2015 NFL Draft: Iowa Hawkeyes Observations Through Two Weeks

Sep 6, 2014; Iowa City, IA, USA;Iowa Hawkeyes linebacker Quinton Alston (52) and defensive lineman Carl Davis (71) celebrate a fourth quarter stop against the Ball State Cardinals at Kinnick Stadium. Iowa defeated Ball State 17-13. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports

It’s been a very…interesting two weeks for the Iowa Hawkeyes this college football season. They were on the ropes against Northern Iowa in week one, and Ball State had them down by 10 points with five minutes remaining in their week two matchup, where they miraculously came back and won.

Iowa’s theatrics aside, there’s a lot of NFL Draft intrigue in Iowa City nowadays, mainly because of offensive tackle Brandon Scherff, who’s been his usual dominant self this season prior to needing knee surgery this past week. Scherff’s strength and size is no secret at this point. There was a video released over the offseason of him hang-cleaning two industrial buildings.

Or it was like 600 pounds, one of those two.

Either way, Scherff blocks people like a freight train rides over its tracks. There’s nothing really that gets in Scherff’s way and he bull dozes defensive players with phenomenal technique, a trait that comes with most Iowa offensive linemen.

Many Hawkeyes have gone before Scherff to be relatively high NFL draft picks, but none has really established themselves in the NFL with as much prestige as they were able to attain while at Iowa. The last first round pick the Hawkeyes had on the offensive line is former Lions first round pick Riley Reiff, who has been moved around from guard to tackle in the NFL.

Bryan Bulaga was a first round pick of the Green Bay Packers, and he’s struggled mightily with injuries. We all know the story of Oakland Raiders former number two overall pick Robert Gallery as well, taken one pick before Calvin Johnson and a handful of picks before Adrian Peterson.

Scherff has the odd task of upholding the tradition of Iowa players to have success in being drafted highly by the NFL, but the responsibility of not living up to their below average NFL billing.

On the Iowa offense, there’s a really rare sighting on the field on Saturdays that hasn’t really been there in the past. Iowa has a ton of speed as an overall unit of skill position players, and they’ve thrown the ball a ton compared to years past.

With Jake Rudock under center, Iowa has — be it by necessity or not – thrown the ball 95 times this season in two games against Northern Iowa and Ball State. It wouldn’t surprise me if in previous years, the Hawkeyes haven’t thrown the ball but 40-50 times in their first two games on average, and that might even be a really high estimate.

It’s no secret that Kirk Ferentz likes to run the ball and control the clock, but Rudock and the skill players for the Hawkeyes provide them with some rare opportunities to make explosive plays down the field on a consistent basis. The problem is, things haven’t clicked for the Hawkeyes consistently, not during the course of a game.

There are some intriguing potential NFL talents at the skill positions, starting with senior Kevonte Martin-Manley, who has been Iowa’s top receiver the last couple of years, nearly by default. He’s also shown some playmaking ability as a return specialist. Like some Iowa receivers before him, Martin-Manley will have to overcome his overachiever status as a college player to become an NFL draft pick or even get invited to an NFL camp. He has potential as a slot receiver and return man, but he’ll need to show out athletically this offseason to get a real shot.

Iowa sent C.J. Fiedorowicz to the NFL this past year as a big target at tight end, and they have a couple of guys who are certainly next in line. Jake Duzey, who has 10 receptions this season along with a touchdown, is a very athletic 6’4″ 250 pound kid that can make plays after the catch. Senior Ray Hamilton was a four star recruit coming out of high school in Ohio, and was expected to be Iowa’s next big thing. He’s got just two receptions so far this season.

As is typically the case, the rest of Iowa’s offensive line will most certainly get looks from NFL teams because of their big, strong, physical nature, but also because Kirk Ferentz provides them with NFL caliber coaching up front.

Defensively, the Hawkeyes are slowly trying to recover from losing a trio of senior linebackers that are currently set to make a significant impact in the NFL this year. Christian Kirksey, Anthony Hitchens, and James Morris all left this year, and left a huge void at linebacker that Iowa has yet to recover from. They are weak up the middle of the defense, especially against the pass.

The true star defensively is defensive tackle Carl Davis, who has 10 tackles and two for loss this season. He’s consistently dominated matchups with offensive linemen, showing off his quickness, strength, and how physical he can be over the course of a game with his 6’5″ 315 pound frame.

He has some scouts talking like he could be a first round pick, so like last year when Brandon Scherff kind of came out of nowhere, Davis is a name to keep an eye on as the season progresses. He’s not just a space-eater up front, he’s a potentially dominant mismatch for offensive linemen and someone that can create a lot of trouble on the interior. I’ve been really impressed with him through two games.