18 Players from Iowa, ISU, and UNI Considered Among Best in CFB

The East-West Shrine Bowl just released its list of 1,000 best football players from across the country at both the NCAA Division I FBS and FCS levels that are NFL Draft and all-star game eligible.

The Shrine Bowl website says their goal of releasing this list is "to serve as a look into our scouting process, as well as begin to preview college players who are currently all-star game eligible for the 2023 East-West Shrine Bowl and 2023 NFL Draft class."

Do you agree with who made the list from each of Iowa's three state schools? Take a look at who was given the preseason honor:

As a UNI Insider and host of Cornstalks and Sports Talk with Townsquare Media, I feel the need to add a few of my personal opinions to this provided list.

Spencer Petras?

Considering this is only a list of players that are all-star game eligible and NFL Draft eligible, I understand how Petras made it. It's still just a tad jarring after the season we saw last year from Iowa's starter.

I'll give him the benefit of the doubt in that the O-line wasn't great last season, Brian Ferentz might be the most 'Meh' (or just awful) coordinator in all of college football, and he dealt with some injuries. But wow, last season was a total waste of an amazing defense put together by Kirk Ferentz and Phil Parker.

Who knows? Maybe with the help of the Manning family, it will click for Petras in 2022.

Only Two From UNI?

I fully expect Benny Sapp III to get drafted next spring. If anyone watches a full game of tape from Sapp, you'll quickly see he's one of the best defensive backs in the country.

For Dom Williams, there's a possibility we see a breakout season where he racks up over 1,000 rushing yards. He will be joined by several other talented guys in the Panther backfield though, so we'll soon find out what kind of production he'll bring.

In my mind's eye, there are at least five other players from Northern Iowa that should have at least been considered for this list. Quan Hampton, Spencer Cuvelier, Justin Peine, Matthew Vanderslice, Erik Sorensen, and Matthew Cook may have something to say to these evaluators.

And we can't forget staples of the UNI defense like Jevon Brekke and Bryce Flater and the uber-talented brother duo of Deion and Vance McShane.

Xavier Hutchinson (Eyes Emoji)

I can't wait to watch Hutchinson play football this year for the Cyclones.

His ability to run smooth routes, catch just about anything thrown his way, and the breakaway speed the Jacksonville, Florida native brings give him the chance to be one of the best receivers in the country this coming season.

A lot of his production will be dependent on ISU's new starting quarterback Hunter Dekkers, though. We'll find out just how talented the four-star QB from Hawarden, Iowa really is in 2022.