|
Hey everyone,
Happy Draft Day!
Here’s the gist of what to know about the former Hawkeyes hoping to get a call from an NFL team this week…
Tyler Linderbaum should hear his name called tonight in the first round, but there’s a wide range of picks where he could be taken. I wouldn’t be surprised if he went No. 14, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he went No. 28. Hawks fans can probably skip Friday night to watch whatever the hot movie out right now is. (I’ll probably find that out myself after this month of spring football and NFL Draft news is over.) A lot of news should come out of Saturday and maybe Sunday. Iowa has a handful of prospects who could be late-round selections Saturday, and then the undrafted free agent frenzy begins.
If you have any questions during the draft, feel free to send them my way in our Hawkeye sports text group. You can join for free.
Draft tiers
Here’s a tier-by-tier breakdown of where former Iowa players could go:
Tier 1 (Should be mid-to-late first round): Tyler Linderbaum
Tier 2 (Should hear their names Saturday in rounds 4-7): Tyler Goodson, Dane Belton
Tier 3 (Really a wild card after injuries, could be picked Saturday, could be an undrafted free agent): Matt Hankins
Tier 4 (Could be a seventh-round pick, likely undrafted free agent): Zach VanValkenburg, Caleb Shudak, Jack Koerner)
Draft notebook
Often, we can’t quite fit everything that a coach/player said that’s interesting into an article. Other times, maybe there’s an interesting thing that was just a small mention in a bigger article about something else.
I looked through my files and found some interesting anecdotes from/about a few of Iowa’s draft prospects (in no particular order here):
Caleb Shudak
After five years of waiting, Shudak finally got his chance to kick a field goal in a game in Iowa’s season opener against Indiana.
But first, Indiana took a timeout.
And another timeout.
And another timeout.
Indiana’s attempt -- well, three attempts -- at icing Shudak allowed him to “really get comfortable,” though.
“I think that was actually so helpful for my season,” Shudak said. “It sounds crazy, but it really just allowed me to take in the moment, being in front of 70,000 people finally. … That really set the stage for the whole season.”
Tyler Goodson
As Goodson has met with NFL teams, he’s gotten a wide range of questions. What’s the weirdest?
“They asked me who my favorite president was,” Goodson said. “I was like, ‘Uh, OK, Obama.’ I just threw out a random president. I’m not really a politics guy. … If they asked me why, I don’t know what I would’ve said.”
Dane Belton
A lot of people were surprised when Belton ran a 4.43-second 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine, including Belton.
“I expected to run a 4.45 or 4.46, and then I get that adrenaline going,” Belton said.
Others were expecting worse from the former Iowa safety/linebacker, he noted.
“Everyone was thinking I was a slow guy,” Belton said. “In all reality, they thought late 4.5s.”
But then his 4.43 made a statement at the NFL Combine amid a competitive class of defensive backs. Seven safeties had faster 40-yard times, but four of them were sub-200-pound prospects.
“It just shows teams what I can do,” Belton said. “Even though I might not have played a lot of deep middle, I can do that, check the ball and things like that.”
Tyler Linderbaum
Linderbaum’s wrestling takedown of Tristan Wirfs in their final matchup has gotten a lot of attention.
But that wasn’t the only future Iowa teammate he wrestled. Linderbaum faced North Linn’s Kyler Schott in one match, and Schott won.
“I don't think either of us knew each other, but we ended up having a really good match,” Linderbaum said. “I think it came down to like the last 10 seconds. … It was 1-1, and then Shooter shot and scored on the edge of the mat, and he ended up beating me.”
That gave Schott some bragging rights as he worked next to the unanimous All-American at Iowa.
“I want my rematch,” Linderbaum said.
|
