Highest ranked recruits of the Ferentz era
The latest feature in our "Ferentz at 20" series is a look back at the 20 highest ranked recruits in the Kirk Ferentz era at Iowa. For the purposes of this article, we are only looking at recruiting rankings in terms of which players made the list, not how their college careers ultimately played out. With that in mind, let's dive in.
Ranked No. 14 in the Rivals100, five-star linebacker Kyle Williams signed with Iowa in 2004, but never ended up playing a down for the Hawkeyes. At the time, the Illinois native chose Iowa over offers from Oregon, Purdue, Miami, Ohio State, and a host of others. Ultimately, Williams was declared academically ineligible by the NCAA Clearinghouse, reopened his recruiting and signed with Purdue the following year in 2005. After just one year with the Boilermakers, he left the team and was then arrested in West Lafayette in November of 2005 and eventually sentenced to 37 years in prison.
The top ranked recruit in Iowa's highly decorated Class of 2005 was Illinois offensive lineman Dan Doering, who came in at No. 27 in the Rivals100 that year. Doering committed to Iowa on national television at the U.S. Army All-American Bowl, choosing the Hawkeyes over Notre Dame, Oklahoma, and Tennessee, among others. In college, he ended up with six career starts at Iowa at offensive guard and was a backup on the 2009 Orange Bowl team his senior year.
Ranked No. 29 in the Rivals100 in the Class of 2001, in-state offensive lineman Blake Larsen signed with Iowa after taking official visits to Oklahoma, Miami, Tennessee, and Michigan State his senior year. During his college career, injuries hampered Larsen's progress and he never became a starter. Larsen earned his degree from Iowa in 2005 and passed up his final year of eligibility with the Hawkeyes.
The youngest player on the list, A.J. Epenesa joined the Hawkeyes in 2017 as a five-star recruit ranked No. 30 in the Rivals100. Epenesa, whose father played at Iowa, chose the Hawkeyes over a long list of offers that included Alabama, Oklahoma, Florida State, USC, Michigan, Notre Dame, and Nebraska just to name a few. Named to the Big Ten Network's All-Freshman Team, Epenesa finished with 15 tackles, 5.5 TFL, and 4.5 sacks last season.
Ranked No. 51 in the Rivals100 in 2007, in-state safety Jordan Bernstine was a Christmas Eve commitment for the Hawkeyes, choosing Iowa over UCLA, Texas A&M, Pittsburgh, and Nebraska, among others. The Des Moines native battled injuries throughout his career at Iowa, including a broken ankle his third year, but rebounded to become a full-time starter at safety as as senior and was a seventh round pick in the 2012 NFL Draft by Washington.
Tight end Tony Moeaki was another U.S. Army All-American Bowl commitment for the Hawkeyes in the Class of 2005 and checked in at No. 52 in the Rivals100 that year. The Illinois native chose Iowa over Oregon, Tennessee, BYU, UCLA, Nebraska, and Notre Dame, among others. At Iowa, Moeaki battled through several injuries, including a medical redshirt year in 2007, but still managed to finish his career with 76 catches for 953 yards and 11 touchdowns and earned first team All-Big Ten honors as a senior in 2009. In the 2010 NFL Draft, Moeaki was a third round selection by the Kansas City Chiefs.
Offensive lineman Dace Richardson, who was a high school teammate of Moeaki, was just a couple spots behind him in the Rivals100 at No. 54 in 2005. Richardson considered offers from Tennessee, Michigan, Michigan State, USC, and Nebraska before deciding on Iowa. After playing as a true freshman and starting at left tackle as a sophomore, Richardson suffered what was initially thought to be a career ending injury in 2007, but came back two years later and started eight games as a senior in 2009, earning first team All-Big Ten honors at guard.
Ranked No. 70 in the Rivals100, offensive lineman Bryan Bulaga was an early commit for Iowa in the Class of 2007, choosing the Hawkeyes over Wisconsin, Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska, and Purdue, among others. At Iowa, Bulaga earned a starting job at guard as a true freshman and then developed into a two-year starter at left tackle, earning first team All-Big Ten and All-American honors as a junior in 2009. Following that season, Bulaga left Iowa a year early for the NFL Draft and was a first round pick by the Green Bay Packers in 2010.
In somewhat of a surprise at the time, Pennsylvania linebacker Jeremiha Hunter committed to Iowa late in the recruiting process in 2006, choosing the Hawkeyes over Penn State, Florida, Tennessee, and Connecticut. Hunter was ranked No. 78 in the final Rivals100 in the Class of 2006. At Iowa, Hunter became a three-year starter at weak side linebacker, earning second team All-Big Ten honors as a senior in 2010.
The leader of Iowa's highly ranked recruiting Class of 2005, quarterback Jake Christensen was an early commit for the Hawkeyes, picking Iowa over Northwestern, Kansas State, and Michigan State. A U.S. Army All-American, Christensen finished at No. 89 in the Rivals100 in 2005. At Iowa, Christensen became Iowa's starting QB in 2007, throwing for 2,269 yards and 17 touchdowns as a sophomore, but lost the job to Ricky Stanzi in 2008, and ultimately transferred and finished up his college career at Eastern Illinois.
Running back Jermelle Lewis pre-dates the current version of Rivals, but the Connecticut native was ranked No. 94 in the Rivals100 in the Class of 2000. A Sporting News high school All-American and state player of the year, Lewis chose Iowa over Auburn, Florida, Tennessee, Maryland, and Syracuse, among others. During his college career, Lewis showed a lot of promise and played a key role in Iowa's run to a share of the Big Ten title in 2002, but unfortunately a pair of ACL injuries robbed him of most of his junior and senior seasons. Lewis finished with 1,150 rushing yards, 180 receiving yards, and 13 touchdowns at Iowa.
The No. 1 ranked fullback in the Class of 2005, Kalvin Bailey was ranked No. 97 overall in the Rivals100, and committed to Iowa over offers from Miami, Florida State, Georgia, Nebraska, and a host of others. Bailey's time at Iowa was short, however, as he was an academic casualty after one year and bounced around junior colleges, first at NIACC and then at schools in California and Florida, without ever making it back to the Division I level.
A Parade All-American, offensive lineman Mike Jones was a four-star recruit just outside the Rivals100 in the Class of 2003. The Illinois native signed with Iowa after taking official visits to Notre Dame, Penn State, Miami, and Tennessee his senior year. At Iowa, Jones was one of the rare true freshmen to earn playing time at offensive line and ended up with 43 career starts for the Hawkeyes, earning first team All-Big Ten honors as a senior in 2006.
After initially committing to Illinois early on, tight end C.J. Fiedorowicz switched to Iowa after his senior season. A four-star prospect ranked No. 129 in the Rivals 250 in 2010, Fiedorowicz also held offers from Ohio State, Notre Dame, Arizona, Wisconsin, and Duke just to name a few. At Iowa, he hit the ground running, playing as a true freshman and developing into a three-year starter who earned first team All-Big Ten honors his senior year in 2013. The following spring, Fiedorowicz was a third round pick by Houston in the 2014 NFL Draft.
A four-star linebacker out of Illinois, Matt Roth made several top 100 recruiting lists, but was just outside the Rivals100 in the Class of 2001. Roth ended up choosing Iowa after taking official visits to Miami, Nebraska, Kansas State, and Purdue. At Iowa, he spent his first year at linebacker, but moved to defensive end as a sophomore and quickly found success, finishing among the Big Ten leaders in sacks in 2002. As a senior in 2004, Roth was named second team All-American and first team All-Big Ten and was a second round NFL Draft pick by the Miami Dolphins following his college career.
Ohio tight end Ray Hamilton was an early commitment for Iowa in the Class of 2011, choosing the Hawkeyes over a list of 30 offers that included Florida State, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Michigan, West Virginia, Pittsburgh, Wisconsin, and Stanford, among others. Hamilton rose up the recruiting rankings after a big senior year at Strongsville and ended up at No. 132 in the final Rivals250 for 2011. At Iowa, he played as a true freshman and was the second tight end for a couple years until C.J. Fiedorowicz graduated, and then took over as the full-time starter in 2014 as a senior.
Checking in at No. 138 in the Rivals250 for 2009, Cedar Rapids native Keenan Davis is the top ranked wide receiver recruit that Iowa has landed in the Ferentz era. Davis committed to Iowa prior to his senior season, choosing the Hawkeyes over Illinois, Oklahoma, Colorado, Arizona State, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Minnesota, Kansas, Kansas State, and Cincinnati. At Iowa, Davis played as a true freshman and then developed into a two-year starter, finishing his career with 112 catches for 1,470 yards and seven touchdowns.
After growing up a Hawkeye fan in nearby Williamsburg, offensive lineman Austin Blythe gave an early commitment to the Hawkeyes in the Class of 2011. Ranked No. 148 in the Rivals250, Blythe chose Iowa over Stanford, Wisconsin, Kansas, Kansas State, and Iowa State. At Iowa, Blythe became a steady fixture at center with 49 career starts and earned second team All-Big Ten honors in 2014 and 2015. After college, the Indianapolis Colts selected him in the seventh round of the NFL Draft in 2016.
In February of 2007, Cedric Everson was a signing day surprise for the Hawkeyes after giving verbal commitments to Georgia Tech and Michigan State earlier in the recruiting process. The No. 158th ranked recruit in his class, Everson's stay at Iowa was brief, as he was charged with sexual assault his freshman year and ultimately convicted on a lesser charge, a serious misdemeanor, after a jury trial.
Ranked No. 173 in the Rivals250 in 2012, landing defensive tackle Jaleel Johnson was a big recruiting victory for Iowa as the Hawkeyes beat out Michigan State, Michigan, Wisconsin, Tennessee, Arizona, and a number of others for his services. At Iowa, Johnson developed into a two-year starter at defensive tackle and earned first team All-Big Ten honors after his senior season in 2016. After college, he was a fourth round draft pick by Minnesota in 2017.
Other Rivals250 four-stars in the Ferentz era: Andrew Donnal, Jordan Walsh, A.J. Derby, Ryan Ward, Rodney Coe, Adrian Clayborn, Faith Ekakitie, and Diauntae Morrow.
Additional four-stars outside the Rivals250 in the Kirk Ferentz era: Edmond Miles, Chris Felder, Drew Tate, Albert Young, Walner Belleus, Rafael Eubanks, Ryan Bain, Alex Kanellis, Christian Ballard, Brandon Wegher, Marcus Coker, Greg Garmon, Jay Scheel, Tyler Wiegers, James Daniels, Tristan Wirfs, Dallas Craddieth, Spencer Petras, Julius Brents, and John Waggoner.