As we continue our signing day coverage, we take a look back chronologically at how the Iowa's recruiting class of 2019 came together over the past two years for the Hawkeyes, starting with the first commit all the way up to the very latest.
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April 22, 2017 - Commitment #1
Deciding before the end of his sophomore year, in-state offensive lineman Ezra Miller was one of the earliest commits in Kirk Ferentz's tenure at Iowa, second only to James Morris in the Class of 2010. The 6-foot-6, 310-pound Miller wanted to carry the banner for the Hawkeyes in the Class of 2019 and helped the coaching staff recruit other players to join him. In addition to Iowa, Miller had an early scholarship offer from Iowa State and later drew interest from Florida State, Notre Dame, Nebraska, Ohio State, and Michigan State, but never wavered on his commitment to the Hawkeyes. Miller enrolled at the University of Iowa at semester in January and will be with the team for spring practice in 2019.
Tight end Logan Lee was the next recruit to commit, giving his verbal pledge when he visited Iowa City for the Hawkeye Tailgater in June of 2017. The 6-foot-5, 240-pound Lee had a long list of early scholarship offers that included Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, Missouri, Michigan State, Minnesota, Ole Miss, and Northwestern, but felt at home at Iowa from day one. Also a standout wrestling at Orion, Lee went on to have a big senior season with 26 catches for 442 yards and 10 touchdowns on offense and46 tackles, 19.5 TFL, and 14 sacks on defense.
Iowa's third commit came the very same day as in-state offensive lineman Tyler Endres also pulled the trigger and gave his verbal pledge at the Hawkeye Tailgater in June of 2017. Other early scholarship offers for the 6-foot-6, 305-pound Norwalk native included Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Iowa State, but he grew up a Hawkeye fan and felt most comfortable in Iowa City. As a senior this past season, Endres led Norwalk to a 6-4 record.
After the run of super early commits, the next one didn't come until the following spring when New Hampton offensive lineman Noah Fenske committed on a visit in March shortly after receiving a scholarship offer from the Hawkeyes. For the 6-foot-5, 280-pound Fenske, Iowa just felt like the right fit and he will be coming in to on the interior offensive line for the Hawkeyes. In addition to Iowa, Fenske held scholarship offers from North Dakota and South Dakota State with interest from Minnesota and Iowa State.
Next up was Cedar Falls linebacker Jack Campbell, who gave his commitment to Iowa on March 31st, citing the Hawkeye coaching staff and how they develop players as the major factors in his decision. The 6-foot-4, 215-pound Campbell also held scholarship offers from Iowa State, Minnesota, and UNI in addition to Iowa. As a senior, he put up big numbers for Cedar Falls with 168 tackles, 12.5 TFL and 4.5 sacks, leading them to the state title game.
In April, Illinois safety Sebastian Castro became Iowa's sixth commit as he gave his verbal pledge to head coach Kirk Ferentz and then announced it on Twitter the following day. At Iowa, the 6-foot-1, 198-pound Castro felt he found the right culture and fit in well with the type of players the Hawkeyes like to recruit. Along with Iowa, Castro held scholarship offers from Iowa State, Minnesota, Indiana, Syracuse, Cincinnati, Northern Illinois, Ball State, Eastern Michigan, and Toledo. A hard hitting safety, he finished his senior year with 95 tackles and six interceptions for Richards High School, earning local player of the year honors.
Wide receiver Desmond Hutson was next for the Hawkeyes, giving his commitment on May 8th after connecting with the coaches on his first visit to Iowa City. In announcing his decision, the 6-foot-4, 195-pound Hutson honored his late brother, Christopher, who tragically died in May of 2017. Hutson, whose only offer came from Iowa, finished his senior season with 47 catches for 729 yards and 8 touchdowns, leading Raytown to an 8-2 record.
Three days later, the Hawkeyes received big news from Ohio linebacker Jestin Jacobs, as he picked Iowa over a long list of scholarship offers that included Nebraska, Missouri, Duke, Georgia Tech, Boston College, Pittsburgh, Minnesota, Rutgers, Indiana, and Vanderbilt, among others. In November, Ohio State added their name to the list and brought Jacobs in for a pair of visits, but the Hawkeyes stayed after him and the four-star prospect stuck with his original commitment. A U.S. Army All-American, Jacobs is an early enrollee for the Hawkeyes and has already begun classes in Iowa City this semester.
One week later came Iowa's ninth commitment as defensive end Jake Karchinski gave his verbal pledge to Iowa during a visit to campus. The 6-foot-5, 245-pound Wisconsin native also held scholarship offers from Syracuse, Eastern Michigan, Ball State, Western Michigan, North Dakota State, New Mexico, Fordham, Columbia, Miami-OH, and South Dakota, among others. As a senior, Karchinski was relentless on the field, finishing with 55 tackles, 16 TFL, and 7.5 sacks as he led state runner-up West De Pere to a 13-1 record.
After impressing the Iowa coaching staff at their camp in early June, quarterback Alex Padilla earned a scholarship offer from the Hawkeyes and quickly accepted a week later, giving Iowa their tenth commitment in the Class of 2019. The 6-foot-2, 195-pound Padilla chose the Hawkeyes over scholarship offers from Colorado State, Nevada, Central Michigan, Columbia, North Texas, Cornell, Dartmouth, Penn, Yale, South Dakota, and Northern Colorado at the time. Then, this fall, he picked up a new offer from Georgia, but stayed solid with his commitment to Iowa. As a senior, Padilla was 170/251 passing for 1,951 yards with 24 touchdowns for Cherry Creek, leading them to the state championship game and a 12-2 record. Padilla graduated high school early in December and has already enrolled at Iowa this semester.
Michigan defensive lineman Jalen Hunt kicked off Iowa's big official visit weekend in June with a commitment on Saturday, June 23rd. The 6-foot-2, 262-pound Hunt felt like the Hawkeyes were the perfect fit, picking Iowa over scholarship offers from Michigan State, Missouri, Boston College, Kentucky, Louisville, Minnesota, Pittsburgh, and Cincinnati, among others. As a senior, Hunt was dominant this year for Belleville, finishing with 63 tackles, 27 TFL, and 13 sacks in leading them to a 12-1 record.
Florida defensive back Dane Belton was among Iowa's official visitors in June and gave the Hawkeyes his commitment right after he returned home to Tampa on Sunday, June 24th. At 6-foot-1 and 185 pounds, Belton is a versatile player that could line up at corner or safety in college and also has good return skills on special teams. A three-star prospect, Belton chose the Hawkeyes over 25 other scholarship offers with a list that included Pittsburgh, Louisville, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, Rutgers, Vanderbilt, West Virginia, Cincinnati, and South Florida, among others. As a senior, he finished the season with 67 tackles and 4 interceptions, leading Jesuit High School to a 12-2 record.
Less than an hour later, the Iowa coaching staff landed their next commit as offensive lineman Justin Britt also gave his verbal pledge following his official visit in June. A three-star prospect, the 6-foot-4, 282-pound Britt plays offensive tackle in high school, but likely projects on the interior line at guard or center in college. In addition to Iowa, Britt held scholarship offers from Purdue, Arizona, Indiana, Louisville, Michigan State, Minnesota, Missouri, Vanderbilt, Washington State, Cincinnati, and Western Michigan. Unfortunately, he suffered a torn ACL in September of his senior season and missed the rest of the year for Warren Central. Britt graduated high school early and enrolled at Iowa this semester, which will help him as he continues to rehab following surgery in October.
In early July, Georgia running back Tyler Goodson finally made his decision public, announcing that he had committed to the Hawkeyes. The 5-foot-10, 192-pound Goodson found Iowa to be the right fit the moment he arrived in Iowa City for his official visit in April. In an in-depth statement that he gave announcing his choice, Goodson explained that it was about more than just football as he connected with Iowa's mission on and off the field. A dynamic playmaker, Goodson has drawn a lot of comparisons to Akrum Wadley, and showed that kind of explosiveness his senior year as he racked up 1,147 rushing yards and 25 touchdowns for North Gwinnett. In addition to Iowa, Goodson held scholarship offers from West Virginia, Wake Forest, Nebraska, Iowa State, Michigan State, Boston College, Colorado, Indiana, Kansas State, Kentucky, Syracuse, Washington State, Cincinnati, Central Florida, Marshall, and Memphis, among others. He also drew late interest from Michigan and had an in-home visit from Jim Harbaugh, but remained solid with his commitment to Iowa.
Illinois tight end Josiah Miamen was next for Iowa, giving the Hawkeyes his verbal pledge in September after deciding that was the place where he could best optimize his potential. Early in the season, the 6-foot-4, 225-pound Miamen made official visits to Big Ten rivals Iowa and Wisconsin, and found the culture in Iowa City to be the biggest difference. During the recruiting process, Miamen picked up a long list of offers that included Penn State, Michigan, Notre Dame, Purdue, Michigan State, Vanderbilt, and Illinois in addition to Iowa and Wisconsin. As a senior, he finished with 25 catches for 500 yards and six touchdowns this past season, leading Dunlap to a 7-3 record.
In late October, in-state defensive end Chris Reames finally landed a scholarship offer from Iowa and quickly committed, giving the Hawkeyes his verbal pledge the very next day. After growing up an Iowa fan, it was an easy decision for the 6-foot-7, 220-pound Reames, who also held offers from Eastern Michigan, Army, Air Force, Cornell, North Dakota State, UNI, North Dakota, Indiana State, Illinois State, South Dakota, South Dakota State, and Stephen F. Austin. Reames, who plays with great leverage according to his coach, finished his senior season with 63 tackles and 11 TFL, leading Van Meter to an 11-1 record.
There was no tweet from Sam LaPorta the night before signing day, but the Illinois tight end gave us the go ahead to report his commitment to Iowa. It came on the heels of an official visit to Iowa City for the 6-foot-4, 215-pound LaPorta, who picked up a scholarship offer from the Hawkeyes the previous week. A three-star prospect, LaPorta also held offers from Bowling Green, Yale, Eastern Michigan, Central Michigan, Northern Iowa, Illinois State, Western Illinois, Southern Illinois, and Lindenwood. As a senior, he put up huge numbers for Highland High School in Illinois with 68 catches for 1,457 yards and 19 touchdowns, earning first team all-state honors at wide receiver.
Less than an hour later, the Hawkeyes landed their next commitment as Florida linebacker Yahweh Jeudy announced that he would be joining Iowa's class. Previously a Kansas State commit, the 6--foot-2, 215-pound Jeudy decided to take a visit to Iowa after Bill Snyder's retirement just to keep his options open. In the Hawkeye State, he found a new home, and felt like he fit right in, which ultimately led to his commitment. A three-star prospect, he also held offers from Kansas State, Syracuse, Navy, Arkansas State, Central Michigan, Toledo, Kent State, Florida Atlantic, and Georgia State. As a senior, Jeudy finished the season with 124 tackles for Cardinal Gibbons High School.
After making a surprise visit to Iowa in mid-December, cornerback Daraun McKinney announced his commitment to the Hawkeyes. The 5-foot-10, 179-pound McKinney is a cornerback that can also handle return duties as he set a state record with seven kickoff returns for a touchdown his junior year. That kind of playmaking ability has drawn a lot of comparisons to former Hawkeye Desmond King. Previously committed to Northern Illinois, McKinney also picked up scholarship offers from Indiana, Cincinnati, Western Michigan, Miami-OH, Ball State, Toledo, and Buffalo. The Michigan native enrolled at Iowa at semester in January and will be with the Hawkeyes for spring practice in 2019.
Iowa's second signing day commitment in December came from Alabama running back Shadrick Byrd. The 5-foot-10, 210-pound Byrd visited Iowa City the previous weekend and felt comfortable with head coach Kirk Ferentz and lead recruiter Derrick Foster. As a senior, he rushed for 1,340 yards and 14 touchdowns at Thompson High School and picked up scholarship offers from Vanderbilt, North Carolina, Duke, Louisville, Wake Forest, Southern Miss, Arkansas State, Troy, Louisiana-Lafayette, Tulane, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, and Tennessee-Chattanooga during the recruiting process. Byrd is another early enrollee who will be with the team for spring practice in 2019.
During the late signing period, Iowa's first commitment came just this week with Illinois cornerback Jermari Harrisgiving his verbal pledge on Monday after his official visit to Iowa City. A 6-foot-1, 175-pound prospect, Harris emerged on Iowa's radar after a strong senior season, which was his first year playing corner, and stayed patient with the Hawkeyes throughout the recruiting process as they continued their evaluation. Harris, who had 72 tackles and 8 interceptions at Montini Catholic this past season, also held scholarship offers from Northern Illinois, Ball State, North Dakota State, Indiana State, Northern Iowa, Southern Illinois, Eastern Illinois, South Dakota, and South Dakota State.
The final addition in Iowa's recruiting class came on signing day for the Hawkeyes as Florida defensive end Taajhir McCall announced his commitment this morning after making an official visit to Iowa City this past weekend. The 6-foot-4, 225-pound McCall had narrowed his options down to Army and Navy in January before the Hawkeyes came in with a late offer that had him rethinking things and eventually led to his commitment. As a senior, McCall racked up 88 tackles and 11 sacks at Pine Forest High School in Pensacola.
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