Pre-Summer Pass Catchers Outlook

Wide Receiver-

Gone is the receiver that re-wrote the Iowa record books. Derell Johnson-Koulianos has exhausted his eligibility with the Iowa Hawkeyes, but he left his mark on the football program both positively and negatively. Looking to step into the spotlight will be Marvin McNutt and Keenan Davis, who are widely regarded as the top two receivers going into summer workouts. McNutt has gone from third string quarterback to receiver flirting with his own records. He led the Hawkeye team in receptions and yards last season even though he is still learning the position. He has proven to be a threat in the red zone with his ability to position his body against the defender and then out jump anyone. Look for Marvin to have a monster year as the #1 receiver. If McNutt garners double teams, it will open things up for Davis, a junior who came to Iowa via Cedar Rapids Washington. He has seen action each of his first two seasons on the field, albeit in limited time spelling DJK and McNutt. In his short career he has grabbed 15 balls. Look for Davis to flourish in the #2 role and relieve some of the increased pressure that McNutt will surely see. With the top two receiver slots penciled in, the battle for the backup roles and the time at slot receiver will be intense. The top contenders are Jordan Cotton, Don Shumpert, Kevonte Martin-Manley, Blake Haluska, and Steven Staggs. Cotton arrived on campus with much fanfare, but has yet to make any impact. This spring Shumpert was praised by the coaching staff and made some impressive catches in the spring game. Early this spring DJK made waves with his tweet that Martin-Manley would break all of his records, pretty high praise for a guy who has yet to see the field. Haluska and Staggs are both Iowa born players and could get their shot this year. Don’t expect any contributors form the incoming freshman Marcus Grant. In my opinion it will be a four man rotation between McNutt, Davis, KMM, and Shumpert with Cotton, Staggs, and Haluska contributing on special teams and vying their time.

Tight Ends

For a lot of teams in the nation the tight end is either a glorified offensive lineman or another wide receiver. At Iowa they are both and even in the middle of the field you might find Iowa in a two tight end formation. Typically what you find is that Iowa has one tight end that is the better blocker and one that is a better pass catcher. Last year Brad Herman was the blocker and Allen Reisner was the route runner. Resiner has graduated and whether or not Herman moves over to the pass catcher or stays as the blocker remains to be seen. In his career Herman has grabbed 10 passes, nine of which were last season and six of those were in two games. He did however average 17 yards per catch last year, which is remarkably high for a tight end. Joining Herman as a primary tight end will probably be C.J. Fiedorowicz, who saw action last year as a true freshman. After an offseason in the weight room, C.J. could become the main tight end. He has yet to make his first career reception, but gained valuable time as the third tight end last season. Following the first two will be Zach Derby and Austin Vier. Derby will be a Junior and Vier a redshirt freshman and will be battling for that #3 TE spot. Derby has the obvious upper hand seeing’s how Vier is a year removed from being a high school quarterback. Joining this foursome this summer will be incoming freshman Jake Duzey, Ray Hamilton, and Henry Krieger-Coble all of whom were considered in the top 50 tight ends of last season’s recruiting class. If any of them play it will probably be Hamilton, who appears to be the most ready. Duzey is on the smaller side and don’t rule out a position change for Kreiger-Coble, who was a very good linebacker in high school.