COMMIT: Three-Star Illinois WR KJ Parker Chooses Iowa
As he announced on Thursday morning via Twitter, 2024 three-star receiver KJ Parker has committed to Iowa.
The product of Immaculate Conception Catholic Prep in Elmhurst, Illinois chose the Hawkeyes over the other schools he listed in his top five,that included Illinois State, Buffalo, Cincinnati and Western Michigan. Iowa State and Wisconsin were among the rest of his 13 offers.
One of the top play-makers in the state of Illinois, Parker received the offer from Iowa following his freshman season, and he met the Hawkeye staff on a visit during his sophomore year. That played a big part in his ability to cultivate relationships at Iowa, and ultimately resulted in his commitment.
"I would definitely say it does give Iowa an edge as far as connection," he told me in May. "Because the better connection you have with a coach, the better the recruitment is. Talking to them since the beginning of my sophomore year has been amazing. I feel like that connection helps."
"I would definitely say I have a connection with Coach Copeland," Parker added. "We're talking so much all the time. Ever since we first spoke my sophomore year we had a connection. The reason we got so close is because I went to Iowa's camp after I'd been offered. So we got to talk after camp a lot. He's an overall great guy. We understand each other really well, we both really love football. He really cares about me. He shows he wants me to get better."
One of last weekend's official visitors, Parker already had plans to commit, but that decision was affirmed by what he saw on campus.
"The thing I loved the most about this weekend was the brotherhood experience," he said following the visit. "Everybody was so welcoming. I felt like I was already there for college pretty much. I feel like all the players and coaches gave off that positive energy."
Parker was a key cog in the machine that was the IC Catholic Prep offense last season. Over 14 games, he caught 37 passes for 1,082 yards and 17 touchdowns, while also returning punts and kicks on special teams. We did a more in-depth evaluation of his game here.
Parker is the 16th commit overall in the Hawkeyes' 2024 class on scholarship. He joins a list of commitments that includes Gavin Hoffman, Reece Vander Zee, Devan Kennedy, Michael Burt, Brevin Doll, Xavier Williams, James Resar, Derek Weisskopf, Cam Buffington, Preston Ries, Drew Campbell, Cody Fox, Josh Janowski, Bodey McCaslin and William Nolan.