RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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See the full story · 1 sourcesCollege football is full of athletic marvels, especially in this day and age. The modern era of training and recovery has given way to athletic freaks of nature.
While most of those guys end up being four- and five-star talents out of high school, some trickle through the cracks. Iowa has been the beneficiary of that over the years, with players like Tristan Wirfs and Cooper DeJean ending up in Iowa City.
The Hawkeyes have their fair share of athletic freaks on this year’s roster as well.
The Athletic's Bruce Feldman released his annual college football Freaks List . These are players that can naturally do things that most other guys can’t. Iowa had three players on the list, beginning with offensive lineman Kade Pieper at No. 8:
"It’s almost a given that we’re going to have a Hawkeye O-lineman on here. The 6-3, 298-pound former Nebraska state champion shot putter was named a first-team All-American last year by PFF after starting 13 games at right guard in 2025. Last year, Pieper came in at No. 22 on the Freaks List after setting an Iowa record (4.13) for fastest short shuttle among offensive guards. Among guards, he also posted the vertical jump record at 37.4 and the best 10-yard dash at 1.52. This offseason, he set the program record for heaviest squat by a guard, doing 680 pounds."
The next Hawkeye mentioned was transfer defensive lineman Kahmari Brown. Despite playing at the FCS level last season, Brown came in at 27th on Feldman’s list:
"A second-team FCS All-American last year at Elon, Brown led the CAA program with 16 TFLs, 12 sacks, three forced fumbles and eight QB hurries. This offseason, the 6-2, 258-pound Brown, a former high school running back in North Carolina, broad jumped 10-3, vertical jumped 40.2 inches and was timed at 1.56 in his 10-yard split. All exceptional numbers for a nearly 260-pound edge rusher."
The final Hawkeye mentioned was versatile defensive back Zach Lutmer, who dropped in at 37th on the list. Feldman had plenty of praise for Iowa’s defensive Swiss Army knife:
"The Hawkeyes have a remarkable DB pedigree, and the 6-1, 203-pound Lutmer is next in the pipeline. He was a second-team All-Big Ten pick last season after making 71 tackles with 5.5 TFLs and three interceptions. This offseason, Lutmer showed off his elite agility by clocking a 3.81-second shuttle time, setting a new record for Hawkeye DBs — especially impressive considering the program has produced the likes of Cooper DeJean, Micah Hyde, Josh Jackson, Desmond King and Bob Sanders. That 3.81 would match the fastest shuttle time ever recorded at the NFL combine, which Brandin Cooks ran in 2014. Lutmer also did a 41.9-inch vertical jump and squatted 575 pounds."
Even with a lot of talent off to the NFL from last season’s squad, there’s still plenty of guys for fans to keep an eye on. Pieper, Brown, and Lutmer should be near the top of that list.
This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Iowa football places trio on annual 'Freaks List'
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