Kyler Schott enjoys ‘almost unexplainable’ path from walk-on to Iowa starter

IOWA CITY — As a couple throwers tried to compete in the shuttle hurdle relay in a track meet in Van Horne about five years ago, much of the spectators’ attention was glued to a far more entertaining sight.

One athlete from North Linn and one from Mount Vernon had some time and a football in their hands.

“Each of them were throwing it about 50, 60 yards,” North Linn football coach Jared Collum said. “Everybody’s watching them.”

The Mount Vernon athlete was Tristan Wirfs. The North Linn athlete was Kyler Schott. Both would become Iowa offensive linemen.

Schott’s path at Iowa — he described it as “almost unexplainable” — hasn’t been as easy or straightforward as those heaves between him and Wirfs, though.

“He was a walk-on that didn't look like much when he showed up here,” Iowa football coach Kirk Ferentz said.

Walking on at Iowa: ‘I had to try it’

Schott didn’t know if walking on at Iowa would work out, but it seemed like a better option than playing at the Division III level for Coe College or Wartburg College.

“It was a pretty easy decision for me,” Schott said. “(It) was either come to Iowa and pay for school or go to Wartburg and pay even more, so I figured, even if it didn’t work out, I had to try it.”

In his first few Iowa practices, Schott said he “didn’t know what to do at all.”

“That was not pretty,” he said.

It didn’t help that he was invited to fall camp late.

“Coach (Reese) Morgan called me, and they were already like four days in,” Schott said. “He was like, ‘Hey, do you want to come to fall camp?’ I’m like, ‘When?’” He said, ‘Tomorrow.’“

Earning a scholarship — and a starting spot

Schott redshirted in 2017 and played in one game in 2018, the same year Ferentz noticed his development accelerate.

The offensive lineman saw more playing time starting in 2019. He made six starts that year and two starts in 2020.

The Coggon native also experienced some adversity in those years. He missed five games in 2019 because of an injury and three games in 2020 because of an illness.

“Obviously he’s faced some injuries, but he’s battled through them and a lot of adversity,” Iowa center Tyler Linderbaum said.

About two years ago, Ferentz pulled Schott aside and had a special message for him.

“He said, ‘You’re never going to have to pay for school again. You’re going to be on scholarship for the rest of your time here,’” Schott said. “I got a little emotional. Me and Wirfs were hugging and crying.”

After a delayed start to the 2021 season after breaking his foot leaping off a pile of hay bales, Schott has started Iowa’s last six games and provided a veteran presence on a young offensive line.

Kirk is not the only Ferentz to sing Schott’s praises.

“He’s playing his best football right now,” said Brian Ferentz, Iowa fifth-year offensive coordinator.

Brian Ferentz attributed it to Schott’s hard work since arriving on campus in 2017.

“I wish we could take credit for Kyler’s development,” Brian Ferentz said. “All the credit lies with Kyler. It’s the work he puts in, and really it’s the toughness and the grit he’s shown to persevere through a lot of hardship.”

Linderbaum has seen Schott especially "try to be a better leader“ this year.

“Within this last year, just his investment into the team and into the players … has just skyrocketed,” Linderbaum said.

Linderbaum said Schott’s lack of recruiting interest from other schools leads to “a little chip on your shoulder.”

“I think having that mentality — try to prove people wrong — has helped him,” Linderbaum said.

Schott doesn’t necessarily show that chip in his off-the-field interactions.

“He definitely lights up the room when he comes in,” Linderbaum said.

Brian Ferentz has been “excited to be around him and see him every day.”

North Linn’s Collum has seen Schott’s fun personality plenty of times. Once, Schott and his high school teammates ran a 400-meter relay with a football instead of a baton.

“Then he spiked it as he crossed the finish line,” Collum said. “Of course we got DQ’ed, but it was pretty great.”

The 6-foot-2 offensive lineman is far from the biggest guy Iowa has ever had up front, but he still finds ways to produce results.

“You have to look beyond what he looks like sometimes.” Kirk Ferentz said. “I don't mean that in a derogatory sense, but he doesn't look like Tristin Wirfs.”

No one has to tell that to Linderbaum.

Linderbaum views Schott as a “great friend” and “great teammate.” Schott also has been quite the competitor for Linderbaum, starting on the high school wrestling mats.

“Shooter won,” Linderbaum said. “We wrestled one time.”

It was close, though.

“We ended up having a really good match,” Linderbaum said. “I think it came down to, like, the last 10 seconds.”

When Linderbaum came to Iowa initially as a defensive lineman, he then had to go up against the winning wrestler in practice.

“He was pretty tough then,” Linderbaum said. “He’s just continuing to get better.”

Now that they’re both offensive linemen, the wrestling match still comes up from time to time.

“I want my rematch,” Linderbaum said.

A sixth year for Shooter?

The time for that rematch may be dwindling. Schott, a senior, could be playing his last game at Kinnick Stadium on Saturday.

“I don’t think that it’s really going to hit me until I run out on that field,” Schott said. “It’s really going to come over me like a tidal wave. Hopefully I can keep it in a little bit.”

Schott has not decided yet whether he’ll stay for his extra year of eligibility because of COVID-19. He’s “been focusing on every game this season,” which doesn’t leave much time to think about 2022.

Some of the factors going into the decision, he said, will be “how your body feels” and what the team needs on the offensive line in 2022.

If he plays another year, that would mean going through another physically-taxing Big Ten season.

“To put my body through another (season) when I’ve already had a few injuries in my time here, it’d be tough to do for sure,” Schott said.

The criminal justice major also has to consider whether he wants to take college classes for a sixth year.

“I already graduated last year, so I’m just kind of taking random classes right now,” Schott said. “I don't know if I can find enough classes to take.”

Underwater basket weaving? “I think they got rid of that.”

If it is his last home game, he’s had quite the journey since his days as a walk-on.

“You knew you were going to have to work your tail off, but just to be at this point, it’s awesome,” Schott said.

He’ll have some time to make that decision, though.

It will almost certainly come more on his terms than the end of the game of catch at Benton Community High School’s track meet with his future Iowa teammate.

“The Benton Community guy got on (the microphone), ‘Athletes from Mount Vernon and North Linn, will you please put the football away,’” Collum said with a big laugh.

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