Heinz happy to be a Hawkeye
Growing up a fan of the University of Iowa football team made walking on with the Hawkeyes an easy decision for Humboldt athlete Jamison Heinz. We caught up with the 6-foot-0, 191-pound Heinz after he announced his choice to talk about his future in Iowa City and much more.
Q: Why did you end up picking the University of Iowa?
HEINZ: I've been a Hawkeye fan my entire life. I had a grandpa that received his degree in Physical Therapy at Iowa. He had season tickets for decades, so I've just grown up with it. Mostly though, Iowa has a great coaching staff and I've always wanted to compete with and against the best. I can do that at Iowa. An added bonus is that my first cousin is Austin Schulte. It will be fun to have him as a teammate.
Q: When did Iowa start recruiting you?
HEINZ: I was first noticed by Iowa at a summer Iowa camp before my junior year. But I really didn't start getting recruited until last spring, which is pretty late nowadays.
Q: How many games were you able to visit this fall?
HEINZ: I was at 3 games this fall.
Q: Have they said if it is a preferred walk on at this point?
HEINZ: No, that decision won't be made until early next year.
Q: What have they said about you as a player?
HEINZ: I think they see me as pretty versatile with good speed and agility. I've played many different positions in high school. I had quite a few returns for touchdowns my junior year, so they see me as a returner. They've also indicated they'd like to see me play wide receiver, but I'm really open to play anywhere I can help the team.
Q: Do you have a position preference?
HEINZ: Well, I do like to have the ball in my hands, and I believe in my ability to catch and run. But, like I said, I want to help the Hawks win so wherever I can help the team is where I want to be.
Q: How special will it be for you to play at Iowa?
HEINZ: I'm really looking forward to it. It's a really great opportunity to play with and against the best in college football. I feel very blessed.
Q: How do you feel about their recruiting class in 2020?
HEINZ: I think the Iowa coaches know what they're doing. There are some great football players committed to begin their college football careers next year in Iowa City. I'm looking forward to meeting them and doing what I can to be a great teammate.
Q: What other schools were you considering?
HEINZ: I’ve had quite a few smaller schools interested, along with a few D2 schools and the in-state D1 schools.
Q: How do you feel about the Iowa coaches?
HEINZ: I don’t think you can get better coaches than what Iowa has. I mentioned earlier that I want to play against and with the best players, but I also want to play for the best coaches. Iowa provides that opportunity.
Q: What are you trying to improve to get yourself ready for the college level?
HEINZ: There’s always room for improvement. I don’t know yet what size they want me at, but like most high school kids, I need to work on my strength. I’ll continue to work on speed and agility. It’s a year-around continuous thing to be your best, so that’s my expectation over the next few years.
As a senior, Heinz finished the season with 1,134 yards rushing and 13 touchdowns on offense to go along with 78 tackles and two interceptions on defense.
See highlights from Heinz's senior year at Humboldt in the video below.
Iowa's Class of 2020 walk-ons:
Jamison Heinz - 6-foot-0, 191-pound WR from Humboldt, IA
Jake Fisher - 6-foot-2, 180-pound DB from Treynor, IA
Jeremy Chaplin - 6-foot-2, 245-pound DT from Waverly, IA
Jack Johnson - 6-foot-0, 180-pound WR from West Des Moines, IA
Isaiah Wagner - 6-foot-4, 212-pound WR from Pleasant Hill, IA
Aaron Blom - 5-foot-11, 165-pound K from Oskaloosa, IA