Four Downs (post-spring): Defensive line

The list of 6-foot-7 defensive ends who've played during Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz's 17 seasons is short.

You really kind of just have Ed Saidat, who played during Ferentz's first season in 1999. Riley McMinn came close, but his career was cut short last year because of injury. This is about to change.

Sophomore Matt Nelson and his 6-8, 280-pound frame will start for the Hawkeyes this season. Redshirt freshman Anthony Nelson, no relation, is the No. 3 defensive end behind Nelson and sophomore Parker Hesse, who's the most experienced defensive end on Iowa's roster (nine career starts).

You follow Iowa football, and so you already know the whole notion of what body types can do or be is out of the window. Just last season, Nate Meier trucked out there for the Hawkeyes as a 6-footish, 250-ish defensive end.

Beyond the body, there's athleticism. This is where Matt Nelson should reap the benefits of three years in the Iowa strength and conditioning program under Chris Doyle.

Nelson arrived in Iowa City at 6-8, 255. He's now 280 and feels as if he's moving better than he ever has.

'Coach Doyle definitely knows what he's doing,' Nelson said. 'He knows how to put good mass on you for optimal athletic performance.

'I definitely feel like I'm moving better. My body just feels more fluid. It's kind of like I'm growing into my body, in a sense. I'm finally getting that coordination that I haven't tapped into before.'

All spring, Nelson has been matched up against right tackle Ike Boettger.

'He's a really long guy, probably the longest I've ever played against,' Boettger said. 'That creates something totally different. It's been really good for both of us and definitely for me, playing against someone with a really long reach like that. I have to have all of my technique down if I'm going to block him.'

In the spring game on April 23, Nelson shed blocks consistently and closed quickly on the ball. The obvious question for a 6-8 defensive end is pad level. It's become a question this spring, but it's been something Nelson and defensive line coach Reese Morgan plugged in on when Nelson arrived on campus in 2014.

'People would think a guy that's 6-whatever he is, that he wouldn't be able to get low,' Morgan said. 'He probably has the best consistent pad level of anybody in the front, including your shorter guys. He's really worked at it. He understands it, and he has things that he has to get better at, but I think the tempo that he's practicing at is all headed in the right direction.'

Part of being more fluid and growing into his 6-8 body is flexibility. This also happens to be a big deal for a defensive end. Can an end playing on the outside shoulder of an offensive tackle dip his shoulder beneath the tackle's hands and accelerate around the corner to pressure the quarterback?

Nelson said he wants to improve pass rush, hand placement and tempo (more aggression). Pad level did not come up, not this year. It was a thing early in his career.

'It was every day in practice, it was every day in the weightroom working on flexibility, working on range of motion,' Nelson said. 'Coach Morgan always stresses getting the pads down. I just try to take that to heart and work on those things.'

4th Down

We now know the answer on Drew Ott and a fifth year with the Hawkeyes. Pass rush will be a question, but it might've been a question with Ott, who's sorting through NFL suitors on the undrafted free agent market with his elbow around 100 percent and his knee still in the stages of ACL recovery.

One thing to keep in mind, Iowa never counted Ott as a 2016 Hawkeye. For one, it couldn't. Once the season was over and for as long as his appeal went, NCAA rules dictated that Ott be treated like a player whose eligibility was finished.

The D-ends knew this would shine some light on them. And, yes, they've treated it as a rallying point.

'Coach Morgan at the beginning of spring sat us down in the room and said, 'We're going to play with these guys in the room. Whether Drew is with us or not, we're going to play with these guys,'' Nelson said. 'He's always harped on the ends to step it up. When it (the Ott decision) officially was a no, that definitely lit a fire under me. I knew I'm one of the next guys in.'

3rd Down

We've talked about depth being a key factor with the defensive line. We've crunched the numbers from last November, when the Hawkeyes defense started to decline. Morgan said he'd love to be able to rotate eight, but he won't put players on the field who can't make positive contributions just to hit that number.

So, right now, it looks like six DLs rotating — tackles Jaleel Johnson, Nathan Bazata and Faith Ekakitie with ends Hesse, M. Nelson and A. Nelson.

Sophomore defensive end Sam Brincks, a walk-on, might be the best of the rest. Morgan mentioned that a true freshman might be able to contribute. At 6-5, 260, Cedrick Lattimore might be the only one who's physically ready.

2nd Down

Anthony Nelson was a big bunch of positives this spring. First, the 6-7 end was listed at 250 pounds, a 30-pound increase from his true freshman season. Then, Morgan mentioned him as a possible pass rush specialist and he showed a knack for the rush during Iowa's two open practices.

Next step will be seeing him hold up against the run, but if you had to pick a freshman who made the biggest leap, Anthony Nelson showed signs.

1st Down

Yes, this is an oddly shaped group. You go from tackle Jaleel Johnson, a 6-4, 300-pound menace on the inside, to the Nelson Not Brothers at 6-8 and 6-7 on the outside. Beyond that interesting contrast, this group might end up being defined by Hesse (who at 6-3, 250 is no longer 'undersized') and Bazata (Morgan said: 'He grades out probably higher than anybody in our defensive line').

l Comments: (319) 398-8256; marc.morehouse@thegazette.com