3 Players The Hawkeyes Are Glad Will Return
The Iowa Hawkeyes, who year after year continue to boost their position for football wagering experts that focus on college and NFL odds as one of the more dominating football programs in college football sadly had to go through an exodus of talents after the 2021 season, but that doesn’t mean that the Hawkeyes are reeling in pain and trying to figure out what’s next for them. In actuality, the Hawkeyes are sitting pretty comfortably, especially after being able to secure the return of various of their most important players, who are already being pinned as some of the best-returning players in college football for the 2022 season.
After having a very respectful 10-4 record in the 2021 college football season, which promptly ended with the Hawkeyes falling 3 points short of snagging the Citrus Bowl away from Kentucky, head coach Kirk Ferentz and company are already looking at the upcoming 2022 season as one where Iowa needs to be up there in the discussion of best teams not only in the Big 10 conference but in college football in general. One very positive note that has Iowa fans feeling hopeful for the 2022 season is the fact that after Pro Football Focus released their respective lists of top-10 returning players in each position for the following college football season, the Hawkeyes have three players all sitting comfortably in those lists, meaning that Iowa will have plenty to work with towards securing a successful season.
So with this said, let’s take a look at who these returning players are and why they can become even more important pieces for Iowa in the upcoming 2022 NCAA football season.
TE Sam LaPorta
If you were to truly rescue one player from Iowa’s otherwise underwhelming offense last season, who would it be? Let us answer that question right away and just say that it should be TE Sam LaPorta. LaPorta was the best receiver in a Hawkeyes offence that will surely benefit from him coming back for another season. While for Iowa this means that they will be having back the 10th-best returning tight end in college football, for LaPorta this means a chance to continue feeding his NFL draft stock, especially after his showing in the Citrus Bowl against Kentucky which could work very well as a sign for pro teams to take him into account for draft purposes.
His receiving grade last season of 80.0 should be enough of a testament to understanding why Iowa will be happy with the thought of their star TE returning for one more season, one in which if the offence can step up and play some serious and dominant football to match the defence, then we could be in for a great season of Hawkeyes football.
LB Jack Campbell
Remember how we just mentioned previously about how Iowa’s offence needs to step up this season to play at the same level as their defence. Well, the main part of why this is necessary is the fact that with a player as pivotal for the defence as LB Jack Campbell returning for at least one more season, the Hawkeyes will seriously need to step their game up to make sure that Campbell’s return means something valuable for the team.
Campbell who took the 10th spot in the list of PFC’s best-returning linebackers for 2022, will surely be looking to show the nation that his claim as the country’s best tackler last year was not a one-time fluke. With Campbell, we’re talking about a guy who can cover as much ground as needed from his position and a player who is known for making important plays on defense happen whenever needed. It’s not farfetched to say that Campbell and company will surely be one of the most talented and dominant defensive units in college football in 2022, so opposing teams beware.
CB Riley Moss
The Hawkeyes should be thanking the football Gods after star CB Riley Moss decided to come back for one more season with Iowa instead of declaring for the 2022 NFL draft, one where he would’ve probably been seen as a first-round talent for sure. Given that Moss is coming off a season where he was appointed as the Big 10 Defensive Back of the Year, it’s not hard to understand why PFC lists Moss as the 8th best returning CB for 2022.
His understanding of how Iowa’s defense needs to play, also how when healthy he can come up with some amazing plays down the field and his numbers all speak for himself and the impact that he has had for Iowa’s defense before and how much of an important piece for the Hawkeye’s secondary unit he’ll be in 2022.