Iowa Hawkeyes Spring Position Battles: Offense

The Big Ten's second worst statistical offense will be returning seven starters.

Needless to say, there are two things to look at in that sentence.

Firstly, there is the issue that Iowa was the Big Ten's second worst offense, as well as the 86th ranked offense nationally.

Normally, this wouldn't be completely atypical for Iowa, as they run a conservative offense that takes care of the football.

However, Iowa also threw the second most interceptions in the Big Ten. Also, they had a middle-of-the-road turnover margin, ranking sixth in the conference.

Yet, they won 11 games.

The fact is Iowa scored when they had to, and, simply put, that was enough to win football games.

Nonetheless, a large portion of Iowa's less-than-stellar play on offense had to do with injuries.

Iowa had exactly two offensive players that started all 13 games: center Rafael Eubanks and fullback Brett Morse. You could also throw wide receiver Marvin McNutt in there except he didn't become an official starter until midway through the season.

Outside of that, every single offensive player missed at least one game.

That is no way to build continuity, especially on an offense like an Iowa that relies so heavily on precise execution.

Which brings me to the second part of the opening sentence: seven starters.

Who are the seven starters, who can we expect to take the place of the departed starters, and who will fill up the depth chart?

1. Quarterback

This area of the depth chart is pretty solid.

Rick Stanzi is the starter in his senior year. Sophomore James Vandenberg is the backup and it will be his job to lose. John Wienke, also a sophomore, is the third string quarterback and if he wants to surpass Vandenberg, he will have to really elevate his game.

I will note that I expect the emergence of Vandenberg last season—due to the late season injury to Stanzi—should improve Stanzi's play.

The fact is in some areas of the game, the freshman, Vandenberg, seemed more mature than the junior, Stanzi.

In this respect, I am referring to a willingness to give up on plays and to check down to outlet receivers. These are two areas where Stanzi has had problems throughout his career.

Mind you, I am not saying that Vandenberg is the better quarterback right now, or that Stanzi is in danger of losing his job.

Rather, I am saying that Vandenberg's skills might help Stanzi to improve in those areas.

Other players that will be on the depth chart include sophomore walk-on Wyatt Seuss, and true freshmen, AJ Derby and Austin Vier. However, none of them will see the field.

2. Fullback

As with the entire backfield, this is an area that is established.

Senior Brett Morse will start and he will be backed up by junior Wade Leppert, who also has some starting experience.

As is typically the case, Iowa uses its fullback as something of a roving guard, rather than a true offensive weapon. However, Morse does get involved in the passing game as he caught eight passes for 34 yards last year, including one touchdown.

Behind Morse and Leppert will probably be sophomore Jonathan Gimm, who switched to fullback from tight end last year.

3. Tailback

This will be an area that Iowa fans will keep a close eye on.

All of the players are familiar, but how it shakes out in terms of the depth charts will be interesting.

In short, Iowa has a bounty of experienced running backs.

This is something that Hawkeye fans had better relish, because if the shortage of running backs in 2004 wasn't eye opening, last year's occasional depth chart of one should have served the same purpose.

The key players will all be sophomores: Jewel Hampton, Adam Robinson, and Brandon Wegher.

Hampton played as a true freshman in 2008. He looked solid spelling Shonn Greene , and seemed poised to take over the starting role in 2009.

However, injuries derailed his season and he took a redshirt year.

This opened the door for redshirt freshman Adam Robinson and true freshman Brandon Wegher.

At some time or another, both started games, and while Robinson was clearly the better of the two last year, Wegher did play admirably.

Perhaps their most impressive stat was that there was only one fumble between the two of them. This is no small feat for freshmen.

With this in mind, how will the depth chart shake out? Who will start and who will get meaningful carries?

It is my opinion that the next three seasons will see a running-back-by-committee situation in Fort Kinnick.

It is my oft-repeated opinion that the running backs that will emerge will be A-Rob and Jewell Hampton.

Meanwhile, Wegher, who is far too talented to ride the pine, will switch to safety and could very well be the starting free safety in 2011.

I just think that A-Rob, who practiced at safety during his redshirt season, is too much of a natural at running back. He's got the natural balance and vision that just can't be taught, and that translates specifically to the offensive backfield.

Moreover, he is a between-the-tackles back. This is a quality that both Wegher and Hampton lack, as both would more accurately be described as burners or speedsters.

Furthermore, while there are still questions regarding Hampton's durability, he really came on at the end of 2008.

Yes, he was playing against defenses that were softened by Shonn Greene, but at tailback, you either have it or you don't, and Hampton looked solid and confident.

On the other hand, Wegher does not possess A-Rob's natural gifts.

He could compete with Hampton, but I think Wegher has a more diverse skill set that could translate to success in a number of places on the field. I think the Iowa coaches will take advantage of that.

Other players that will fill up the depth chart will be redshirt freshman Brad Rogers and the ubiquitous Paki O'Meara.

4. Wide Receiver

Wide receiver is another position where the faces are familiar, but there is curiosity as to how the depth chart will shake out.

The main players in the competition for playing time will be seniors Darrell Johnson-Koulianos, Paul Chaney, and Colin Sandeman, junior Marvin McNutt, and true sophomore Keenan Davis.

The Orange Bowl depth chart listed DJK and McNutt as the starters, and I don't expect this to change.

DJK is poised to become Iowa's all-time leading receiver in terms of yardage and receptions.

This is despite numerous stints in Kirk Ferentz's dog house.

His talent is manifest. It was mostly a matter of taking care of the little things and bringing his work ethic up to a level on par with his talent.

It appears he has taken care of this, and Iowa's leading receiver for the past three years will probably make it four in a row.

Meanwhile, McNutt really came on last season. The quarterback-turned-receiver had the second most yards and receptions on the Hawks and led the team with eight touchdowns.

I would expect his play to keep improving as he becomes even more comfortable with the position.

While DJK and McNutt will start games, there will probably be a lot of subbing and three, four, and five wide packages, as there were in 2009.

This is the deepest, talented, and most experienced group of receivers of the Ferentz era. It is safe to say that offensive coordinator Ken O'Keefe will make the most of it.

I would expect the only two other players that will compete for playing time will be redshirt freshman Jordon Cotton and junior walk-on Don Nordmann. However, I doubt either will see the field much unless there are injuries.

5. Tight End

Mega-talented and oft-injured Tony Moeaki has graduated.

This will open up the door for senior Allen Reisner.

Due to Moeaki's injury plagued career, Reisner has gotten considerably more experience than he might otherwise have received.

In effect, I think Reisner is ready to step into the starting role. He is not as talented as Moeaki, but he has shown that he can be effective.

Over the course of his career, he has caught 27 passes for 374 yards and two touchdowns.

He is probably a bit like former Hawk Brandon Myers in terms of talent and ability.

While Reisner is a bit of a drop off from Moeaki, particularly as a blocker, he will be solid and consistent.

As for the second tight end, Brad Herman appears ready to step up.

The Iowa staff seemed very high on him in his true freshman year, yet he dropped off the map in 2009.

Apparently, this was due to his failure to develop as a blocker between '08 and '09.

I expect that will change this year. At the very least, if he wants to earn playing time, it will have to change.

The reason for this, as much as anything, will be true freshman C.J. Fiedorowicz.

Fiedorowicz is the second-highest rated tight end in the 2010 class according to Scout.com. He will push very hard for playing time during his first year on campus.

I predict he will get it. In fact, depending on how well he plays, as well as what Herman does, he could do much more than just get his feet wet.

Other players in the mix will be junior Zach Furlong, sophomore J.D. Griggs, and redshirt freshman Dakota Getz.

Any or all of them could see time in Iowa's three-tight sets and on special teams.

6. Offensive Line

Going into 2010, this will be the Hawkeyes biggest question mark on either side of the ball.

Iowa not only lost four starters off last season's line, but they also graduated two more seniors that were on the depth chart.

In short, from the end of spring practice to the beginning of the 2010 season, Hawkeye fans can expect a lot of shuffling of the two deep.

On the bright side, the tank is not completely empty.

Soon-to-be third year sophomore Riley Reiff stepped up in a big way last year. He not only subbed admirably for Bryan Bulaga, but he earned his way into the starting lineup, beating out fifth year seniors.

By the Orange Bowl, Kirk Ferentz opted to play him at right tackle, thereby moving three-year starting senior Kyle Calloway inside to the guard position.

Expect Reiff to anchor the line and start at one of the tackle positions, probably left.

Meanwhile, senior Julian Vandervelde, who had started the previous two seasons at guard, didn't have a great year.

He played as much as any starter, but he wouldn't have started if the line had remained healthy.

A lot of Vandervelde's problems had to do with him missing all of the August practices due to injuries.

O-line play is all about continuity and consistency, and a lack of summer camp did not allow Vandervelde to develop that.

Expect this to change in 2010. Vandervelde will return to form and should man the right guard position.

After that, the offensive line is very much open season.

The center position should be between sophomore James Ferentz and senior Josh Koeppel.

My money would be on Koeppel except for one issue: He is a bit small for an O-lineman. He was listed on the Orange Bowl depth chart as 267 pounds.

Iowa is not Wisconsin. They do not typically have five 330-pound linemen. However, 267 pounds is tiny.

If Koeppel can put on 15 pounds, I'd expect him to start. Otherwise, it will probably be Ferentz.

At the other guard position, junior Adam Gettis got some solid playing experience last year.

He looked very shaky early on, but in some later season reps he looked much better. He will be the front-runner for the other guard position.

The right tackle position seems to have three notable candidates: junior Kyle Zusevics, redshirt sophomore Casey McMillan, and redshirt freshman Nolan MacMillan.

Smart money is on MacMillan, as the Iowa coaches were very close to burning his redshirt last season.

However, Zusevics has gotten very high praise from Kirk Ferentz following the last two bowls.

Other than that, two other players that will compete for playing time will be senior and former walk-on Kyle Haganman, and junior and former defensive lineman Cody Hundertmark.

Either way, it is certain that Ferentz will hope to establish his starting five as quickly as possible, so as to get them working as a fluid and consistent unit.

In closing, I expect that the Iowa offense should be better than the 2009 incarnation. However, health, especially along the O-line, will be key.

There is no way the 2010 line will be able to withstand the injuries that the 2009 O-line endured.

In short, Hawk fans should be praying for the health of their linemen.