Top of the Class
With hindsight being 20/20, we take a look back at each of Iowa's recruiting classes over the years to determine which prospect was actually at the top of their class.
We will start with Kirk Ferentz's first recruiting class in 1999 and work our way up to the present day.
Everyone listed had to earn first, second, or third team All-Big Ten honors or be an NFL Draft pick to be considered for at least honorable mention.
Class of 1999: Commitment List
Top of the class: Robert Gallery - The 2003 Outland Trophy winner, Gallery was a consensus first team All-American at Iowa and made first team All-Big Ten twice in his career. After graduating, he went on to become the highest draft pick of the Kirk Ferentz era, going No. 2 overall to the Oakland Raiders in 2004 and played eight years in the NFL before injuries forced him to retire in 2012.
Honorable mention: Fred Barr, Colin Cole, Howard Hodges, Jared Clauss, Grant Steen (walk-on)
Class of 2000: Commitment List
Top of the class: Bob Sanders - Apologies to kicker Nate Kaeding, who deserves it just as much being a consensus first team All-American, but we are going with Sanders since he is basically the quintessential Kirk Ferentz player. At Iowa, Sanders was named first team All-Big Ten three consecutive years and garnered second team All-American honors as a senior in 2003. A second round draft pick by the Indianapolis Colts, he was named NFL Defensive Player of the year in 2007 when he led the team to a Super Bowl victory. Sanders, a two-time All Pro, retired from the NFL in 2012.
Honorable mention: Nate Kaeding, Jonathan Babineaux, Fred Russell, Tony Jackson, Erik Jensen, Sean Considine (walk-on), Pete McMahon (walk-on)
Class of 2001: Commitment List
Top of the class: Chad Greenway - This one just as easily could be Brad Banks, who was the Heisman runner-up in 2002, but we went with three years of Greenway versus one year of Banks. In his college career, Greenway was twice named first team All-Big Ten and was a second team All-American both his junior and senior year. After graduating from Iowa, the South Dakota native was drafted in the first round by the Minnesota Vikings where he played for 11 years before retiring in 2017.
Honorable mention: Brad Banks, Matt Roth, Abdul Hodge
Class of 2002: Commitment List
Top of the class: Jovon Johnson - A lightly recruited cornerback out of Erie, PA, Johnson became a four-year starter at Iowa, earning first team All-Big Ten honors in 2005 as a senior. He finished his college career with 17 interceptions, just one shy of the school record, before going on to a long career in the Canadian Football League.
Honorable mention: Clinton Solomon, Marcus Paschal, Kyle Schlicher, Mike Elgin
Class of 2003: Commitment List
Top of the class: Drew Tate - A four-star QB, Tate decommitted from Texas A&M after a coaching change and found a new home at Iowa in 2003. The Texas native went on to become a three-year starter for the Hawkeyes, earning first team All-Big Ten honors in 2004 after leading the team to a share of the Big Ten Championship. Tate ranks third on Iowa's all-time passing list, finishing his career with 8,292 yards and 61 touchdowns.
Honorable mention: Mike Jones, Albert Young, Kenny Iwebema, Scott Chandler, Mike Humpal, Mike Klinkenborg
Class of 2004: Commitment List
Top of the class: Shonn Greene - Ranked as a low two-star coming out of high school, Greene's college career took a few years to get going because of academic setbacks, but he hit the field with a vengeance in 2008. That season saw the New Jersey native set the all-time Iowa rushing record with 1,850 yards and 20 touchdowns on his way to winning the Doak Walker Award and consensus first team All-American honors. The Big Ten offensive player of the year, Greene left college a year early and was drafted in the third round by the New York Jets.
Honorable mention: Mitch King, Seth Olsen, Brandon Myers, Charles Godfrey, Matt Kroul, Rob Bruggeman, Bradley Fletcher
Class of 2005: Commitment List
Top of the class: Marshal Yanda - In a class where the out-of-state high schools drew all the headlines at the time, it was an in-state junior college recruit that eventually became the best player. Yanda only spent two years with the Hawkeyes, but made them count with 25 starts, earning second team All-Big Ten honors as a senior in 2006. From there, he was drafted by the Ravens in the third round and went on to have a Hall of Fame worthy career in Baltimore with eight Pro Bowl selections before retiring from the NFL this off-season.
Honorable mention: Pat Angerer, Anthony Moeaki, Dace Richardson, Rafael Eubanks, Kyle Calloway
Class of 2006: Commitment List
Top of the class: Adrian Clayborn - The 2006 class was a good one, but no one stood out more than the most highly ranked recruit, who also turned out to be the most productive as Clayborn left Iowa as a consensus first team All-American. A two-time first team All-Big Ten honoree, the St. Louis native finished his college career with 192 tackles, 37.5 TFL, and 19 sacks before taking his talents to the NFL, where he was a first round draft pick by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, eventually won a Super Bowl with the New England Patriots, and is now headed into his 10th year in the league, signing with the Cleveland Browns this off-season.
Honorable mention: Amari Spievey, Derrell Johnson-Koulianos, A.J. Edds, Ryan Donahue, Julian Vandervelde, Jeremiha Hunter, Karl Klug, Ricky Stanzi, Brett Greenwood (walk-on)
Class of 2007: Commitment List
Top of the class: Bryan Bulaga - This was a tough year to decide with Tyler Sash and Marvin McNutt also earning lots of honors, but Bulaga gets the nod because he was the only one to reach first team All-American status. A top 100 recruit, the Illinois native played 30 games at Iowa before leaving a year early for the NFL Draft, where he was a first round pick by the Green Bay Packers in 2010. Bulaga, who won a Super Bowl as a rookie, is now going into his 11th year in the league, signing with the Los Angeles Chargers this off-season.
Honorable mention: Tyler Sash, Marvin McNutt, Mike Daniels, Broderick Binns, Adam Gettis, Allen Reisner, Jordan Bernstine, Christian Ballard
Class of 2008: Commitment List
Top of the class: Riley Reiff - Another tough call with Shaun Prater earning first team All-Big Ten honors twice, but Reiff's first team All-American status was the trump card. The South Dakota native had 37 starts at Iowa before leaving a year early for the NFL Draft, where he was a first round pick by the Detroit Lions in 2012. After playing five years in Detroit, Reiff signed with the Minnesota Vikings in 2017 and will be entering his ninth year in the league in 2020.
Honorable mention: Shaun Prater, James Ferentz
Class of 2009: Commitment List
Top of the class: Micah Hyde - Ranked as only a two-star coming out of high school, Hyde had a big impact at Iowa, starting 38 games in his career and earning first team All-Big Ten honors as a senior in 2012. A fifth round draft pick by the Green Bay Packers, the Ohio native has carved out a successful NFL career including a Pro Bowl selection in 2017 as a member of the Buffalo Bills, where he currently plays.
Honorable mention: Brett Van Sloten
Class of 2010: Commitment List
Top of the class: Brandon Scherff - In a recruiting class with a lot of individual success stories, Scherff was the biggest, earning consensus first team All-American honors and winning the Outland Trophy as a senior in 2014. Named first team All-Big Ten twice, Scherff was a first round draft pick, going No. 5 overall to the Washington Redskins. The three-time Pro Bowler will be entering his sixth year in the league this fall.
Honorable mention: C.J. Fiedorowicz, James Morris, Christian Kirksey, Anthony Hitchens, B.J. Lowery, Carl Davis, Andrew Donnal, Marcus Coker, Mike Meyer (walk-on)
Class of 2011: Commitment List
Top of the class: Austin Blythe - A highly ranked in-state recruit in 2011, Blythe lived up to the billing as he finished his college career with 49 starts and was named second team All-Big Ten as both a junior and a senior. A seventh round draft pick by the Colts in 2016, the Williamsburg native eventually found a home with with the Los Angeles Rams, where he became a starter, and will be entering his fifth year in the league this season.
Honorable mention: Jordan Walsh, Jordan Lomax, Quinton Alston, Jordan Canzeri, Marshall Koehn (walk-on)
Class of 2012: Commitment List
Top of the class: C.J. Beathard - This is a tough one, especially when you have an All-Pro tight end like George Kittle in the class, not to mention a first team All-Big Ten performer like Jaleel Johnson, but our nod goes to Beathard based on his body of work in college, especially the 2015 season where he led the team to a Big Ten West division title. Beathard, who earned second team All-Big Ten honors that year, finished his career at Iowa with 5,562 yards passing and 40 touchdowns, and then was a third round draft pick by the San Francisco 49ers and remains on their roster today.
Honorable mention: George Kittle, Jaleel Johnson, Drew Ott, Nate Meier, Cole Croston (walk-on)
Class of 2013: Commitment List
Top of the class: Desmond King - The only class with multiple consensus first team All-Americans, we gave a slight nod to Desmond King over Josey Jewell because King won the Jim Thorpe Award as the best defensive back in college football in 2015. He also garnered All-American attention a second time as a senior year in 2016, but just missed out on being a two-time consensus All-American, which would have automatically put his name on the Kinnick Stadium Wall of Honor. After being drafted in the fifth round by the Chargers, King is off to a great start in the NFL, earning first team All-Pro honors in 2018.
Honorable mention: Josey Jewell, Sean Welsh, Akrum Wadley
Class of 2014: Commitment List
Top of the class: Josh Jackson - A two-star prospect coming out of high school, Jackson took a couple years to get into the starting lineup, but once he did he made the most of his opportunity and then some. In 2017, Jackson led the nation with eight interceptions on his way to being named a consensus first team All-American and the Big Ten's defensive back of the year. Following the season, Jackson left Iowa a year early for the NFL Draft and was taken by the Green Bay Packers in the second round and remains with the team today.
Honorable mention: Ross Reynolds, Keegan Render
Class of 2015: Commitment List
Top of the class: James Daniels - The only four-star in the Class of 2018, Daniels played right away as a true freshman and ended up with 25 career starts over his three years in college. A third team All-Big Ten selection, Daniels left Iowa a year early for the NFL Draft and was picked in the second round by Chicago where he has been a starter at both guard and center in his first two seasons in the league.
Honorable mention: Anthony Nelson, Michael Ojemudia
Class of 2016: Commitment List
Top of the class: T.J. Hockenson - In a historic class of tight ends, Hockenson gets the nod over Noah Fant since he won the Mackey Award in 2018. Both were first team All-Big Ten honorees. After redshirting his first year on campus, Hockenson only played two seasons at Iowa, but finished with 73 catches for 1,080 yards and nine touchdowns. Leaving early for the NFL Draft, he was taken No. 8 overall by the Detroit Lions in 2019.
Honorable mention: Noah Fant, Amani Hooker, Alaric Jackson, Keith Duncan (walk-on)
Class of 2017: Commitment List
Top of the class: Tristan Wirfs - Still a little ways to go for most in this class, but Wirfs is the early leader in the clubhouse, narrowly ahead of A.J. Epenesa. As a junior in 2019, Wirfs was named the Big Ten's offensive lineman of the year and earned several first team All-American honors, coming up just shy of consensus status. After the season, he declared early for the NFL Draft and is expected to be a first round pick.
Honorable mention: A.J. Epenesa, Ihmir Smith-Marsette, Geno Stone
After that, it is still way too early to look at the Classes of 2018 and 2019 at this point, so we will save that for down the road a couple years.
Which class produced the most consensus first team All-Americans?
Class of 2013 (2) - Desmond King and Josey Jewell
Which classes produced the most overall first and second team All-Americans?
Class of 2016 (3) - T.J. Hockenson, Keith Duncan (walk-on), Amani Hooker
Class of 2004 (3) - Shonn Greene, Mitch King, Seth Olsen
Class of 2001 (3) - Chad Greenway, Brad Banks, Matt Roth
Which classes produced the most first team All-Big Ten players?
Class of 1999 (4) - Robert Gallery, Fred Barr, Colin Cole, Howard Hodges
Class of 2000 (4) - Bob Sanders, Nate Kaeding, Fred Russell, Jonathan Babineaux
Class of 2001 (4) - Chad Greenway, Brad Banks, Matt Roth, Abdul Hodge
Class of 2004 (4) - Shonn Greene, Mitch King, Brandon Myers, Seth Olsen
Class of 2016 (4) - T.J. Hockenson, Noah Fant, Amani Hooker, Keith Duncan (walk-on)
Which classes produced the least first team All-Big Ten players?
Class of 2002 (1) - Jovon Johnson
Class of 2009 (1) - Micah Hyde
Class of 2011 (1) - Jordan Walsh
Class of 2012 (1) - Jaleel Johnson
Class of 2014 (1) - Josh Jackson
Which classes produced the most NFL Draft picks?
Class of 2007 (7) - Bryan Bulaga, Tyler Sash, Marvin McNutt, Mike Daniels, Jordan Bernstine, Christian Ballard, Adam Gettis
Class of 2000 (6) - Bob Sanders, Nate Kaeding, Jonathan Babineaux, Tony Jackson, Sean Considine (walk-on), Pete McMahon (walk-on)
Class of 2006 (6) - Adrian Clayborn, A.J. Edds, Ricky Stanzi, Amari Spievey, Karl Klug, Julian Vandervelde
Class of 2010 (6) - Brandon Scherff, Christian Kirksey, Anthony Hitchens, Carl Davis, Andrew Donnal, C.J. Fiedorowicz
Which classes produced the least NFL Draft picks?
Class of 2002 (1) - Mike Elgin
Class of 2009 (1) - Micah Hyde
Class of 2011 (1) - Austin Blythe
Class of 2014 (1) - Josh Jackson