Iowa spring football starts with holes on offensive line

Everybody knows that when Iowa gets it together on the offensive line, the Hawkeyes are playing for Big Ten championships or New Year's Day bowls or, as they did in 2009, a BCS berth.

Iowa's O-line struggled through injuries and illness and might not have reached its potential last season. But three players from that unit - Bryan Bulaga, Kyle Calloway and Dace Richardson - could hear their names in the NFL draft.

The NFL's gain is a loss for the 2010 Hawkeyes. Bulaga left Iowa with a year of eligibility, which was the smart move considering some draft. Some have him going as high as No. 5. Richardson, who missed all but one game in 2007 and all of '08, also decided to give the NFL a try even though he would have had a great shot at a sixth year of eligibility.

Going into spring practice today, Iowa has three openings on the offensive line. Riley Reiff and Julian Vandervelde are the returning starters.

So Iowa needs a center, guard and right tackle.

Here are some of the possibilities:

Center

Josh Koeppel and James Ferentz are two to watch.

Koeppel is a former walk-on from Iowa City High.

He's steadily climbed the ladder at Iowa. He was No.?3 in 2008 and No. 2 last season. In 2008, he was used as a third

tight end on goal-line situations and has a degree of trust from the coaching staff. Koeppel is 6-2 (ish) and listed at 267. He'll have his hands full with bigger Big Ten tackles.

Ferentz's career probably stalled some last season with an off-the-field incident. It cost him some spring practice and a game suspension. With a clean slate, the 6-2, 265-pounder should be a hungry player.

Guard

This might depend on who wins and loses the battle at right tackle.

Adam Gettis, a 6-4, 280-pound junior, might have an inside track. He started the opener against Northern Iowa last season but then didn't see meaningful playing time. He wore a cast on a hand much of the second half of the year.

Tackle

This might be the most interesting spot. Four names in contention likely will be senior walk-on Kyle Haganman, juniors Markus Zusevics and Woody Orne and red-shirt freshman Nolan MacMillan.

Iowa beat out Michigan State for MacMillan, a Canadian who tuned his game at The Hun School in New Jersey. The 6-6, 288-pounder nearly burned his red-shirt in 2009. He had an undisclosed injury during bowl practices and didn't participate.

This will be Zusevics' first legit shot at the depth chart. He's seen light action the last two years. He arrived a 6-5, 240-pounder who was a four-year winner as an outside hitter on the Prospect (Ill.) prep volleyball team. He played for a state football champ in 2005. His latest weight (Orange Bowl media guide) was 278.

Orne is interesting and largely unknown. A junior transfer from South Dakota State, Orne was SDSU's lone representative on the 2008 MVC all-newcomer team. He played in nine games with seven starts, playing right tackle the last five games. He set strength and conditioning records at SDSU with a 32-inch vertical jump and a 9-1 broad jump. He's listed 6-5, 295.

Originally from Fairfield, he seemed to grow into his own and take off at SDSU.