Iowa's Mark Gronowski Reacts to Not Receiving NFL Combine Invite

Mark Gronowski has been an underdog his entire football career. Even though he was winning championships with the South Dakota State Jackrabbits, it wasn’t until this past season that he was able to compete at the FBS level with the Iowa Hawkeyes.

He led the team to a 9-4 season that included several quality performances — Iowa took both Indiana and Oregon, two schools that made the College Football Playoff, down to the wire — and culminated in a ReliaQuest Bowl victory over Vanderbilt in the final game of the year.

With his college career finished — he totaled 12,071 passing yards and 103 touchdowns in four years with South Dakota State and one season with Iowa — it was time for him to turn his attention to the pros.

Unfortunately, he didn’t receive an invite to the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis earlier this month, making the road to the NFL a little harder.

Gronowski’s Lack of an NFL Combine Invite is Curious

Iowa Hawkeyes quarterback Mark Gronowsk — Iowa quarterback Mark Gronowski talks to media members about his pro day experience ahead of the 2026 NFL Draft March 24, 2026 in Iowa City, Iowa. | Julia Hansen/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

“The real frustrating part about that whole experience was that I had a combine invite last year and didn’t get one this year, which was crazy,” Gronowski said. “I don’t understand how that works. Had a bunch of people calling, had coach [Kirk] Ferentz calling for me. And to have a guy like him, you’d think that could get the ball rolling, but in the end, you can’t really control those things.”

Gronowski wasn’t fazed. Sure, NFL teams weren’t going to get a first-hand glimpse at his capabilities in Indianapolis, but there were other opportunities to show off his talent. All this setback did was make his performance at other scouting events all the more important.

“I knew I had to have a good weekend at the East-West Shrine Bowl because that was going to be one of the times that I got to talk to teams and really kind of show what I had,” Gronowski said. “But then I kind of knew that his Pro Day was going to mean a lot more than it might for some of the other guys that have already had that opportunity at the actual Combine.

“So, really just kind of focusing on that and not really worrying about all the uncontrollable.”

Gronowski went on to say that his performance at Iowa’s Pro Day, which took place on March 23, went well overall. It’ll be his hope that his effort elevates him into a position where he can land on an NFL roster.

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