Hawkeyes’ 2023 signing class ranked No. 45 by ESPN

It’s really unfortunate, but every Iowa fan just knew that their 2023 signing class was going to slide down the rankings entering the offseason.

With the departure of five-star offensive tackle Kadyn Proctor to the evil empire over there in Tuscaloosa, this 2023 class now really does lack a headliner.

ESPN’s updated class rankings reflect that thought nationally. The Hawkeyes’ class—once in ESPN’s top 25 classes back in July—fell to No. 45.

Currently the ninth-highest ranked class among Big Ten programs, Iowa lacks a player in the ESPN 300 players. Ohio State has the league’s highest-ranked class at No. 10.

Other Big Ten programs ranked ahead of the Hawkeyes include No. 13 Penn State, No. 17 Michigan, No. 25 Michigan State, No. 27 Nebraska, No. 29 Maryland, No. 43 Illinois and No. 44 Northwestern.

The top five classes according to ESPN are No. 1 Alabama, No. 2 Georgia, No. 3 Miami, No. 4 Texas and No. 5 Oklahoma.

While all that sounds really bad, at the end of the day as ESPN describes, this recruiting class stills seems very typical of Iowa.

Not surprisingly, the Hawkeyes’ class is not very flashy, but it has a very solid foundation. QB Marco Lainez III is a consistent, smooth and accurate passer who looks like a nice fit for Iowa’s offense. Known for its eye for and developing offensive linemen, Iowa landed top-10 center Leighton Jones. Defensively, Chase Brackney displays good power to collapse the pocket and set the edge vs. the run. Kueter is another key in-state keep, as the state wrestling champ brings a physical and tenacious style of play to the LB position. – Craig Haubert, ESPN.

“Not very flashy, but has a solid foundation.” If there is a sentence to best describe recruiting for Iowa football for the past however many years, that would be it.

While many will be disappointed to not see a leap forward, we can’t just disregard this recruiting class for Iowa. The Hawkeyes have consistently made the most out of some undervalued…