Iowa football’s recruiting consistency helps support early offseason efforts

IOWA CITY — Sometimes, consistency bodes better than readjusting. It seems the Hawkeyes are perfectly content in their process, despite the change happening around college football.

Iowa football hasn’t budged on its recruitment setup. Nor does it need to. The Hawkeyes, led in efforts by general manager Tyler Barnes and his recruiting staff, aren’t afraid to keep things simple.

Find who can fit the program best, on and off the field.

“You have to dig into who the kid is, and at some point you're going to figure out if their values match ours,” Barnes said. “Now more than ever, you can figure out real quick if their values don't match ours.”

The Hawkeyes’ 22 signees from Wednesday’s National Signing Day set up Iowa’s future, regardless of when each of those players take the field. Head coach Kirk Ferentz and Barnes made it clear that the program won’t send out a plethora of offers, but rather, a just a handful of athletes.

The process, though, is where the more traditional route exists.

Barnes said high school coaches often are heavily relied on still, rather than just working with an agent. Interactions involving agents can — and do — still happen, though. That’s the modern side of football coming to fruition.

But it’s the high school coaches that delve into who an athlete is.

“It still comes down to, we're going to talk to everybody we can in the school,” Barnes said. “We still rely on high school head coaches. A lot of places don't.”

It’s a process that’s working, though. Iowa’s incoming class is the No. 22 ranked recruiting class in the country, per the 247sports rankings. The Hawkeyes have seven four-star athletes within that class and nine instate players.

Every one of them have all said the same thing about Iowa: it felt right.

“I feel like I fit into it very well, just because it's not a flashy school,” North Liberty linebacker commit Julian “Juju” Manson told The Gazette on Tuesday. “You put your head out and work. I feel like that's the exact type program that is like for me, and they really just buy into you.”

Ferentz being steady in his coaching ways generates that developmental consistency Manson was drawn to. The Hawkeye head coach confirmed he doesn’t plan on retiring in the near future during the signing day media availability Wednesday, saying that he’s told recruits of his intention to coach long-term, too.

“I just tell them the truth. I feels really good,” Ferentz said. “...I feel good physically. I've got permission from my wife to keep doing this, and it's what I like doing. I really like it and enjoy doing it.”

But with the consistency, there’s still some change. Iowa plans to attack the transfer portal this offseason. There’s some holes that need filling, and the portal’s new two-week window amps up the intensity to shop come Jan. 2.

It’s unknown how many current Hawkeyes will test the waters of the transfer portal, since Iowa just wrapped up its regular season not even a week ago.

But it’s the offseason, and the preparation has to start somewhere. It starts with offseason meetings — which are just now beginning. Plus, there’s a bowl game ahead, too.

“We're taking this month to — especially this week — (have) a chance for the players to reset, recharge a little bit, get their house in order academically, all those kinds of things, and then having a chance to sit down with the position coaches,” Ferentz said. “They're all sitting down with their guys individually and talking about the season and looking forward, that type of thing, so setting the table a little bit there.”

This incoming class, however — whether it be the 14 players joining in January or the entire set of 22 players, both scholarship or walk-on — know they’re joining a program that took their time to recruit each athlete to Iowa.

And Iowa did it the way Iowa always has.

“They've really bought into their players and actually developing their players and making sure that they're ready for the next level,” Manson said. “No matter if it's football on the field or off the field in life. I like that.”

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