The NFL Draft begins this evening, and by Saturday afternoon, we will likely know the fate of 13 Iowa football players. Here’s a rundown of this weekend. It’s an exciting year for Iowa football fans and the program itself. The Hawkeyes set a record for early entrants this year when Noah Fant, TJ Hockenson, Anthony Nelson, and Amani Hooker all declared. Including those four, there are nine other seniors who have run out of eligibility and are looking for their next career move, which hopefully is the NFL. Where those guys will end up though, remains to be seen. If history has shown us anything though, the NFL will always value guys from the Iowa football program late on day three or as priority undrafted free agents simply because of their work ethic and the coaching they received by Kirk Ferentz and his staff. Here’s a breakdown of each one of these Iowa football players and where they are projected to go: TJ Hockenson – We gave a full preview earlier, but Hockenson is likely going to be drafted anywhere from pick #7 to #20 on Thursday night of the NFL Draft. Noah Fant – Fant received a similar preview as Hockenson. He is likely going to be drafted anywhere from pick #12 to 30 on Thursday night, but it honestly just depends on where Hockenson goes. Hockenson is the first domino that has to fall. Amani Hooker – Hooker could go anywhere from the late second round to the middle of the third and the Bears and Broncos look like pretty solid landing spots at this point. Anthony Nelson – Nelson’s draft stock is completely up in the air. It wouldn’t surprise me to see him go in the middle of the third or in the middle of the 5th. Expect to hear his name called on day two or three. Here’s a preview of why that’s the case. Ross Reynolds – Reynolds put up an impressive showing at his Pro Day busting out 27 reps of 225 pounds. His game is very scheme dependant (zone based), and if he lands in the right situation, he could carve out a nice career for himself. He’s expected to go late on day three (Saturday) or be signed as a priority UDFA. Keegan Render – Not as much buzz has been given to Render, but don’t think NFL teams are sleeping on this offensive lineman from the Iowa football player. With his background of playing in the Hawk’s zone scheme, teams will either take a flyer on him late in day three or as a UDFA. Nick Easley – It’s hard to imagine that just two years ago, hardly any Iowa football fans knew who Nick Easley was when he joined as a walk-on from Iowa Western Community College. Now, he is a shining example of how hard work and perseverance pays off in a big way. At his Pro Day, he posted numbers comparable to that of another overlooked slot receiver, Super Bowl MVP Julian Edelman and it appears teams are taking notice. If Easley goes late in the 7th round it wouldn’t surprise me but I expect him to be a priority UDFA. Jake Gervase – Gervase is another great walk-on story for the Iowa football team. His combine numbers were almost identical to those of Amani Hooker which means Gervase will get certainly sign a UDFA contract. Matt Nelson – Matt Nelson took one for the good of the team when he moved inside to play tackle. It’s hurting him a bit now without much to go on from Nelson at an edge position. He will sign a UDFA contract. Parker Hesse – At the Iowa football Pro Day, Hesse worked out as a fullback, tight end, and defensive end. That versatility will get him a contract after the draft, but he’ll have to work his butt off to stick on a practice squad. Sam Brinks – Brinks hurts his hamstring during his Pro Day dampening an already dim future. Brinks may get a camp invite similar but likely nothing more. Miguel Recinos – Recinos could find himself in camp as a camp leg, but not likely. Kyle Groenweg – Groenweg turned in the fastest 40-yard dash of all the Iowa football members, which means he’ll get a camp invite if not a UDFA contract for that fact. However, he will have to prove pretty quickly that he belongs after catching just four balls in his Hawkeye career. Brady Ross – Ross stunned everyone when he turned in a 39.5 inch vertical, but he’ll be lucky if he gets a UDFA contract especially in today’s NFL that devalues the fullback position. The 2019 NFL Draft begins tonight at 7 PM Central Standard Time and will conclude when all first round picks are announced. The second and third round will begin Friday at 6 PM Central Standard Time and the final day of the draft starts at 11 AM Central Standard Time.<doc-sep>On the first night of the 2019 NFL Draft, T.J. Hockenson and Noah Fant became the 8th and 9th first round draft picks of the Kirk Ferentz era. Below is a list of all-time Iowa State Cyclones drafted in the first round: 1936: N/A 1937: N/A 1938: N/A 1939: N/A 1940: N/A 1941: N/A 1942: N/A 1943: N/A 1944: N/A 1945: N/A 1946: N/A 1947: N/A 1948: N/A 1949: N/A 1950: N/A 1951: N/A 1952: N/A 1953: N/A 1954: N/A 1955: N/A 1956: N/A 1957: N/A 1958: N/A 1959: N/A 1960: N/A 1961: N/A 1962: N/A 1963: N/A 1964: N/A 1965: N/A 1966: N/A 1967: N/A 1968: N/A 1969: N/A 1970: N/A 1971: N/A 1972: N/A 1973: George Amundson 1974: N/A 1975: N/A 1976: N/A 1977: N/A 1978: N/A 1979: N/A 1980: N/A 1981: N/A 1982: N/A 1983: N/A 1984: N/A 1985: N/A 1986: N/A 1987: N/A 1988: N/A 1989: N/A 1990: N/A 1991: N/A 1992: N/A 1993: N/A 1994: N/A 1995: N/A 1996: N/A 1997: N/A 1998: N/A 1999: N/A 2000: N/A 2001: N/A 2002: N/A 2003: N/A 2004: N/A 2005: N/A 2006: N/A 2007: N/A 2008: N/A 2009: N/A 2010: N/A 2011: N/A 2012: N/A 2013: N/A 2014: N/A 2015: N/A 2016: N/A 2017: N/A 2018: N/A 2019: N/A Wow, two 2019 tight ends > one player. Maybe next year, Cyclone fans!<doc-sep>Noah Fant is heading to the Denver Broncos after being selected 20th overall. After T.J. Hockenson was taken with the 8th pick, they become the first set Hawkeyes drafted in the first round since 1997 - sup Tom Knight and Ross Verba - and the third overall (1987 Chuck Long, Ronnie Harmon, Mike Haight). Fant came to the Iowa Hawkeyes as the #1 prospect out of Nebraska as a 6’6”ish, 210-lb athlete despite a late push by his home state school to recruit him at defensive end. While he saw the field as a freshman with nine catches for 70 yards and a tuddy, he didn’t break out until George Kittle departed and a proper Doyle-ization. His stellar 2017 campaign led the team with 11 touchdowns and he snagged 30 catches for 494 yards. The 16.5 yards per reception led the nation for tight ends. The 11 receiving touchdowns trail only Marvin McNutt’s 12 for the most in a season for a Hawkeye. As his sophomore highlights demonstrate, his game is built on speed. He entered 2018 as the best tight end in the country and landed on Bruce Feldman’s “freaks list” at number six after setting offseason records during Iowa’s testing. While his receptions improved to 39, he didn’t take off in yards as his per catch settled in at 13.3 for 519 total. Tight end snaps and receptions became a bit of a zero-sum game with Mackey Award winner T.J. Hockenson with frustration culminating after a 14-10 loss to Northwestern which saw Fant on the field just nine times in the second half. He once again led the team with touchdowns at 7, which brought his 19 total to fourth all-time behind McNutt (28), Danan Hughes, (21) and Tim Dwight (21). He blew away every other tight end at the combine. Player Profiler calls him a phenom for breaking out before turning 20 years old by their algorithm and grades him above the 96th percentile in every workout metric they have. We thank Noah Fant for the memories he brought to us while sporting the black and gold and wish him the best as he heads to the National. Football. League.<doc-sep>
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - APRIL 25: Noah Fant of Iowa poses with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell after being chosen #20 overall by the Denver Broncos during the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft on April 25, 2019 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) The first night of the 2019 NFL Draft is over, and the Iowa football team made history with two tight ends going in the first round. As we expected, last night was a historical evening for the Iowa football program. Both of the Hawkeye’s starting tight ends, Noah Fant and TJ Hockenson, were drafted in the first round, making that the first ever occurrence in the history of the NFL Draft. John Mackey Award-winning tight end TJ Hockenson was taken at 8th overall by the Detroit Lions and First Team All-Big Ten tight end Noah Fant was drafted 20th overall by the Denver Broncos. Matt Patricia’s Lions picking Hockenson makes a ton of sense given his New England Patriots background. It gives the Lions a versatile weapon that will help pave the way for last year’s second-round pick Kerryon Johnson and it gives Matt Stafford a reliable target in the passing game at the tight end position. Since Stafford’s arrival in 2009, Detroit has attempted to give him a tight end twice with first-round picks (Brandon Pettigrew and Eric Ebron), but they struck out. That will change with Hockenson, I guarantee it. Here’s FanSided’s breakdown of the former Iowa football player. Noah Fant is heading to a somewhat similar situation in the Denver Broncos have attempted to fill their gaping hole at tight end with has-beens and mid-round draft picks for the last several years. They’ve even tapped into the Big Ten pipeline drafting a former Big Ten tight end three of the last four years with Jeff Heuerman (2015 – Ohio State), Jake Butt (2017 – Michigan), Troy Fumagalli (2018 – Wisconsin), yet that has been unsuccessful as well mostly due to injuries. Now with a new head coach in Vic Fangio and a young and exciting offensive coordinator in Rick Scangarello, Fant is heading to a perfect situation. For those of you not familiar with Scangarello, he was an instrumental part in San Francisco’s offense last season that saw both Nick Mullens and CJ Beathard have success and saw former Iowa football player George Kittle emerge as an elite tight end. Interestingly enough, Noah Fant, not TJ Hockenson, is very similar to his former Iowa football teammate. Both have great straight line speed and are willing and aggressive blockers, and if this last season is any indication, Fant should be very excited. Kittle caught 88 passes for 1,377 yards while earning Pro Bowl and All-Pro honors. Those are lofty numbers but not unrealistic to expect big things from Fant in Denver’s offense featuring a quarterback (Joe Flacco) who loves to throw to his tight ends. Furthermore, with the concern for Fant’s blocking ability, it’s worth noting that the Broncos hired Mike Munchak, a noted blocking guru who will likely help Fant make gains in that facet of his game. Here’s FanSided’s breakdown of Noah Fant. The bottom line is both of these players went to great situations with established quarterbacks, which puts them in a fantastic situation to succeed. Now, we play the waiting game as day two of the 2019 NFL Draft kicks off this evening at 6 PM Central Standard Time. We’re likely to hear two more Iowa football players be selected with Amani Hooker and Anthony Nelson projected to go late second to early third.