Steven Stilianos among Iowa tight ends trying to fill void after Erick All’s season-ending injury

IOWA CITY — The last time Steven Stilianos was at the top of a college football depth chart, it was in a much different setting than his surroundings at Iowa’s football facility.

The average attendance for a home football game during Stilianos’ final year at Lafayette College was 14,304. One could fit the entire Lafayette crowd in roughly seven sections of Kinnick Stadium’s east bleachers.

Lafayette College’s facilities were “pretty nice” for an FCS school, but far from the lavishness of most Power Five facilities.

“I remember when they ran out of chocolate milks for three weeks,” Stilianos said. “We didn’t even have protein shakes after a lift.”

Now at Iowa — where “we have enough protein for an army” at the Hansen Football Performance Center — the sixth-year senior could be a key part of the Hawkeyes’ receiving corps in the second half of the season.

Not long ago, Stilianos’ name was not even on the depth chart. But then injuries ravaged the tight ends room.

First, Luke Lachey went down with an injury that required surgery. Erick All took over as Iowa’s top tight end until he suffered a season-ending knee injury against Wisconsin.

Addison Ostrenga, originally Iowa’s third-team tight end, has missed the last two games with an injury, although Coach Kirk Ferentz is “optimistic” about his status ahead of the Minnesota game.

In a matter of a month, Stilianos went from fourth to first on the depth chart as the tight ends ahead of him suffered injuries.

“The biggest thing is just next man up,” said quarterback Deacon Hill, who stepped in for the injured Cade McNamara earlier this season. “We say it a lot, but it’s really the truth. … We trust all the guys that are on the field.”

Stilianos saw some game action in the six games before All’s injury. That included 45 snaps against Western Michigan and 54 against Purdue, according to Pro Football Focus.

The bigger learning experience, though, was “having a whole offseason here” after transferring in 2022.

“I got tons of reps through bowl prep, through spring ball, through camp,” Stilianos said. “The more reps you accumulate, it just helps.”

Ferentz said Stilianos was “one of the most improved guys last spring.”

“Last year was a transition year for him,” Ferentz said. “And in the spring you could see him operating, like, this is a guy who can help us play and help us be successful. And he's going to be called upon to do more now as we move forward.”

As Stilianos prepares for the larger role, Hill has “all the faith in the world in him.”

“He does a great job in the run game, and he’s really grown with his route running,” Hill said.

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After Stilianos, the Hawkeyes’ next two options at tight end are Johnny Pascuzzi and Zach Ortwerth.

Pascuzzi — or as his teammates call him, “Scuze” — is a third-year walk-on who had his first career catch in Iowa’s 15-6 win over Wisconsin.

“I got to work with him a lot in the spring and in the summer when I was running with the twos,” Hill said. “Really smart guy. Very tough, dependable. … He does a great job in the run game, and then he does everything right in the pass game as well.”

Ortwerth — teammates call him “Ort” for short — is a former three-star recruit in the 2023 recruiting class who saw his first game action earlier this month against Purdue.

“When he came in the summer, you could tell he was going to be a good player,” Hill said. “Very good route runner, great blocker. He’s very dedicated, works really hard.”

Stilianos, Pascuzzi and Ortwerth do not have the same wealth of in-game experience that Lachey and All had before their injuries. The trio did not take any snaps at the FBS level until this season.

“Technically, we’re playing a four, five and six at tight end the other night — the three guys that were out there,” Ferentz said, referencing Ostrenga, Stilianos and Ortwerth’s original spots in the tight end pecking order.

The short-handed Iowa offense has the benefit of a relatively favorable schedule in the rest of October and November. ESPN Analytics gives the Hawkeyes at least a 65 percent chance of winning in each of their five remaining games.

Last week’s win over Wisconsin also means Iowa controls its own destiny in the Big Ten West.

ESPN’s Football Power Index gives the Hawkeyes a 76.1 percent chance of winning the division. The potentially division-tilting win over Wisconsin is not something Iowa can dwell on, however.

“That week is behind us,” running back Leshon Williams said. “We lose this game, what does that do for us?”

Comments: john.steppe@thegazette.com