Where Iowa football 2026 recruiting stands after 3 weeks of official visits

IOWA CITY — For Iowa football (and any other FBS program), this week marks a change in seasons.

The NCAA’s four-week-long recruiting quiet period — a stretch where in-person recruiting is allowed on campus — ended on Sunday. Now, it is officially the summer dead period, which coincides with a period when prospects often decide to make commitments.

Iowa hosted 16 official visits over the last three weekends, as tracked by the recruiting site On3. Half of those official visits were from prospects who had already committed to Iowa (and have remained committed to the Hawkeyes since then).

Five of the eight undecided official visitors have announced their commitments since then. Instate linebacker Kasen Thomas committed to Iowa on Monday after taking an official visit last weekend, and defensive lineman Sawyer Jezierski committed to Iowa after his official visit earlier in the month.

Then Julian Manson — a four-star linebacker, as rated by On3, on the top prospect in the state of Iowa — committed to the Hawkeyes on Tuesday evening. Manson’s father, Jason Manson, is an Iowa alum and has been on the Iowa football staff since 2021.

Defensive end Cory House and defensive back Isaiah McMillian chose other schools after their official visits to Iowa. House committed to Michigan State, and McMillian committed to Kentucky.

While not tied to an official visit, defensive back Ronnie Hill announced his commitment to Iowa on Sunday after attending an Iowa camp last week and receiving an offer from the Hawkeyes. It was his first offer from a power-conference school.

Here’s where that leaves the Hawkeyes as the recruiting calendar turns:

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Which official visitors remain uncommitted?

Two of the prospects who took official visits last weekend have not announced a commitment yet:

One of the four official visitors from earlier in the month has yet to announce their college destination:

Where does Iowa’s 2026 recruiting class compare to its peers?

Here is how Iowa’s 2026 recruiting class ranks so far nationally and in the Big Ten, as of Tuesday evening (after Manson’s commitment):

On3: No. 31 nationally, No. 11 in Big Ten

247 Sports: No. 44 nationally, No. 14 in Big Ten

Rivals: No. 51 nationally, No. 15 in Big Ten

Recruiting rankings come with several caveats, however. Rankings will fluctuate in the next month as many 2026 prospects who took official visits in June make decisions in July. Also given Iowa’s focus on developing players, some of the prospects that the Iowa staff covets are not necessarily the same prospects that recruiting sites covet.

What position groups have the most commitments in 2026 so far?

Offensive line: 5

Linebacker: 2

Wide receiver: 2

Defensive back: 2

Defensive line: 1

Iowa, most notably, does not have a commitment at quarterback anymore. Cash Herrera committed in October, but he reopened his recruitment last week and committed to Indiana this week.

Position groups without a 2026 commitment yet include running back and tight end. The lack of tight end commitment is not a surprise after Iowa took three at the position in the 2025 recruiting class. Meanwhile, all but one of Iowa’s current running backs are either freshmen or sophomores. (Jaziun Patterson, the one exception, is a junior.)

Comments: john.steppe@thegazette.com

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