Nico Ragaini Leading Iowa Receiver Room

Veteran Wideout Preparing for 6th College Season

Nico Ragaini is the veteran in Iowa’s wide receiver room, so he knows the responsibilities that go with that honor.

Ragaini is heading into his sixth season with the Hawkeyes, a rare level of experience in college football.

That kind of experience brings with it the questions from the younger players, and Ragaini fully embraces that.

“I’m super-excited with all of the new faces in the facility,” Ragaini said last week. “It’s been pretty cool to meet some of the guys. All of the guys in my class have pretty much left, so it’s going to be an opportunity to get to know some of the younger guys better and make some friendships that I’m excited to make.

“I’m looking to take a step up in my leadership role, just trying to teach the young guys as much as I can before the season starts.”

It’s not just experience Ragaini brings. There are the numbers that stand out as well.

He has started 17 games for the Hawkeyes, and caught 125 passes for 1,354 yards.

He’s seen the success — the 2021 Big Ten West championship — to go along with the struggles of the past season, when Iowa won just eight games, squandering a chance to repeat as division champions with an offense that was one of the worst in the nation.

It’s why Ragaini is a good teacher.

“I guess it’s a pretty big role,” he said. “I think everybody out there is trying to learn and teach each other. But being the oldest guy in the room, people look to ask you questions more. I’m always open to answering. I like the role, I like the job that’s been given to me. It’s fun.”

Ragaini recalled what it was like when he arrived in Iowa in 2018, enrolling in the spring semester after playing the fall semester at Avon Old Farms Prep School in Connecticut.

“I remember when I first got here, I was pretty nervous about coming to a new school,” he said. “I didn’t transfer, but I went to a prep school before I early-enrolled here. So I didn’t come in with a class of my own. I remember people being super-nice to me, trying to get to know you. Which is one thing I think Iowa is great at — creating this family environment.

“So I’m just trying to be what an older player was to me when I was a freshman here — just be as welcoming as I can, let them know if they have any questions for me, I’m open to answering them. Just trying to push them to be the best they can be.”

It’s not only about getting to know the new wide receivers. It’s also about getting to know a new quarterback — Cade McNamara, a transfer from Michigan who is in line to be Iowa’s starter next season.

“What I like about Cade is how welcoming he is to the challenge of turning the Iowa offense around, from how people viewed it last year,” Ragaini said. “I know people like to say we were horrible, but he’s ready to make this place, I guess, not horrible. I don’t know how you want to word it.

“I feel like he’s one of the most vocal guys on the team, and he just got here a few weeks ago. I respect everything he has to say, and I feel like everyone respects Cade. He’s doing a great job so far.”

Ragaini’s talent and experience stabilizes a wide receiver group with plenty of newcomers. He could have passed on an additional season, but he didn’t.

“It was actually a pretty easy decision, considering my two options were both great options,” Ragaini said. “Trying to live out my dream of playing NFL football was Option 1. Or coming back to play college football in the place where I truly believe was a second home to me was Option 2.

“Whatever I chose, I would have felt pretty confident in. I would have loved either path.”

The path he chose was the most familiar.