard their names called by the time we reached the middle of the fourth round. While there were a few Iowa football graduates that were expected to be looked at late on day three, ultimately all 32 NFL teams passed on the likes of Ross Reynolds, Keegan Render, and Nick Easley among others.

All three of those guys have signed UDFA contracts and the other graduated members of the Iowa football team are working out the details of their NFL careers, but what really stands out is that the Hawks had the 4th most players drafted in the Big Ten, behind just Ohio State, Penn State, and Michigan, and had the three guys above been taken, the Hawks would have been sitting in second place in the Big Ten.

What’s crazy is those three games have very solid chances to be on an active 53-man roster come to the start of the NFL season, but for one reason or another did not warrant a late-round selection by an NFL team.

Looking at just the first round, the Iowa football team actually tied for 1st in first-round selections with the Ohio State Buckeyes when both starting tight ends were drafted before pick 21.

The Big Ten itself had a fine showing over the three day NFL draft period, finishing second in the number of conference draft picks behind the SEC. The Big Ten had 40 selections compared to the SEC’s 63 but had 7 more selections than the next closest conference, the Pac-12.

With the Iowa football program gearing up to be just as good if not better next season, expect the total number of selections to rise from this year’s 4.

The Hawks already have one projected top-ten pick in AJ Epenesa, and there could be multiple other early entrants when the dust settles, not to mention senior quarterback Nate Stanley among seniors who could see their stock rise during the 2019 NFL season.