After a week of misery and gloom when it comes to Iowa sports, we finally have a shred of positive news in the form of the verbal commitment of Eric Simmons to Iowa. The good news is that Simmons is a JUCO transfer, suggesting that he might be able to play soon. The less good news is that he's not slated for the defensive line, which is where Iowa really needs immediate help.
Simmons comes to Iowa via Iowa Western Community College (and is originally from Madrid, IA), and what he lacks in star rankings (he's currently unranked by all the services) and offers (Rivals said he had other offers from UNI, Youngstown State, Eastern Kentucky, and Missouri State), he makes up for in size (6-3, 305) and attitude. Just watch these highlights and see if you can't detect a mean streak:
I particularly like the one where he loses his helmet and still blocks the guy about ten yards downfield.
Despite having considerable success recruiting highly-touted prep offensive linemen (it's the one position where we've been ably to consistently recruit 4* talent), Iowa's also made a habit of poaching the odd JUCO offensive lineman here and there. The most celebrated recent success story is likely Marshall Yanda (or perhaps that should be "Pro Bowler Marshall Yanda"), who turned a brief stint as a mauler at Iowa into a very successful career with the Baltimore Ravens. More recently, Iowa again dipped into the JUCO ranks for Dan Heiar, although that story won't have such a happy ending. Simmons played center at Iowa Western and projects as an interior lineman -- either a center or guard -- at Iowa. James Ferentz is almost certainly locked into the starting center spot for 2012, but the job is open beyond that and neither guard spot is in any way locked up for 2012 (unless you were more impressed by Matt Tobin's performance than most observers were).
That said, there's also a fair amount of talent already on campus that will be vying for those spots as well: true freshman Austin Blythe and Jordan Walsh, redshirt freshmen Andrew Donnal, and sophomores Drew Clark, Conor Boffeli, and Nolan MacMillan. (Brandon Scherff and Brett Van Sloten seem earmarked for tackle right now.) Simmons has four years remaining to play three years, meaning he could redshirt in 2012 and still have three years of eligibility remaining. Simmons has good size, good video, and now gets to work with an Iowa staff that has reliably cranked out NFL draft picks for a decade now -- the results here could be quite good.
0 recs | 58 comments
I wonder who fills in at the Orne End position next year.
SomeJerkPoster - January 12, 2012
Maybe Casey McMillan.
He’s still around…
RossWB - January 12, 2012
We think.
mikjones24 - January 12, 2012
Orne is irreplaceable.
How dare you. The body is still warm.
HAVE A HEART.
One_ill_KevinJ - January 13, 2012
Wait, Marshall Yanda is a professional bowler too?
Holy shit that guy’s incredible!
Bucketochicken - January 12, 2012
MAdrid.
Not to be confused with MaDRID. It’s like NeVAda, but not like Nevada.
Hawkeyegirl - January 12, 2012
Isn't it MADrid?
Nickhawk08 - January 12, 2012
Yes, and I'm sure the town was overjoyed when the UI was telling people to "get MAD again"
rupertj - January 12, 2012
Go on, do what you did
Patrick Vint - January 13, 2012
That's what I said. Same Emphasis, less D. Kind of like this season.
Hawkeyegirl - January 13, 2012
Jordan Walsh is in the same class as Austin Blythe, FYI
They are both true freshmen this year.
Captain n Diet Coker - January 12, 2012
Pretty sure both redshirted as well
although I remember reading/hearing something from Morehouse that Walsh was on a number of road trips, implying that the coaches were really impressed by him.
HoyaGoon - January 13, 2012
Nothing gets me going like...
JUCO o-line highlights!
rosko - January 12, 2012
Love it.
SomeJerkPoster - January 12, 2012
Can he carry the rock?
Seriously, I think he would make a good James Ferentz replacement.
2LastNameWideReceiver - January 12, 2012
Agreed
I really like this pick-up, especially since he still has three years of eligibility left. Worst case, he redshirts this year then is primed to assume to center spot when James graduates.
On a side note, does Donnal really project inside? I thought he was brought in as a tackle, and played LT in garbage time in a few games.
HoyaGoon - January 13, 2012
I think Donnal's ultimate destination is tackle
But if Scherff and Van Sloten are ahead of him there (seems like they might be), then he could take the G→T route that’s served Bulaga and Reiff well in the past.
RossWB - January 13, 2012
Have a seat on the bench, Mr. Tobin?
Scherff, Simmons, Ferentz, MacMillan, Van Sloten sounds good to me, with Blythe, Tobin, Donnal and Walsh pushing for playing time.
O-line was not great this year, and I’m glad to see the staff is looking to immediately address this.
Of course, he could be a redshirt this year, looking to take over when Ferentz graduates?
YouCanPutYourEddsInIt - January 12, 2012
Only if Scherff improves A LOT
He wasn’t Tobin bad, but he didn’t exactly grab the spot away from him either. If MacMilllan makes it back, I’d expect him to be at LG due to experience (long ago though it may be).
HoyaGoon - January 13, 2012
I know we've had a lot af touted O-line recruits
But it still worries me. Maybe I’m hard on Tobin, but it seems that every time an opposing D player made a play in the backfield, he (easily) went through Tobin to get there. I’m sure there are several plays where Tobin did exceptionally well, but his failures were noticeable.
The only proven talent coming back in 2012 is Ferentz. YIKES!
YouCanPutYourEddsInIt - January 13, 2012
Tobin was terrible
Playing Bolden over McGroin* was by far the worst big ten coaching decision, but splitting Tobin with Scherff was second. The guy looked like a lost puppy out there, but after the puppy had been run over by a car and was just lying on the side of the road not quite dead yet. I am not endorsing Scherff necessarily, just saying Tobin is awful.
*Bolden’s film is good, but Football in the McGroin had a man being hit with a football in the McGroin.
TangerinePony - January 13, 2012
I just want to win.
Bring in whoever from wherever, just get the damn job done.
hawktalker - January 12, 2012
But we produce so many NFL linemen!
mikjones24 - January 12, 2012
I WANT TO SEE BLOOD AND GUTS AND VEINS IN MY TEETH
The Bird Cult - January 12, 2012
Then buy a mirror
And disembowel yourself.
Easier said than done. I wouldn’t try it unless you have great insurance that covers self disembowelment.
hawkinsandmelrose - January 12, 2012
In other Caring is Creepy news
Albert Reid is a running back from the east coast who had us in his top 3. He picked Maryland today. Probably because he didn’t want to be a dannywoodheadback
Hinkel is Einhorn - January 12, 2012
YOU BEEN EDSALL'D
Patrick Vint - January 13, 2012
He was recruited by Mike Locksley
who was a terrible head coach, but is one hell of a recruiter in the DC area. Iowa’s recent pipeline to that area (*sniff*damn losing Coker hurts*sniff*) could take a hit if Locksley stays at Maryland and does their recruiting.
HoyaGoon - January 13, 2012
You mean getting guys that are at or over 300lbs is needed?
Can’t we just keep developing tight ends into O Linemen with great technique? I thought we could use smaller, shorter guys to block against bigger, taller guys and be successful.
That being said, imagine what happens when we actually add some size. If therunningbackformerlyknownascoker can run for 1,300 yard behind an average-sized line, imagine what _ will do with a big(ger) line.
hawkinsandmelrose - January 12, 2012
pretty sure
Iowa keeps their line smaller on purpose, the last two or three years our line has been the smallest in the big 10
jakeic - January 12, 2012 via mobile
pretty sure
Iowa keeps their line smaller on purpose, the last two or three years our line has been the smallest in the big 10
jakeic - January 12, 2012 via mobile
It meshes well with our running backs
One-year starters do better when they can see the defensive line closing in like a wave.
hawkinsandmelrose - January 12, 2012
I've always been confused by this...
I understand slightly smaller, more athletic o lineman have their advantages, but Kirk is going against the trend here. And small doesn’t seem to fit at all with zone blocking schemes. Hasn’t Wiscy’s dominance proved 1) The big lineman can work well 2) Bielema is our almighty football God. All hail Lord Bielema!
TangerinePony - January 13, 2012
If he's being groomed to replace Ferentz after next year, I'm interested.
Neither Eubanks nor Ferentz have brought much size to the center position over the past few years (not that either was ever a real problem; Eubanks was dependable and Ferentz is an angry, angry man on the field). An O-line with size, though…that’s something I can get excited about. Our line this past year was probably average or somewhat above, relative to past years’; a pre-FBS 305 bodes well.
hkobb7 - January 12, 2012
I feel like things have been good at center for a while now
Coincidentally around the time that Brian Ferentz graduated.
mikjones24 - January 12, 2012
I've been getting excited about big lines (/DJK'd) since a couple recruiting classes ago
but they don’t seem to be making an impact yet, and hope that’s just KF doing KF things and deferring to upperclassmen (despite the young guys being better). I’m still hoping. Of course now I’m saying “Imagine Garmon and Canzeri running behind that line” instead of “Imagine Robinson or Jewel and Wegher running behind that line.”
Eyeheartfreedumb - January 13, 2012
I like his playing style and size for sure
Maybe my reading comprehension is terrible but why does he have 4 years to play 3 here.. that seems abnormal for a JUCO pickup
SaturdayMorningKegStanzis - January 12, 2012
I'm guessing he wanted to go FBS coming out of HS and qualified academically, but didn't have the offers.
Get another year of film and lifting weights and an offer comes in; he’s qualified so he doesn’t need to get his degree before transferring here.
SomeJerkPoster - January 12, 2012
so last season he was a true freshman
SaturdayMorningKegStanzis - January 12, 2012
I believe that is the case.
SomeJerkPoster - January 12, 2012
Yes, he's a good student
He went the JUCO route for football reasons (to prove he could play D1). He camped at Iowa in high school and Iowa followed him closely. He didn’t have the size for an offer as a junior/senior, but gained it in the past year, plus played impressively.
H I McDonnough - January 13, 2012
1) Make him gain 40 pounds
2) Switch to 3-4 defense
3) ????
4) WIN NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
the notorious r.d.m. - January 12, 2012
We can all go home now.
This wins the thread.
Patrick Vint - January 13, 2012
I am particularly fond of #3
Iowa does ???? as good as any program in the country.
Feelin' Orney - January 13, 2012
4) WIN NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP...
…over a highly favored SEC team where everyone has dreds, tats and a highly active twitter account.
FiveSecondRuleChef - January 13, 2012
so did ajaclay just pretend to go to the draft
and really go to alabama?
lmlions21 - January 13, 2012
Yep. He made the 2 deeps in week 13.
One_ill_KevinJ - January 13, 2012
This just occured to me
Coaches know Coker is in trouble but for 5 strait games he almost exclusivly runs the ball. No one else.
It didn’t occur to the coaches that Coker may not be around very soon? I haven’t flamed on the coaches because I don’t pretend to know more than them. But, this seems to show a serious lack or foresight.
FiveSecondRuleChef - January 13, 2012
I didn't spell out the greater - most important point I wanted to make.
Realizing the potential of the loss of Coker they didn’t get anyone else carries? There was no back up plan?
FiveSecondRuleChef - January 13, 2012
McCall fumbled you remember
That was the plan until he f’ed that up.
The Bacon Explosion - January 13, 2012
Of course. Now I recall. So Coker was our one and only option. Silly me.
FiveSecondRuleChef - January 13, 2012
OR Coker was not expected to leave so there was zero reason to act as if he was already gone.
The Mexican't - January 13, 2012
I don't think anyone thought he was going to leave.
But they may have thought that a suspension was immenent or at least a real possibility.
FiveSecondRuleChef - January 13, 2012
Given the past at Iowa
If a player is investigated for sexual assault a suspension is a very, very strong possibility(as it should be). Might have been nice to get a couple of other guys some reps for the suspension and various other reasons like developing young talent, spelling Coker a bit, avoiding injury, etc…
The Bacon Explosion - January 13, 2012
I think we can agree
even if the coaches assumed no suspension was forthcoming, getting another RB reps for all those reasons you list would have been a good idea
HoyaGoon - January 13, 2012
I think you are forgetting
An Iowa running back only has so many carries before he blows out his knee, rapes someone, or a piano falls on him (dear Lord, why did we let Greene work at a furniture moving company? That seemed like a recipe for disaster).
TangerinePony - January 13, 2012
///Robinson – MSU’d 2010
txhawkeye - January 14, 2012
Dude, this year WAS the backup plan.
That much should be obvious.
Eyeheartfreedumb - January 13, 2012
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