Iowa football: 3 biggest question marks heading into 2019
By Ryan Sikes
1. Will Iowa be able to re-create the production from Fant and Hockenson?
Don’t kid yourself. The Iowa football took a big hit when both Noah Fant and T.J. Hockenson declared for the NFL draft. I mean, between the two, they combined for 1,279 receiving yards.
Shaun Beyer, Drew Cook, and Nate Wieting are all good candidates to become the next members of “Tight End U”, but can they reproduce 45 percent of Nate Stanley’s passing yards?
Wieting met with the media on Tuesday and he intends to prove that the tight end position won’t experience a drop-off in production:
Nate Wieting had four surgeries in his first three years at Iowa. He’s healthy now and thinks he will surprise people with his speed this year. Looks forward to getting his first career touchdown, but mainly wants to show that the TE position is in good hands
— MarkEmmert (@MarkEmmert) July 9, 2019
To this point, Beyer’s biggest moment is something that he is likely still trying to forget when his foot accidentally touched a bouncing punt against Wisconsin that completely shifted the momentum. Wieting had just two catches last season and Cook has not recorded a reception in his first three seasons at Iowa.
light. Must Read. Hawks projected to play in Holiday Bowl in 2019
There’s no doubt the aforementioned players have big shoes to fill, but I am confident that this coaching staff will have them ready to go when the season kicks off on Saturday, August 31. Iowa will have a couple of tune-up games against Miami (OH) and Rutgers before traveling to Ames to face a much improved Iowa State team.
In the first two games, look for Nate Stanley to develop some chemistry with his new tight ends.