The big back

Yes, Iowa has eight scholarship running backs on its roster. The Hawkeyes don't have the big body that Marcus Coker will bring this fall.

Think of it as market differentiation.

The 6-foot, 228-pounder from DeMatha High School (Hyattsville, Md.) rushed for 1,567 yards and 20 touchdowns last season. He did this in the talent-rich Washington D.C. area, earning consensus all-state status in Maryland.

"He's big, he's strong, he's pretty athletic," DeMatha coach Bill McGregor said. "He rushed for 392 yards for us in one game. He doesn't look like he can run by you, but he can."

That 392 yards, along with five TDs in a 56-35 victory, came at the expense of Baltimore's Gilman School and future Hawkeye linebacker Jim Poggi and defensive tackle Anthony Ferguson. That says Coker wasn't running over and around just anyone.

"I like that Iowa is a power offense," Coker said. "Bigger backs can help make that work."

Iowa has three sophomore running backs returning with credentials. Adam Robinson fought off a high-ankle sprain and finished fourth in the Big Ten with 834 yards and 4.6 yards a carry. As a true freshman last season, Brandon Wegher rushed for 641 yards and a freshman-record eight TDs. He had arguably his best game in the Orange Bowl, rushing for 113 yards and a 32-yard TD that sealed the 24-14 victory over Georgia Tech.

Then there's Jewel Hampton. He rushed for 463 yards, 7 TDs and a 5.1 per-carry average as a true freshman in '08 before suffering a torn ACL last summer. He missed all of '09, but is on track for an August return.

All three are in the 5-9, 200-pound range.

At 5-11, 220, sophomore Jeff Brinson could be the big back in the Shonn Greene mold, but he missed 2009 with a foot injury. If he's available for spring practice, it'd be a big boost for his career, which is waiting for flight.

But big back? No, Iowa doesn't have a bona fide Greene prototype, at least with a resume. That's kind of what sold Coker, the Shonn Greene factor.

"That was one of my biggest turn ons about the school," said Coker, who rushed for 39 TDs in his final two seasons at DeMatha. "If he did it and I work hard, I can do it, too. We have the same body type."

In 2008, Greene rushed for an Iowa season record 1,850 yards and 20 TDs. He left Iowa with one year of eligibility remaining and landed in the third round of the NFL draft with the New York Jets. He was a sensation in the playoffs, rushing for 304 yards and two TDs before being knocked out of the second half against the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC championship game.

Greene was a factor in Coker's recruiting. He saw what Greene did and he liked it.

"The Doak Walker winner," Coker said with a laugh. "They showed me some of his game video and some of the technique he used. I already knew about him. I did some research."

Part of the research was the drive.

When Coker visited Iowa City this summer, his mom, Tammy Money, put her son in the car and made the 18-hour driver to Iowa City, making sure that's where he really wanted to go to school. Coker also had an offer from Maryland, which is two miles from Hyattsville.

Before his trip to Iowa City, Iowa wasn't really in the game with Coker. Maryland was in with Minnesota and Wake Forest also near the top.

"She said, if you're going to Iowa, the one thing you're going to have to do, you're driving back and forth, you're not flying," McGregor said. "If you want that, this is how it's going to be. She put him in the car, they made the drive, had a good visit and decided on Iowa."

There's more than football going on here, too.

Coker, who carries a 3.4 GPA, helps his mom take care of mentally challenged adults who live with them. He cooks, cleans and does laundry. For years, Money has taken her live-ins to DeMatha football games. This fall, the entire household was on the DeMatha sidelines.

This year, McGregor and the program gave three of Money's adults football helmets. They'd been coming to games for 15 years.

"Tammy is a really great lady. She's old school," McGregor said. "She calls it exactly the way it is and she's right on target. If he's lazy, she says he's too lazy. She's a super person and her commitment to the mentally challenged is fantastic."

More research: Coker is well versed on Iowa and coach Kirk Ferentz's expertise with offensive lines. He knows fellow 2010 recruit Andrew Donnal, a 6-7, 280-poound O-lineman.

He also knows Iowa's running back depth chart. He met Hampton and Robinson on his official visit. Coker has no expectations, but he knows that whatever happens depends on what he does.

“I know I have to come in physically ready and I have to learn this system,” he said. “(Coaches) said they might give me a shot (next year). It's going to be up to me, though. I have take care of what's in front of me.”