Waggoner discusses decision
After feeling like Iowa might be the best fit for quite a while now, four-star defensive end John Waggoner pulled the trigger and committed to the Hawkeyes this week. After his announcement, we caught up with the 6-foot-5, 245-pound senior from Dowling Catholic to talk in-depth about his decision, his future with the Hawkeyes, and more.
Q: First, can you take me through what all led up to your decision to commit to Iowa?
WAGGONER: All fall I kind of had an idea that it was the place that I wanted to be, but I had to decide if I wanted to take official visits to some different schools or not. I ended up deciding that I didn’t need to because this is the place for me.
Q: Can you walk me through telling the coaches and when you let them know?
WAGGONER: On Sunday, I talked to Coach Ferentz and told him then. He said that Coach Morgan would be following up with me in a day or two, so I talked to him today just to make sure we were all on the same page and we talked about my official visit this weekend too.
Q: What has this last week been like for you as you approached that decision?
WAGGONER: It’s been a little crazy. It kind of seems like a lot of schools are starting to scramble a little bit with this early signing period coming up. It’s a great process, I wouldn’t trade it for anything, but it can be stressful at times. I ended up just being done with it today and I’m excited.
Q: Can you talk about Kirk Ferentz, your relationship with him, and the role he played in all of this?
WAGGONER: It’s a great relationship and he’s been very honest with me about everything. He told me he’s excited and wants me to get in right away and get to work, so I’m excited to do that.
Q: Was there some uncertainty there last week when they were kind of reshuffling their needs in this class?
WAGGONER: Yeah, a little bit. He just said there are some different variables, but he’s going to make it work.
Q: What did that mean to you to have the head coach kind of looking out for you in that regard?
WAGGONER: Yeah, that’s huge for me. He just kind of took the situation by the horns and controlled it from there and I really appreciated that.
Q: Heading into your official visit this weekend, what are you looking forward to in getting back to Iowa City?
WAGGONER: I’m really just excited to get around all of the other commits and some of the players up there just to get to know my future teammates.
Q: On a lot of your visits, you have had Sam Ingoli and Mitchell Riggs with you. Are they still looking at Iowa? Is there a chance they walk on there or what is the latest on that situation?
WAGGONER: I’m not 100% certain on the whole situation. Sam could come with me this weekend, I’m not sure who’s all going yet. I’ll probably talk to my parents about that tonight.
Q: Have you and Sam talked at all about possibly going to Iowa together?
WAGGONER: Yeah, we’ve talked about it, but at the end of the day Sam’s got to do whatever is best for him, and the same goes for Mitchell. We’ll just have to wait and see.
Q: Going back to your recruiting with Iowa, when you look over the past two years or whatever it has been, what really stands out the most to you about Iowa?
WAGGONER: Just kind of their culture and their blue-collar mentality. They’ve obviously got a ton of young talent in their program right now, so that’s going to be exciting in the years to come for me.
Q: What is kind of your mentality going in next year?
WAGGONER: I’m just going to come in ready to work. I’m going to roll up my sleeves and start working my rear end off right away and try to maximize my potential there.
Q: What is the feeling like for you at the end of the day today with this decision off your shoulder?
WAGGONER: It’s a big weight off my shoulders. I’m excited just to focus on basketball season and enjoy it and then get to work as far as improving my football stuff in the off-season as well.
Along with Iowa, Waggoner picked up scholarship offers from Ohio State, Penn State, LSU, Oregon, Oklahoma, Florida, UCLA, Michigan, Michigan State, Arkansas, Minnesota, Indiana, Kansas State, and Iowa State during the recruiting process.
Overall, Waggoner is commitment No. 15 for the Iowa Hawkeyes in the Class of 2018.