Iowa has signed four-star defensive end Iose Epenesa. As shared via Iowa social media channels, the Clear Lake, Iowa product is officially a Hawkeye.
Epenesa chose Iowa over offers from a host of programs, including Michigan, Oregon, Texas, Penn State, Tennessee, USC, Nebraska, Utah, Washington, Miami, Auburn, Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa State, and many more.
Epenesa, the crown jewel of Iowa's 2025 class, is the 5th-ranked prospect in the state of Illinois, the 8th-ranked strong side defensive end prospect in the nation, and the 115th-ranked prospect overall. He committed to Iowa in August, shortly before his senior season got underway.
There's no point ignoring the obvious: Epenesa is an Iowa legacy recruit and that legacy he's a part of is one of the most notable at Iowa over the last few decades. Epenesa's father, Eppy, was a standout defensive lineman for Hayden Fry at Iowa. Iose's oldest brother, A.J., was a five-star recruit and one of the biggest recruiting gets of the Kirk Ferentz era at Iowa. He became a two-time First Team All-Big Ten performer and currently plays for the Buffalo Bills. The middle Epenesa son, Eric, is a walk-on linebacker at Iowa.
Despite those numerous and significant ties to the Iowa program, Iose's commitment was far from guaranteed. He was rumored to want to carve his own path, away from what his father and brothers had done in Iowa City. He took unofficial and official visits to several other top programs and seriously considered other schools, including Miami and Utah. In the end, the Hawkeyes secured his commitment through the determination and persistence of Kirk Ferentz and defensive line coach Kelvin Bell.
Epenesa possesses impressive size and he shows the ability to use that size and strength to overpower offensive linemen. He's able to effectively use his 6'7" wingspan to prevent blockers from engaging with him. He's also a very high-motor player and plays with tremendous effort, much like his older brother A.J.
As we noted when FutureCasting him to Iowa back in August, "Epenesa also shows tremendous explosion -- he's got great get off at the line of scrimmage and pop to his hands to get offensive linemen off their spot. That use of hands translates to creating separation between himself and OL and getting to the opposing quarterback."
Epenesa finished his 2024 season with 51 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, and seven sacks. He also had four receptions for 30 yards and a touchdown on offense.
Iowa has need of capable pass-rushers on the defensive line and while Epenesa might need a little time to get his feet wet at the college level, the odds are good that he'll be a contributing factor for the Hawkeye defense sooner rather than later.
