A Closer Look at Iowa Football's '23 Class

IOWA CITY, Iowa - Iowa Football officially bulked up its roster Wednesday, signing 23 student-athletes to national letters of intent. The group included Michigan transfers Cade McNamara, a quarterback, and tight end Erick All. The program also announced the adding of seven preferred walk-ons.

Here's a closer look at the class:

NO. 12 CADE McNAMARA, QB

Reno, NV / Damonte Ranch HS
Transfer from Michigan

Twitter: @Cademac_12
Instagram: @cademac.12

Hawk Item
Joined program in spring, 2023, as graduate transfer from Michigan with two years of eligibility remaining.

At Michigan
Two-year letterman, appearing in 21 games with 16 starts . . . compiled 13-3 record as a starter and helped lead team to 2021 Big Ten Championship . . . 2022 Honors – – Academic All-Big Ten . . . 2021 Honors – – Third-team All-Big Ten by league coaches and media . . . Academic All-Big Ten . . . Shared Offensive Player of the Week honors for his performance against Northern Illinois . . . shared Hard Hat Player of the Week against Indiana . . . 2020 Honors – – Academic All-Big Ten

High School Honors
Selected first-team all-state as a junior and senior . . . two-time Gatorade Player of the Year in Nevada (2017 and 2018); first player in state history to win the award in back-to-back seasons . . . named Nevada Offensive Player of the Year in 2018 . . . named 2017 USA Today All-Nevada Player of the Year . . . three-time conference Player of the Year (2016-18) . . . Sierra League Player of the Year as a senior . . . two-time region Offensive Player of the Year (2017-18) and Northern 4A All-Region selection (2017-18) . . . selected first team all-conference and first team all-region on three occasions . . . named the State Farm Player of the Week on five occasions . . . 2018 Elite 11 finalist . . . attended the finals of the Nike The Opening 2018 in Frisco, Texas . . . selected to participate in the U.S. Army All-American Game . . . No. 1 prospect in the state of Nevada by 247Sports, ESPN and Rivals . . . 247.com four-star prospect ranked No. 275 overall and No. 1 recruit in Nevada . . . ESPN four-star prospect, rated the No. 13 pro-style quarterback, No. 257 overall prospect in the country and top player in Nevada . . . earned academic excellence award seven times

Born 5/28/2000
Will pursue post-graduate degree
Parents are Nicole and Gary McNamara
Brother, Kyle, began his career at Michigan before transferring to Western Kentucky . . . father, Gary, was an outfielder at Fresno State and was an assistant baseball coach at Nevada
High school coach was Shaun Dupris

NO. 83 ERICK ALL, TE

Fairfield, OH / Michigan / Fairfield HS

Twitter: @eallindi83
Instagram: @83eall

Hawk Item
Joined program in spring, 2022, as graduate transfer from Michigan with two years of eligibility remaining.

2021 Honors
Honorable mention All-Big Ten by league coaches and media

At Michigan
Three-year letterman (2019-20-21) . . . appeared in 35 games with 12 starts.

Born 9/13/2000
Will pursue post-graduate degree
Parents are Kelly and Erick All
High school coach was Jason Krause

NO. 65 LEIGHTON JONES, OL

Brownsburg, IN/ Brownsburg HS

Twitter: @LJones7676
Instagram: @leightonnjones

High School Honors
Earned all-conference and all-state Top 50 honors as a senior, while being named Mr. Football for offensive line . . . earned all-conference and all-state honors as a junior

High School Career
Four-year starter in both football and wrestling . . . played both offensive and defensive line as a prep . . . helped prep team post four-year record of 43-9 . . . team captain as a junior and senior . . . also competed in wrestling as a prep, placing third in wrestling state meet as a sophomore and junior.

Born 7/14/2004
Sport and Recreation Management major
Earned academic all-state honors as a senior
Parents are Laurie and Marshall Jones
High school coach was Josh Hart

NO. 6 DAYTON HOWARD, WR

Kansas City, MO / Park Hill HS

Twitter: @DaytonHoward4
Instagram: @dhoward11

High School Honors
Earned first-team all-district and second-team all-conference honors as a senior . . . second-team all-conference as a sophomore

High School Career
Three-year football letterman . . . totaled 760 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns as a senior . . . 123 yards and three touchdowns as a junior . . . 150 yards and four touchdowns as a sophomore.

Born 3/13/2005
Business major
Parents are Jill Baker and Marcus Howard
High school coach was Andy Sims

NO. 4 KENNETH MERRIEWEATHER, DL

Detroit, MI / ML King HS

Twitter: @KMerrieweather
Instagram: @kennymerrieweather

High School Honors
Named to Dream Team while earning first-team all-city and all-state honors as a junior and senior

High School Career
Played defensive end, linebacker and tight end as a prep . . . helped prep team win back-to-back state championships, posting 24-4 record over final two seasons . . . recorded 52 tackles as a senior, with 18 tackles for loss, 12 sacks, four forced fumbles and two safeties . . . 39 tackles as a junior, with eight sacks, six tackles for loss and one interception return for a touchdown . . . team captain as a junior and senior . . . also competed in track as a prep.

Born 8/6/2005
Open major
Honor Roll student as a prep
Parents are Rachella and Kenneth Merrieweather
High school coach was Ty Spencer

NO. 7 ZACH LUTMER, DB

Rock Rapids, IA / Central Lyon/GLR HS

Twitter: @LutmerZach
Instagram: @zachlutmer

High School Honors
Named to Elite all-state team as a senior . . . earned first-team all-state and all-district honors as a senior, being named captain of first team . . . first-team all-district and all-state as a sophomore and junior . . . named Class 2A Player of the Year as a sophomore

High School Career
Earned three football letters as defensive back and quarterback . . . holds school records for total yards, rushing yards and points scored . . . prep team won state championship as a senior after reaching title game as a sophomore and quarterfinals as a junior, compiling three-year record of 31-5 . . . as a senior totaled 1,562 rushing yards and 22 touchdowns, while passing for 1,357 yards and 16 touchdowns and recording 45 tackles and three interceptions on defense . . . as a junior passed for 1,016 yards and eight touchdowns . . . 149 rushing attempts for 1,246 yards and 22 touchdowns, along with three successful two-point conversions . . . recorded 46.5 tackles, including 36 solo stops and three tackles for loss . . . four interceptions for 100 yards and one touchdown as a junior . . . on special teams had seven punt returns for 151 yards, while averaging 36.8 yards in limited punting duty . . . rushed for 1,609 yards and 23 touchdowns as a sophomore, with 1,194 passing yards and eight touchdowns . . . four interceptions as a sophomore, including two touchdown returns . . . team captain as a junior and senior . . . also competed in basketball, baseball and track.

Born 11/5/2004
Exercise Science major
Member of High Honor Roll each year
Parents are Dana and Mark Lutmer
High school coach was Curtis Eben

NO. 4 MARCO LAINEZ, QB

Princeton, NJ / The Hun School

Twitter: @MarcoLainez5
Instagram: @marco.lainez4

High School Honors
Northeast Prep Offensive Player of the Year as a senior . . . first-team New Jersey Prep and Northeast Prep League as a senior . . . team MVP and New Jersey Prep offensive MVP . . . 12th-Man Touchdown Club all-area prep Player of the Year . . . New Jersey Mid-Atlantic Prep Offensive Player of the Year as a junior . . . 12th-Man Touchdown Club Area Player of the Year as a junior . . . first-team all-NPFC League, all-NEPSAC and all-MAPL as a junior . . . team MVP as a sophomore

High School Career
Four-year quarterback letterman and also played running back as a freshman . . . team won MAPL championship as a junior and senior, posting identical 9-0 record in back-to-back seasons . . . as a senior completed 97-125 pass attempts (77.6%) for 2,182 yards, with 23 touchdowns and five interceptions . . . also rushed for 573 yards and five touchdowns . . . as a junior completed 97-125 attempts (80.2%) for 1,761 yards and 21 touchdowns, with two interceptions . . . rushed 41 times for 451 yards and two touchdowns . . . as a sophomore completed 72-109 attempts (66.3%) for 1,178 yards and 14 touchdowns, with three interceptions . . . completed 101-176 attempts (57.4%) for 1,325 yards and 15 touchdowns, with six interceptions as a freshman while rushing for two touchdowns . . . team captain as a senior . . . also lettered in basketball and track as a prep.

Born 10/19/2003
Health and Human Physiology major
Academic Honor Roll every year as a prep
Parents are Gretchen and Marco Lainez, Jr.
High school coach was Todd Smith

NO. 8 ALEX MOTA, WR

Marion, IA/ Marion HS

Twitter: @_AlexMota23
Instagram: @alexmota.ig

High School Honors
Named first-team Class 4A all-state and all-metro as a junior and seniorHigh School Career
Three-year football letterman . . . ranks third in school history in all-purpose yards . . . totaled 742 rushing yards and 230 receiving yards as a senior, with 37.5 tackles on defense . . . as a junior completed 59 pass attempts for 879 yards and five touchdowns while rushing for 629 yards and seven touchdowns . . . 28 tackles on defense as a junior . . . gained 540 rushing yards and recorded 17 tackles as a sophomore . . . team captain as a senior . . . also competed in track, baseball and basketball as a prep.

Born 7/7/2004
Business major
Parents are Lynn and Alfonso Mota
High school coach was Michael Joyner

NO. 32 BEN KUETER, LB

Iowa City, IA / Iowa City HS

Twitter: @Benkueter1
Instagram: @ben_kueter32

Hawk Item
Won Under-20 World Wrestling Championship in July, 2022 . . . won USA Wrestling’s Under-20 men’s freestyle world team trials in 2022.

High School Honors
Named USA TODAY All-Iowa Male Athlete of the Year for 2021-22 . . . named to All-Iowa Elite all-state team as a junior . . . one of five finalists for high school Butkus Award as a senior . . . Under Armour All-American as a senior . . . first-team all-state as a senior and defensive Player of the Year . . . earned first-team all-state honors as a junior

High School Career
Helped prep football team post 15-5 record over junior and senior seasons, reaching state semifinals as a junior . . . 98 tackles as a senior . . . recorded 101 tackles as a junior, with 41 tackles for loss and 11.5 sacks, leading Class 5A in all three categories . . . recorded 24 receptions for 369 yards and 11 touchdowns on offense . . . four-year football team captain . . . also competed in wrestling, baseball and track as a prep . . . career wrestling record of 72-0 prior to senior season, with three straight Class 3A individual state titles . . . posted 37-0 record at 220 pounds in wrestling as a junior . . . record included 36 bonus-point wins, with 20 pins and 10 technical falls while being named to All-Iowa Elite team . . . considered No. 6 overall wrestling prospect in 2023 class, including No. 2 ranking for his weight class . . . as a junior outfielder in baseball, batted .333 with 26 RBI as team posted 29-14 record, reaching Class 4A substate finals . . . helped prep baseball team reach state semifinals as a senior.

Born Born 6/7/2004
Open major
Earned first-team all-academic honors three years
Parents are Tina and Scott Kueter
High school coach was Mitchell Moore

NO. 59 TREVOR LAUCK , OL

Indianapolis, IN / Roncalli HS

Twitter: @TrevorLauck
Instagram: @t_lauck1020

High School Honors
Named a US Army All-American as a senior . . . first-team all-conference, all-county and all-state as a senior . . . earned all-conference, all-county and all-state honors as a junior

High School Career
Three-year letterman in football . . . played both offense and defense as a senior . . . helped prep team earn state title as a sophomore, followed by sectional championship as a junior and regional title as a senior with three-year record of 37-4 . . . team captain as a senior . . . also lettered in basketball and track . . . holds school record for shot put in indoor track.

Born 9/27/2004
Business major
Member of prep Honor Roll for straight years
Parents are Kara and David Lauck
High school coach was Eric Quintana

NO. 56 MADDUX BORCHERDING-JOHNSON, DL

Norwalk, IA / Norwalk HS

Twitter: @madduxjohnson5
Instagram: @maddux_bj33

High School Honors
Named to Des Moines Register Elite first-team all-state as a senior . . . first-team Class 4A and IPWSA all-state as a senior and first-team all-district . . . earned first-team all-district and second-team all-state honors as a junior

High School Career
Three-year letterman in football as team reached state playoffs three straight years . . . member of prep team that won three conference title and two district titles, while being a state place winner three straight seasons . . . 62.5 tackles as a senior, with seven tackles for loss and two sacks . . . 71.5 tackles as a junior, with 11 tackles for loss . . . 59.5 tackles as a sophomore, with eight tackles for loss and two sacks . . . team captain as a senior . . . also competed in wrestling and track and field as a prep

Born 4/14/2005
Business major
Parents are Jenny Borcherding-Johnson and Clifton Johnson
High school coach was Paul Patterson

NO. 91 CHASE BRACKNEY, DL

Greenwood Village, CO / Cherry Creek HS

Twitter: @ChaseBrackney2
Instagram: @chase_5353

High School Honors
First-team all-conference and all-state as a senior . . . top-ranked defensive lineman in Colorado

High School Career
Three-year football letterman . . . helped prep team post 30-5 record over last three seasons, winning state championship as a junior and senior . . . team captain as a senior . . . also competed in track as a prep.

Born 5/2/2004
Business major
Parents are Jamie and Steve Brackney
High school coach was Dave Logan

NO. 54 ANTERIO THOMPSON, DL

Dubuque, IA / Iowa Western Community College / Hempstead HS

Twitter: @ThompsonAnterio
Instagram: @terio_z

Iowa Western
Played one season at Iowa Western Community College . . . earned first-team all-conference and all-region honors in one season as Iowa Western posted a 10-2 record while earning NJCAA Division I national title . . . junior college coach was Scott Strohmeier.

High School Honors
Earned first-team all-conference honors as a senior

High School Career
Played both defensive tackle and end as a prep . . . 39 tackles as a senior, with seven tackles for loss, one sack and one touchdown . . . also competed in basketball as a prep.

Born 10/29/2002
Business major
Named academic all-region
Parents are Tyshaun and Areal Greenwood
High school coach was Jeff Hoerner

NO. 7 JOHN NESTOR, DB

Chicago, IL / Marist HS

Twitter: @johnnestor_7
Instagram: @j.nestor13

High School Honors
Named CCL Blue Defensive Player of the Year as a senior . . . Class 8A IHSA and Rivals first-team all-state as a senior . . . named Chicago Sun Times and Chicago Tribune first-team all-area as a senior . . .CCL Blue first-team all-conference as a senior . . . named CCL Blue first-team all-conference and Max Preps all-state as a junior

High School Career
Played both safety and cornerback on defense and wide receiver as a prep . . . team posted 16-8 record in final two seasons, reaching state semifinals as a junior and second round as a senior . . . 52 tackles, five interceptions and 10 pass break-ups as a senior, with three forced fumbles . . . 416 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns on offense as a senior . . . 63 tackles as a junior, with five interceptions, eight pass break-ups, two forced fumbles, one sack and 302 all-purpose yards . . . team captain as a senior . . . also competed in basketball and golf as a prep.

Born 5/13/2005
Sports Kinesiology major
Parents are Rachele and John Nestor
High school coach was Ron Dawczak

NO. 8 JARRIETT BUIE, WR

Tampa, FL / Jesuit HS

Twitter: @BuieJarriett
Instagram: @thats_.j2

High School Honors
Four-year football letterman as wide receiver and defensive back as a prep.

High School Career
Helped prep team win state championship as a junior, while reaching state semifinals as a sophomore and senior, with three-year record of 26-4 . . . 47 receptions for 735 yards as a senior, with over 1,000 all-purpose yards . . . 30 receptions for 407 yards as a junior . . . 19 receptions for 400 yards as a sophomore . . . team captain as a senior . . . also lettered in track.

Born Born 5/8/2005
Business major
Member of prep Honor Roll for four years
Parents are Raiza and Jarriett Buie
High school coach was Matt Thompson

NO. 82 ZACH ORTWERTH, TE

St. Louis, MO / University HS

Twitter: @ZOrtwerth
Instagram: @_zachortwerth

High School Honors
Earned second-team All-MCC honors as a senior tight end . . . second-team All-MCC as tight end and outside linebacker as a junior

High School Career
Three-year football letterman as tight end, outside linebacker and defensive end as team advanced to state playoffs four straight years . . . 11 receptions for 194 yards as a senior, with one rushing touchdown and one receiving touchdown . . . 18 total tackles on defense, with two sacks and one fumble recovery . . . averaged 38.3 yards on 12 punts . . . as a junior recorded 20 receptions for 298 yards and four touchdowns, while collecting 76 total tackles on defense, with 14 tackles for loss, two sacks and one fumble recovery . . . team captain as a senior . . . also lettered in basketball.

Born 4/12/2005
Engineering major
Academic all-star as junior and senior . . . earned academic first honors and second honors throughout prep career
Parents are Joyce and Craig Ortwerth
High school coaches were Mike Jones and Adam Cruz

NO. 8 KAMARI MOULTON, RB

Ft. Lauderdale, FL / Cardinal Gibbons HS

Twitter: @HulkMoulton
Instagram: @behumble._mari

High School Honors
Earned first-team all-county honors and was named team MVP as a senior . . . first-team all-county and all-state as a junior, along with team MVP . . . second-team all-county as a sophomore

High School Career
Helped prep team to state championships as a sophomore and junior . . . combined record of 22-4 in final two seasons . . . shares school record with 18 rushing touchdowns in a single season . . . rushed for 800 yards and nine touchdowns as a senior, with 10 pass receptions . . . rushed for 1,100 yards and 18 touchdowns as a junior, along with eight pass receptions . . . rushed for 600 yards and five touchdowns as a sophomore, with 12 receptions and one receiving touchdown . . . team captain as a senior . . . also competed in track as a prep.

Born 4/1/2005
Business major
Named to AB Honor Roll
Parents are Latavia and Kirk Moulton
High school coach was Matt DuBuc

NO. 11 KAHLIL TATE, DB

Chicago, IL / Kenwood Academy

Twitter: @TateKahlil
Instagram: @tatekahlil__

High School Honors
Named first-team all-city as a senior . . . first-team all-conference as a junior

High School Career
Played both defensive back and wide receiver as a prep . . . helped prep team post 18-7 record in final two seasons, winning city championship as a junior and reaching quarterfinals as a senior . . . recorded 67 tackles as a senior, with two interceptions and two forced fumbles . . . 63 tackles as a junior, with five interceptions and two forced fumbles, along with 451 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns on offense . . . team captain as a senior.

Born 6/18/2005
Open major
Parents are Ivana and Robert Tate
High school coach was Sinque Turner

NO. 58 KADE PIEPER, OL

Norfolk, NE / Catholic, HS

Twitter: @PieperKade
Instagram: @kade_pieper

High School Honors
Named C2 all-state as a senior . . . all-district and district MVP as a senior . . . earned C2 all-state and all-district honors as a junior . . . all-district and all-state honorable mention as a sophomore

High School Career
Earned four letters in football as offensive and defensive lineman . . . prep team posted 24-2 record over last two seasons . . . reached state title game as junior and senior, winning state championship in senior season . . . recorded 130 tackles as a senior . . . 105 tackles as a junior . . . 65 tackles as a sophomore . . . team captain as a senior . . . also lettered in basketball and track.

Born 2/18/2005
Finance major
Parents are Carrie and Dennis Pieper
High school coach was Jeff Bellar

NO. 8 AIDAN HALL, LB

Harlan, IA / Harlan HS

Twitter: @aidan6hall
Instagram: @aidanhall.6

High School Honors
Earned first-team all-state honors as a senior defensive back and named captain of Class 3A all-state team . . . earn-first-team all-district honors and was KMA offensive Player of the Year as a senior . . . first-team all-district and all-state on defense as a junior . . . second-team all-state defensive back as a sophomore, while earning first-team all-district honors

High School Career
Earned four letters in football as running back, wide receiver, linebacker and defensive back . . . prep team won back-to-back state championships as junior and senior, while also reaching state title game as a sophomore . . . four-year prep record of 44-4 . . . as a senior had 80 rushing attempts for 810 yards and 51 receptions for 837 yards . . . totaled 51 tackles on defense, with one interception and one recovered fumble for a touchdown . . . three kickoff returns for 206 yards and two touchdowns to go with 73 yards on two punt returns tot total over 2,000 all-purpose yards . . . rushed 94 times for 777 yards as a junior, with 32 receptions for 755 yards . . . 53.5 tackles and three interceptions as a junior . . . 34 receptions for 860 yards as a sophomore, with 75.5 tackles and five interceptions on defense . . . team captain as a senior . . . also lettered in basketball (3) and track (3).

Born 12/7/2004
Sport and Recreation Management major
Parents are Michele and Alan Hall
High school coach was Todd Bladt

NO. 1 TERRELL WASHINGTON JR., RB

Wylie, TX / Wylie East HS

Twitter: @LilRex2023
Instagram: @Terrellthe2and

High School Honors
Earned first-team all-district honors as a senior, while being named district MVP . . . first-team all-district as a junior . . . second-team all-district as a sophomore . . . named Newcomer of the Year as a freshman

High School Career
Helped prep team post 9-2 record and advance to state playoffs as a senior . . . team captain as a sophomore, junior and senior . . . also competed in basketball and track as a prep.

Born 9/1/2004
Business major
Parents are Katriena and Terrell Washington, Sr.
High school coach was Marcus Gold.

NO. 75 CANNON LEONARD, OL

Gilman, IL/ Iroquois West HS

Twitter: @CannonLeonard1
Instagram: @cannonl34

High School Honors
Earned first-team all-conference, all-area and all-state honors as a senior . . . first-team all-conference and all-area as a junior . . . earned all-conference honors as a sophomore

High School Career
Four-year football letterman as offensive and defensive lineman . . . helped prep team reach state playoffs as a junior and senior with combined 15-6 record . . . team captain as a junior and senior . . . also lettered in basketball and track.

Born 2/14/2005
Environmental Science major
Ranked first in class academically . . . Board Scholar and member of High Honor Roll
Parents are Jenny and Josh Leonard
High school coach was Jason Thiele

NO. 2 TEEGAN DAVIS, DB

Princeton, IL/ Princeton HS

Twitter: @DavisTeegan
Instagram: @teegan.davis.2

High School Honors
Earned all-state and all-conference honors as quarterback and defensive back as a senior . . . first-team all-conference and honorable mention all-state as a junior, while being named News-Tribune and BCR Player of the Year . . . earned all-conference honors on defense as a sophomore

High School Career
Three-year football letterman as quarterback and defensive back . . . all-time passing leader at Princeton HS . . . team posted 21-3 record in final two seasons, reaching state quarterfinals in back-to-back seasons after reaching semifinals in sophomore season . . . passed for 1,638 yards and 20 touchdowns as a senior, while rushing for 766 yards and 17 touchdowns . . . 52 tackles and eight interceptions on defense as a senior . . . passes for 1,839 yards and 19 touchdowns as a junior, while rushing for 1,099 yards and 18 touchdowns . . . 75 tackles and four interceptions on defense as a junior . . . recorded 400 all-purpose yards and 20 tackles as a sophomore . . . team captain as a senior . . . also competed in basketball and track as a prep.

Born 10/14/2004
Sports Medicine major
Member of Prep Honor Roll
Parents are Annette and Spencer Davis
High school coach was Ryan Pearson