No. 5 — DE Drew Ott

No. 5 . . .

We've been there and back with Drew Ott. He was the guy who rode the moped from Iowa City to his home, Trumbull, Neb., in the summer of 2013. He was the guy who ate whole eggs, shell and all, at Big Ten media days. He's the defending back-to-back champion in the Solon Beef Days hay bale toss.

'Drew is a really smart guy and from that, I think he's able to see humor in a lot of situations,' former Iowa linebacker James Morris said during the 2013 season. 'He's not afraid to laugh at himself. He has fun.'

There's been so much zaniness you kind of forget that he's a serious football player who's poised for a productive senior season with the Hawkeyes.

Let's go with that here. Last season, Ott led the Hawkeyes with 12 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks (which tied for sixth in the Big Ten). He also recorded two pass breakups, one forced fumble and a 12-yard punt return for a touchdown. The health and human physiology major also earned his second consecutive academic all-Big Ten honor. Also, Ott was voted second team all-conference by league media.

'The first word that comes to mind is character,' head coach Kirk Ferentz said. 'There are a couple of levels. He has tremendous character, but on top of that, he is a character. He's a lot of fun to work with. He's got a great spirit to him. He's everything you want in a football player. He's very competitive, he's very tough-minded, he's a very good student and citizen. We've really enjoyed having him in the program. He's a very unselfish player.'

On Iowa Live: Does Drew Ott Compare to Aaron Kampman?

Ott approaches his time in front of the camera with a lighthearted attitude. As you might imagine, it's not like that on the field. In the first week of camp during one of the warm-up stretches, fellow defensive end Nate Meier had trouble with a chin strap. Now, these two are great friends and there's seriously no conflict here, but Ott did say, 'Put your [bleep] helmet on.' Meier replied, 'It is.'

Ott is cagey in the humor department. He's very direct in what he says on the field.

'I try not to be funny, I try to be more serious on the field and get the job done,' Ott said. 'There are certain times you need to keep it light. That might come into play.'

The guy who wears 'No. 1 Dad' T-shirts to class, the guy Ferentz referred to as a 'king-size nerd,' shoots laser beams out of his eyes when it's time to punch in on the field. He recognizes this and gladly sports the 'No. 1 senior leader' T-shirt (there isn't one of those, but it's assumed at this point for Ott).

'It's essential,' Ott said of the leadership concept. 'I want to be a good leader. I want to do things right, so people follow that. I want to get things done.'

The Rudock thing . . .

There was that big QB move in January. C.J. Beathard in, Jake Rudock out. It was a topic during the spring, and Ott was asked about it during a Big Ten teleconference.

'Yeah (I was surprised),' Ott said. 'I thought he had a little more fight in him. But, I guess maybe an opportunity (appeared) over there at Michigan. I don't know too much about it.'

Asked about Rudock's leadership skills, Ott deferred comment. You can see where the 'thought he had a little more fight in him' might be taken negatively, but, really, it didn't seem sinister. You know how media works. It blew up, of course!

It was a question reporters explored at Big Ten media days.

'I didn't think it was going to have that big of a reaction,' Ott said.

What were you trying to say?

'I was just rambling on, I don't remember the context,' Ott said. 'I think they pulled it out of context, it really didn't make a lot of sense. He should be good up there. He's a smart football player. Hopefully, it works out well. Should be a fit.'

Outlook . . .

Last August, offensive tackle Brandon Scherff was the big cat in Iowa's camp. He went on to win the 2014 Outland Trophy and was the No. 5 pick in the NFL, going to the Washington Redskins.

Ott wanted to improve his pass rush skills, so he asked to flip defensive end spots in camp so he could line up across Scherff.

That's pretty much it. As the season begins, Ott probably fits into the second tier of Big Ten defensive ends, with Ohio State's Joey Bosa and Michigan State's Shilique Calhoun sucking up all the preseason awards.

Who knows? Maybe the No. 1 Dad can make a run at No. 1 Defensive End.

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