Iowa Finds Recruiting Success Despite COVID-19 Uncertainty

Recruiting in football is like going grocery shopping.

At least that’s what Tyler Barnes, Iowa's director of recruiting, says.

“It’s like the analogy of going to the grocery store hungry,” Barnes said. “You go there and buy a bunch of stuff you don’t need. When you go recruiting hungry or maybe late in the process, you may be panicking to get something and take a guy or make something up when you could be patient and thorough in the process.”

And that’s exactly how Iowa’s taken a recruiting approach during all the swirling uncertainty. Patience is the name of the game, and it shows in Iowa’s 2021 recruiting class.

At the moment, Iowa has 14 commits in the 2021 class. David Davidkov, a four-star offensive tackle from Winnetka, Illinois, headlines the group. The Hawkeyes also received commits from four-star guard Connor Colby (Cedar Rapids) and Justice Sullivan (Eden Prairie, Minnesota).

247 Sports’ composite rankings list Iowa’s 2021 class as eighth overall in the country and third in the Big Ten.

“It’s easy to get caught up in that and throw early offers,” Barnes said. “It’s easy to copycat and do what other teams do. We try our best to stick to our identity. We’re not trying to recreate who we are, which is a huge help. Just sticking to that process. It may not be for everybody. It may be slow and tedious, but having a head coach like Coach (Kirk) Ferentz who is patient about things, he’s got a great vision for the program and the team along with Coach (Chris) Doyle downstairs… when you have something like that continuity and that stability, you don’t have to rush. We don’t have to rush to take guys.”

For comparison, Iowa’s 2020 recruiting class ranks 35th in the country, according to 247 Sports. 2019 ranked 41st and 2018 ranked 39th.

From the 2010 class to 2020, Iowa’s boasted a recruiting group ranked in the top-30 nationally once. Over those years, the Hawkeyes’ average recruiting class rank was right between 43 or 44 nationally.

Let’s make one thing clear: Iowa’s 2021 class isn’t complete. Especially after Jordan Oladokun’s decommitment on May 8, the Hawkeyes are in need of defensive back help for the class, among other areas. Oladokun might not be the last prospect to decommit, and there are sure to be more student-athletes joining the 2021 group.

It’s early in the grand scheme of things, and change is imminent.

But Iowa’s recruiting hasn’t quite taken off like this before. Even to be in a top-10 spot nationally this early in the game is quite a change of pace.

“We don’t throw a bunch of offers, and I’m not saying that’s not the right way to do it,” Barnes said. “Schools do it a million different ways. But going back to the success we’ve had, it’s been asking a bunch of questions and digging to find the right guys, those multi-sport athletes, mentally and physically tough kids.”

Barnes said what’s helped Iowa the most through all this is preexisting relationships. The spread of COVID-19 put countless campus visits in question — Davidkov, for example, still had official visits with Ohio State and Michigan scheduled when he committed to Iowa).

“Going into the pandemic, I’d say 85% of our top targets have been on campus at least once,” Barnes said. “Some several times more than that. We were lucky that we had those relationships built. Some of those guys have already seen everything and know everybody that’s influential in their decision-making process here in Iowa City.”

For Barnes and the rest of the staff in Iowa City, everything this spring has been virtual.

In other words, the communication between recruits and the coaching staff hasn’t changed, but the vehicle has. As expected with the in-person restrictions, Barnes said recruiting conversations have taken place primarily over text messages, FaceTimes, and Zoom meetings.

Social media, Barnes said, also plays a role now more than ever. In his eyes, it’s sped up the recruiting process over the past few years, drastically changing the landscape of how players and coaches communicate.

Barnes, as well as other members of the Iowa coaching staff, go to Twitter to celebrate commitments or help spread Iowa’s brand. Social media can also be a double-edged sword, though.

“I’m a big social media guy,” Barnes said. “I spend more time on Twitter than I would probably like to admit, but it’s a good way to relate to kids and a good way to get information if you follow the right people. It’s a great news source. It’s a big part of tracking guys who we’re recruiting. If somebody’s really, really active on social media, maybe that might be a red flag. If you see a needy person on social media, is he going to be a needy recruit? Is he going to be a needy person when he gets here? There’s certainly different ways you can use it.”

B🐤🐤🐤🐤🐤🐤MMMMM!!! The @HawkeyeFootball offense keeps rolling and adds a big time outside threat to the unit! I think @nrfant approves of this one! #IowaEdge #Swarm21 #WhosNext pic.twitter.com/XAEQpG3NHU
— Tyler Barnes (@TylerBarnesIOWA) May 6, 2020

Adding to Iowa’s exposure — almost as a recurring recruiting tool — was the NFL Draft. Iowa churns out offensive linemen (and tight ends and defensive backs) consistently at the next level.

Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott selected former Hawkeye AJ Epenesa in the second round of last month's, and he said he knew exactly what he was getting out of the defensive lineman.

“I always love guys from Iowa because of the culture they come from,” McDermott told ESPN’s Marcel Louis-Jacques.

Sean McDermott told me earlier this season that he's a fan of players from Iowa -- it was a contributing factor in his interest in Micah Hyde back in 2017:

"I always love guys from Iowa because of the culture they come from."
— Marcel Louis-Jacques (@Marcel_LJ) April 25, 2020

It’s not only a testament to Ferentz and the Hawkeye coaching staff, but a statement reflective on how the team-first mentality trickles down to each player on the Iowa roster.

It starts on the ground floor in recruiting, as Barnes and his staff attempt to pinpoint prospects cut in the Iowa mold.

“Coach Doyle said it before: We’re not collecting talent in Iowa City. We’re trying to build a team,” Barnes said. “And that comes in the identification process. We’re trying to find the right guys.”

Follow Adam Hensley on Twitter @A_Hens83.