Notes from HawkeyeReport.com . . .

The focus of HawkeyeReport.com publisher Tom Kakert's column this week is defensive linemen.

You might've read somewhere that Iowa could use a couple. Two are committed (Drew Ott and Jaleel Johnson), but Iowa needs at least two more and probably four.

And it looks as though the Iowa staff is considering JUCO D-linemen. I want to say the last DL JUCO for the Hawkeyes was Derrick Pickens, who was a mainstay on the 2001 Alamo Bowl team.

One of the cornerstones of Norm Parker's defenses at Iowa has been strong play up front along the defensive line. While the Hawkeyes have struggled in the trenches this year, the numbers don't lie. Iowa has produced quite a few defensive linemen who are currently on NFL rosters.

Last April, Iowa had three defensive linemen drafted into the NFL, including first-rounder Adrian Clayborn, who landed in Tampa Bay.

That sort of tradition is certainly a strong selling point for Kirk Ferentz and his staff as they hit the recruiting trail trying to acquire verbal commitments from their defensive line targets in the 2012 class.

Thus far, the Hawkeyes have two verbal commits in end Drew Ott and tackle Jaleel Johnson.

Ott, of Giltner, Neb., is a 6-foot-4, 235-pound prospect who committed to the Hawkeyes in late June and has had an outstanding senior season, including putting up monster numbers playing tight end.

Johnson, a 6-foot-3 and 280 pound defensive tackle from Montini High School in the Chicago area, committed to Iowa in early July after considering offers from Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. The four-star prospect is ranked by Rivals.com as the 155th best player in the country regardless of position and the 13th best defensive tackle in 2012.

But Iowa needs more help up front beyond those two. That could mean at least two more commitments coming before signing day in early February.

Two of those targets will be making their way to Iowa City this weekend for official visits.

Leading the way will be four-star prospect Faith Ekakitie from Lake Forest, Ill. The 6-foot-2, 255-pound prospect grew up in Canada and has only been playing organized football for three years, but his long arms and athletic ability have attracted plenty of recruiting attention from college coaches.

Ekakitie has at least 20 scholarship offers and has narrowed his choices to a list of seven schools. He will visit Boston College this week when it hosts Florida State. Then he will wing his way to Iowa City on Friday for his official visit and watch the Hawkeyes play Michigan. He has already visited Illinois in October and will visit Georgia Tech and Oregon later this month.

Ekakitie also is considering Northwestern, who might be an undeclared favorite at this point in the recruiting race.

Aaron Curry, from Fossil Ride High School in Keller, Texas, is the other visitor this weekend. The 6-foot-3, 275-pound defensive tackle holds scholarship offers from Baylor, Boise State, Mississippi, and Missouri. He has already made his official visit to Boise State and will visit Mississippi and Missouri in late November and early December.

The Hawkeyes also remain under consideration for three-star prospects Nate Lohn, a 6-foot-3, 265-pound defensive end from Kansas City, Mo., and Trace Clark, a 6-foot-5, 240-pound defensive end from Wichita, Kan. They visited Iowa earlier this year -- Lohn in September and Clark last month for the win over Northwestern.

Lohn appears to be down to Iowa or Stanford with a decision coming after his regular season concludes this month. Clarke has a visit later this month to Stanford and hasn't given any hints on where he might be headed.

One option that the Hawkeye coaches are certainly looking at to provide a more immediate jolt to a struggling defensive line is the junior college ranks. The Hawkeyes haven't extended a scholarship offer yet, but they have expressed an interest in a pair of prospects from College of the Desert in Palm Desert, Calif.

Iowa is looking at film on

Jake Sheffield, a 6-foot-4, 280-pound defensive tackle, and

Robert Caldwell, a 6-foot-3, 248-pound linebacker who projects to the defensive end position in college. While no scholarship offers have been extended, the duo could provide immediate dividends next season and provide a quicker fix than most high school prospects.