Iowa football: Top father and son duos in Hawkeyes history

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IOWA CITY, IOWA- SEPTEMBER 08: Defensive end A.J. Epenesa #94 of the Iowa Hawkeyes gives chase to runningback David Montgomery #32 of the Iowa State Cyclones during the first half on September 8, 2018 at Kinnick Stadium, in Iowa City, Iowa. (Photo by Matthew Holst/Getty Images) /

Eppy and AJ Epenesa

This is the most obvious one at this point, and it’s obvious that despite the elite talent AJ Epenesa possesses, he has just as much of a work ethic. The dude is an absolute force at the edge position and is getting a ton of recognition this offseason from being named preseason All-American to being projected as a top-10 pick. The sky is the limit for this kid.

But it’s a fair question to wonder if the recruitment process would have been as simple had AJs father Eppy Epenesa not played for the legendary Hayden Fry in the mid-90’s?

Eppy is the prototypical Iowa guy, despite having not even grown up near Iowa or the Hawkeyes program. He walked-on after spending time at Iowa Weselyn and worked his way up the depth chart for the Hawks in addition to earning a scholarship quickly after joining the team.

What I love most about this father/son duo is not how insanely talented AJ is, but how humble and understanding they are. A player of AJ’s talent could have been pissed off about not starting the past two seasons, but instead, he quietly went to work and grinded.

To the public, AJs dad Eppy tried to calm folks down and appreciate the process.

I've seen plenty of discussion on A.J. Epenesa not being listed as a starter on Iowa's spring depth chart. Then I saw what his father posted on Facebook. pic.twitter.com/OKQTJGAzru
— Rob Howe (@RobHoweHN) March 21, 2018

So what you’re telling me is not only is this family great at football (worth nothing that AJ’s brother is receiving interest from Iowa as well), but they are a high character family?

I love it.