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Notes from HawkeyeReport.com . . .
Marc Morehouse
Jan. 6, 2012 10:12 pm
HawkeyeReport.com's Tom Kakert returns to us this week with another recruiting update.
Down the stretch they come…
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No we haven't started writing about horse racing. It's the stretch run for college football coaches as National Letter of Intent Signing Day looms less than one month away.
In some ways it is like a horse race as coaches from around the country jockey for position in the final weeks hoping to grab prize recruits at the finish line on February 1
st
.
Kirk Ferentz and his coaching staff have been hitting the road hard once again this week as recruiting went live following a holiday break. Iowa currently has 17 known verbal commits as of late in the week with the number of signees expected to reach into the low 20s before it's all said and down.
This past week the Hawkeyes picked up verbal commitments from junior college quarterback Cody Sokol from Scottsdale, AZ and running back Greg Garmon from Erie, PA. Sokol, who has family ties to the Hawkeye state, chose Iowa over Arizona on New Year's Eve Day. Garmon, who is rated by Rivals.com as a four star prospect, announced his decision at the Semper Fiedlis All-American Bowl in Phoenix on January 3
rd
and picked the Hawkeyes over Miami (FL) and Arkansas.
The Hawkeyes also had a miss this week when four star linebacker Quanzell Lambert from Sicklerville, NJ decided to stay close to home and attended Rutgers over Iowa and Nebraska.
With five or perhaps six slots left to be filled, who are the best bets to become Hawkeyes down the stretch?
Iowa is still looking at adding another quarterback and on Thursday night Ferentz and offensive coordinator Ken O'Keefe made their way down to Tennessee for an in-home visit with three star signal caller Patton Robinette, who is still unofficially committed to North Carolina. Robinette could make his decision this weekend and is still considering Iowa, UNC, and Vanderbilt. Right now it appears that Vanderbilt has a slight edge in the race.
If Iowa does miss on Robinette, they could turn their attention to Ohio QB Eric Williams. The Cleveland signal caller visited Iowa last month and is still waiting for word on an offer from the Hawkeyes.
The Hawkeyes' running back situation looks better with Garmon on board, but they could be ready to add one more to the fold before signing day. Three star back Albert Reid from Washington, D.C. is very close to making his choice and it could come down to Iowa or Maryland. Buffalo back Akeel Lynch visited Iowa City last month and is till verbally committed to Boston College, but he appears to be open to changing that status. Another name to watch could be two star back Marcus Horne from Milwaukee, who has scheduled an official visit to Iowa next weekend.
The Hawkeyes have three wide receivers in the fold heading into the final weeks of the Class of 2012 recruiting and appear to be interested in adding at least one more receiver. Perhaps the most likely addition could be Malik Golden from Cheshire, CT. Golden is a verbal commit to Penn State, but appears to be wavering at this point. Other names to watch include three star prospect Ray Martin from Florida, Ian Thomas from Reistertown, MD, and Austin Aikens from Tampa, FL.
If the Hawkeyes are going to add another offensive lineman it might come from the Rocky Mountains where they continue their pursuit of a pair of four star prospects. Alex Kozan from Castle Rock, CO visited Iowa this fall and appears to be interested in making a trip to Oklahoma before making his decision. Joey O'Connor from Windsor, CO has a visit set for next weekend to Ohio State and is considering a trip to Iowa afterwards. Another name to watch could be Eric Simmons from Iowa Western Junior College. While only a freshman, Simmons could move on at semester and the Hawkeye coaches may consider offering the center prospect in the next week.
Defensive line has been a big need for Iowa and even though they already have four commits, there is the potential for more to come. Nathan Lohn from Kansas City is waiting to find out if Stanford will be an option and appears to be down to the Cardinals and the Hawkeyes. Keller, TX native Aaron Curry appeared to be leaning slightly towards Iowa until other schools started show more interest. One of those schools is Nebraska, where the former Iowa assistant and defensive line coach Rick Kaczenski now resides.
At defensive back, Iowa is focused in on Cleveland Glenville prep Sean Draper, who made an official visit to Iowa City last month. Another name to watch without an offer could be Davenport Assumption prep Tim Kilfoy, who has an offer on the table from Ball State.
A lot can change in the final weeks as the recruiting races comes to a close, so get ready for a photo finish when it comes to the Class of 2012.