The offense for the University of Iowa football team in 2023 has turned into a joke. A punchline. But folks in Iowa City aren't laughing today as the ineptitude of the Hawkeye offense has cost the program a highly sought-after in-state recruit.

The Iowa program got the bad news late Tuesday morning. SI.com reports that four-star offensive lineman Nick Brooks announced via social media that he was de-committing from the Hawkeyes. Brooks is currently a junior at Cedar Rapids Kennedy High School.


Brooks initially chose Iowa over powerhouse programs including Alabama, Georgia, LSU, and Tennessee. He also had offers from Iowa State and Nebraska. SI reports various recruiting publications rank Brooks as the number one recruit in the state of Iowa for 2025 and the #16 offensive lineman in the nation. Brooks, who towers over most high school players at 6'8" and 350 pounds, moved back from Georgia for his final two seasons of high school football.

To be clear, Brooks had only verbally committed to Iowa. He wouldn't be the first or last player to change his mind two years out from college. But as SI reports, this is the second year in a row that the Hawkeyes have seen the top offensive lineman prospect from the state to decommitt. They lost SE Polk tackle Kadyn Proctor to Alabama last December. Could Brooks follow him?

The reason for the defection isn't hard to figure out. If you think it's hard to watch this Iowa offense on Saturdays, imagine yourself playing in it. What highly recruited high school football player wants to go play for a team that barely averages 13 points per game? I don't care if you grew up bleeding black and gold. The Iowa offense is costing the Hawkeyes great players from our own backyard. The warning shots have been fired.

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