Iowa Football Notes: Moving On from Proctor

IOWA CITY, Iowa - Iowa football coach Kirk Ferentz did his usual National Signing Day press conference on Wednesday, and while there were plenty of questions over who the Hawkeyes did get, there was also talk of the one recruit who got away.

Offensive lineman Kadyn Proctor, who had been committed to Iowa before flipping to Alabama on Tuesday, signed with the Crimson Tide on Wednesday.

Not getting the five-star recruit was the topic of discussion this week after Proctor visited Alabama, but Ferentz had his reasons for not considering it a defeat.

It’s all part of recruiting, Ferentz said.

“I really haven't read anything or heard much, but one thing I think I've said before, you can't lose what you never had, and recruiting is not over until someone signs, actually signs, and not only commits but actually signs,” Ferentz said.

“The other part about that, the prospects, people have the right to make up their mind right until that time. So I respect that, and I'm sure that prospect had his reasons for doing what he's done. We'd have loved to … if we've offered somebody, we've done our research and homework. It was nothing on our end, like we didn't want him here. But yeah, it's up to a prospect to decide what's best for them, and that's really how the process should work. When it comes to our recruits, we're going to hopefully never be presumptuous and act like we know what's better for them than what they know.”

Proctor would have been a huge acquisition for Iowa’s offensive line, which struggled for most of this season.

Ferentz said he still wants to find help for the line, and that could include looking for veteran players in the NCAA’s transfer portal.

“Yeah, I think they're growing, and I think they're improving,” Ferentz said of his line as the Hawkeyes get ready for the Music City Bowl against Kentucky on Dec. 31 in Nashville. “I referenced that a year ago, as the season went on. So this has been a good month for those guys. I think they're practicing well and focused and showing growth and improvement. We're going to need that to have a chance next week.

“As far as the portal guys, if we can find something that we think would be a benefit, we'll keep an open mind for sure, but really nothing to report right now.”

Among other topics:

PORTAL ARRIVALS: Ferentz did add former Michigan quarterback Cade McNamara and tight end Erick All from the transfer portal.

McNamara threw for 2,576 yards and 15 touchdowns last season, leading the Wolverines to the College Football Playoff after beating Iowa in the Big Ten championship game.

But McNamara played in just three games this season, losing the starting job to J.J. McCarthy after suffering a knee injury that ended his season.

“I'm not a quarterback expert, but just watching what he did a year ago, (he) just struck me as a winner, and that's what you're looking for at that position, a leader and a winner, someone that's going to move the football team,” Ferentz said. “He did a great job of that at his previous school, and yeah, whatever the details would have been this year and how things fell, to me it doesn't matter, but it was a real opportunity for us, I think, to maybe attract a guy who saw an opportunity and is excited about it.”

Ferentz is unsure if McNamara will be available for spring practice.

“We'll see how that goes once he gets here, but we're very confident he'll be fine,” Ferentz said. “I don't think it's uncommon, and it's just something you factor in. But you talk about a guy who's been on a Big Ten field and had a high level of success, it's not quite as big a factor as how much repetition he's had. He's obviously going to transition, but confident that it's going to be OK.”

All played in three games this season while dealing with his own injury issues.

“It just turned out that he became interested and available, and he and Cade have a good relationship, I believe, so I don't think it hurt us at least in our attempt to try to recruit him,” Ferentz said.

THE QB SITUATION: With starting quarterback Spencer Petras out with an injury and back Alex Padilla gone to the transfer portal, Joe Labas was listed as No. 1 on the depth chart at the position heading into the Music City Bowl.

Carson May is behind Labas on the depth chart and then, “your guess is as good as mine at No. 3.”

Neither Labas nor May has any game experience, which is why these few weeks are important not only for getting ready for the bowl game, but also for the future.

“We've talked about it before, it's hard to work more than two quarterbacks during the course of a season,” Ferentz said. “That's where this is a really unusual situation, and yeah, the person who suffered the most here is Spencer just because it ended up being an injury that needed surgery. So that part is really hard. It's hard for him to be out there watching with a sling on and all that.

“But he's done a great job helping and really coaching Joe up, and those guys all get along great. So that's where each and every snap is really important for both those quarterbacks.”