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Iowa football: Hawks hope to break trend of losing in-state WRs in 2021

By Andrew Wade

TEMPE, AZ - DECEMBER 30: Wide receiver Keenan Davis #6 of the Iowa Hawkeyes dives over defensive back Tony Jefferson #12 of the Oklahoma Sooners on a 14 yard reception during the Insight Bowl at Sun Devil Stadium on December 30, 2011 in Tempe, Arizona. The Sooners defeated the Hawkeyes 31-14. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
TEMPE, AZ - DECEMBER 30: Wide receiver Keenan Davis #6 of the Iowa Hawkeyes dives over defensive back Tony Jefferson #12 of the Oklahoma Sooners on a 14 yard reception during the Insight Bowl at Sun Devil Stadium on December 30, 2011 in Tempe, Arizona. The Sooners defeated the Hawkeyes 31-14. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
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The Iowa football team hasn’t landed a top in-state wide receiver since Keenan Davis signed with the program in 2009. Could that change in 2021?

In the last decade, the Iowa football team has consistently struck out on top wide receiver recruits from the state of Iowa. Sure, one of their big misses, Iowa City product Oliver Martin, is now with the program, but the point still stands that the Hawks have struggled to reel in top in-state wide receivers.

Literally every other position, they do an outstanding job of keeping the talent at home, except for wide receiver. Here’s a quick rundown:

Amara Darboh

Darboh was a top-300 4-star recruit out of Dowling Catholic in the class of 2012 who choice to head a bit further northeast from Iowa to Michigan despite revered recruiter Reese Morgan gunning for him.

Allan Lazard

Allan Lazard was an even more highly touted recruit than Darboh. Ranked as a top-100 four-star recruit in the class of 2014 from Urbandale, he headed a few minutes north to play for Iowa State instead of the Iowa football team.

Oliver Martin

There has been quite a bit of discussion around the Oliver Martin situation, but what it boils down to is the Iowa football team was in the middle of a transition with their wide receiver coaching spot and Pep Hamilton did a heck of a job selling Martin on Michigan. Like the others above, Martin was a four-star recruit ranked in the top-200 in the nation in the class of 2017. Despite missing out on him the first time, he is now with the Iowa football team. I’m still counting this as an initial miss though.

Now, they have a chance to redeem themselves with another big-time talent at wide receiver.

Brody Brecht is a top-400 recruit who is currently listed as a three-star prospect out of Ankeny, Iowa. At 6’4” and 190 pounds, Brecht has great size and we could see him continue to rise in the rankings considering he still has two seasons of football left. His recruitment period is just getting started as he has just three offers (Iowa, Iowa State, and William & Mary), but right now, it appears the Iowa football team is the frontrunner for his services.

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Getting a guy like Brecht would be a huge grab in the class of 2021 because it would buck the trend of recruiting failures at the wide receiver position, it would keep an in-state guy in the state of Iowa and away from the Iowa State Cyclones, and it would continue to bolster a 2021 class that already has two big-time recruits committed.