Iowa Hawkeyes Land Gloomy Outlook at Critical Position

The Iowa Hawkeyes will never be confused for an offensive juggernaut. Especially not in recent years where Iowa has consistently failed to find even adequate quarterback play.

However, the quarterback position is far from the only area in which Iowa has struggled to find production, as the Hawkeyes have also been unable to yield good wide receivers.

While Iowa's rushing attack thrived in 2024 thanks to the herculean efforts of Kaleb Johnson (who is now a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers), its passing game suffered, with Jacob Gill leading the way with 35 receptions for 411 yards and a couple of touchdowns.

The Hawkeyes did add former Chattanooga standout Sam Phillips in the transfer portal, but it also lost Kaleb Brown, which Jordan Underwood of Dear Old Gold thinks will pose a problem for Iowa heading into 2025.

As a matter of fact, Underwood does not seem to have very high expectations for the Hawkeyes' wide receiver room as a whole for next season.

"Iowa returns starting wide receiver Jacob Gill and added Sam Phillips from the transfer portal, and Brown was poised for a larger role this season," Underwood wrote. "The Hawkeyes now turn to the often-injured Seth Anderson, a young and unproven Reece Vander Zee, and return specialist Kaden Wetjen to replace Brown."

To be fair, Iowa does seem to finally have an answer at signal-caller, as it added former FCS star Mark Gronowski in the portal. Perhaps Gronowski can elevate the play of the receiving corps.

That being said, there is no doubt that the Hawkeyes' shaky depth chart at wide out could comprise a rather significant issue for the team in 2025.

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