Iowa Hawkeyes' Counterintuitive Tactics Working WIth Elite OL Recruit Will Slagle

The Iowa Hawkeyes do things a little bit differently on the recruiting trail, and that's always been the case in the Kirk Ferentz era.

Few programs in the country have been better at finding "diamonds in the rough" and turning them into legitimate college football players. The Hawkeyes' reputation as an NFL factory has also helped them pick up some big recruiting wins as well, though. And when it comes to in-state recruiting, seemingly every major recruit from the state of Iowa has grown up with a real interst in the Hawkeyes.

Will Slagle is one of those major in-state recruiting targets for the Hawkeyes, and he recently revealed to Rob Howe of HawkFanatic that part of why he likes Iowa is because of the staff's counterintuitive recruiting proach.

One would think that in today's instant gratification society, constant contact from recruiters would be the key. Iowa's staff does it a bit differently, though, and that's something that the 4-star offensive tackle from Grinnell, Iowa, has appreciated.

“I always like hearing from the (Hawkeye) coaches, especially [offensive line] coach [George] Barnett, that they don’t recruit much, and they wouldn’t text every day. That’s what I love because I don’t want recruiting to take over my life,” Slagle said.

In a recruiting environment where everyone is leaning on high engagement, it must be nice for recruits to know that they have Iowa's interest but the Hawkeyes aren't going to be putting on a full-court press for them every day of the week. That has to be especially valuable for recruits like Slagle, who haven't even played their junior seasons of high school ball yet.

Sometimes you've got to let kids be kids, and the Hawkeyes are clearly taking that approach on the recruiting trail. If that ultimately works out for them in the case of Slagle, that's going to be a huge deal.

He's an elite 2027 recruit who already checks in at 6-foot-4, 280 pounds. According to 247Sports, he's ranked as the No. 5 interior offensive lineman in his class at the top recruit from the state.