Kadyn Proctor Returning to Iowa: "This is Home"
IOWA CITY -- Shortly after his decision to transfer to Iowa become official, Kadyn Proctor, the newest -- and biggest -- member of the Iowa football team made an appearance at the Iowa-Purdue basketball game. His appearance drew the attention of the assembled media and Proctor spoke about maintaining his relationship with Kirk Ferentz and the Iowa coaches, and his decision to transfer to Iowa.
Proctor discussed the timeline for making his decision, as well as the madness of the last few days. "The last couple days have been crazy," said Proctor. "I decided to hit the portal when the new Alabama coaches [Kalen DeBoer and his staff] came in. I listened to them and what they wanted to say."
Ultimately, Proctor chose to leave Alabama and enter the portal. The decision to choose Iowa as his destination was an easy one and was in Proctor's thoughts as soon as he entered the portal. "That's exactly what I thought in my mind," said Proctor. "Ultimately in my mind, I knew what I wanted to do.
Why Iowa? "This is home," explained Proctor. "This is ultimately where I wanted to be. I had my mind made up when I entered the transfer portal. It feels great to be back in Iowa. I was ready to get back."
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Proctor and the Iowa coaches
The Iowa coaches made it easy for him to decide to come back to Iowa City after entering the transfer portal, according to Proctor. "No bridges were burned [when I committed to Alabama]," he explained. "That's why it was so easy for me to pick them when I entered the transfer portal because I still have those relationships. Even when I was struggling [at Alabama] they hit me up and told me they were proud of me and they still believed in me."
Proctor, who said that he will start classes at Iowa "soon," noted that he spoke with several Iowa coaches during the transfer process. "[I] talked to Coach [Tyler] Barnes mostly, and Coach [George] Barnett, Coach [Jay] Niemann, and Coach Ferentz of course," Proctor said.
Proctor cited that connection with Barnett as part of his decision to transfer to Iowa. "Our relationship that we have, and just knowing that Iowa is known for sending OL up [to the NFL], you just gotta think about that," Proctor explained.
Understandably, Ferentz was thrilled at the news. "He always loved me as a kid and a player," said Proctor. "Really ecstatic that I'm coming back."
Proctor and the fan reaction
Asked about the reaction of the Iowa fans at Carver Saturday, Proctor lit up. "It feels good. As soon as I came in here, everybody [was] cheering me on, happy for me. I know, I did leave and it hurt people's hearts and that equated into them showing some hatred -- but that's what every fan base does."
Indeed "It doesn't really matter to me, it's ultimately what I want to do. And at the end of the day, all fan bases are gonna do that -- [look at]what happened when I left Alabama, same kind of stuff. It is what it is."
Proctor on his new (and old) teammates
Proctor was asked if he would have to pay current Iowa offensive lineman Trevor Lauck in order to the #74 jersey. "I don't know about that right now," Proctor laughed. "We talked about it a little bit. I guess we'll see when the season comes."
For now, Proctor is just enjoying the moment. "I'm taking everything in. I've never been a student here, all I've had [are] visits. Actually being a part of [being a student at the University of Iowa], I just have to take it all in."
Proctor was excited to reunite with his former Southeast Polk teammate Xavier Nwankpa, a fellow five-star recruit and now Iowa's starting strong safety. "I feel really good about [having X here]," Proctor said. "I've missed him. That's my boy, ever since high school."
"We're gonna have fun," Proctor said. Let's roll."