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After years with Iowa football, Xavier alum Ethan Hurkett reflects on time as a Hawkeye
Defensive lineman Ethan Hurkett won two state titles with Xavier before committing to Iowa football, where he became captain his final year.
Nov. 20, 2025 1:56 pm
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IOWA CITY — Ethan Hurkett became a Hawkeye 30 minutes after getting his offer from defensive line coach Kelvin Bell.
It felt almost instantaneous, and he didn’t even tell his high school coach until well after Hurkett made the commitment.
He was participating in an Iowa football junior day then, enjoying the chance to visiting the Hawkeye facilities and coaching staff. Getting the offer from Iowa meant Hurkett could play for the team he’s grown up around, just a quick drive down I-380 away.
Nearly six years later, he’ll leave Kinnick Stadium for the last time after Iowa’s final home game against Michigan State on Saturday.
“It’s a little bit more special just to know that it really is the last time,” Hurkett said. “And, you know, there's no eligibility left, so just to soak it in and be with my brothers one last time in Kinnick will be really special.”
Hurkett is one of 27 football athletes being recognized during Saturday’s pregame ceremony, alongside fellow Xavier alum-turned-Hawkeye, Jaxon Rexroth. The duo won two state titles at Xaiver High School, and Hurkett was the district Defensive Player of the Year his senior season.
Hurkett also was a team captain at Xavier, and one of four captains for the Hawkeyes this year.
“Everything that's he's accomplished, he doesn't surprise his high school coaches,” Hurkett’s high school head coach, Duane Shulte, said. “That's how he was in high school. He was driven, relentless, loves to work, just enjoys the grind, loves the physicality of the sport, and is just a smart kid.”
The sixth-year graduate started his collegiate career in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, having to wear face masks to lifts and get tested nearly every day. The isolation from everyone except the football team forged a very different start to college, but Hurkett began earning his on-field opportunities as life slowly returned to normal.
“What a way to start your college career. In some ways maybe it was a benefit because they all had to kind of draw together. It was basically them and nobody else,” Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz said. “There was nobody else around here ... I was extremely worried at that point about like what's it going to do to these guys short term and then long term. Long term they've been great, and maybe that's why these guys have been so close.”
He was sidelined with an ACL injury in 2021, after playing in his first three games. Upon return, Hurkett played the entire 2022 season and beyond. Hurkett earned his starting role on the defensive line in 2024, and reached the team captain status this year.
“I think a lot of it starts with just identifying the right person and making sure that they're coming here for the right reasons,” defensive line coach Kelvin Bell said. “You have to want to come to Iowa. You have to want to be here.”
Despite the finality of a senior day, Hurkett said Saturday doesn’t feel as real as it might be if Iowa was home for the season finale. The Hawkeyes still have two more games — one at Nebraska and the other a bowl game — before closing the chapter on his final season.
“I think it doesn’t feel quite as final, because you have regular season games this,” Hurkett said. “It’s still being the last time in Kinnick though. It’ll be something else, and I just want to soak it all in.”
Hurkett’s recorded 27 tackles this season, including 6.5 tackles-for-loss and five sacks. He earned his first forced fumble of the year against USC, starting in every game this year.
Surrounded by his wife and family, Hurkett will have the chance to realize what his efforts have meant to the Iowa program, and the fanbase that will salute him and the 26 others Saturday afternoon.
Then, Hurkett can see how far he’s come since getting his offer on a junior day all those years ago.
“It’s been surreal,” Hurkett said. “Going through it, you can’t really see where you’ll end up ... it’s hard to see the future and put youself in that position mentally, but I think if you trust the process, trust what the coaches are trying to do and trust God, you can do it.”
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