Iowa football: AJ Epenesa makes PFF All-American team

Pro Football Focus released their preseason All-American team heading into the 2019 season. As expected, Iowa football player AJ Epenesa made the team.

The way Pro Football Focus grades players and teams can be a bit unique, and although their data is quite interesting, it sometimes goes against the grain. Analytics and scouting don’t always match up perfectly. For Iowa football player AJ Epenesa though, it doesn’t matter what the grading scale is, he almost always shines, except for QB pressures (this one seemed more of a volume metric).

So naturally, when Pro Football Focus released their preseason All-American team, I looked at the list excitedly, hoping to find Epenesa on there.

Thankfully, he was there, as he should be.

https://twitter.com/PFF_College/status/1162374207847747584?s=20

This is yet another preseason notch on an imaginary belt that the star Iowa football player likely doesn’t care about.

Despite the growing hype about Epenesa, he has remained humble (at least to the media) throughout and willing to work his butt off to become one of the best players to ever play for the Iowa football team.

After a season where he led the Big Ten in sacks as a reserve defensive end, many people, including us, think he has a real chance at breaking the Iowa football team’s single-season sack record.

Joining Epenesa on the opposite side of the defensive line is Ohio State’s Chase Young, whom Epenesa has been in a battle with for the top defensive end spot in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Outside of Epenesa though, there were no other Iowa football players, however, there is a chance that we see a few more Hawkeyes join this last after the season once Pro Football Focus gets their grades in such as Geno Stone, Tristan Wirfs, Chauncey Golston, and Alaric Jackson.