In 2018, tight ends TJ Hockenson and Noah Fant led the Iowa receiving corps with a combined 1279 yards and 13 touchdowns. The two averaged a combined 100 yards per game and totaled 88 catches on the season. In 2023, Iowa is shaping up to have a tight end room of similar stature. It starts with Luke Lachey who is returning for his redshirt junior season in black and gold. Next to him, Iowa took in transfer Erick All from Michigan who is entering his fifth season in college football. It’s not a stretch to say that these two might be as productive as Hockenson and Fant. With an upgrade at quarterback in Cade McNamara, this tight ends room is looking like it could have a special season.
Luke Lachey
Despite losing second-round draft pick Sam LaPorta, there might not be a drop off at the position this season. Lachey was Iowa’s second-leading receiver in 2022 with 400 yards and a team-high four reception touchdowns. With all the struggles of last year’s passing offense, those numbers accounted for 38% of the entire passing game’s production. For comparison, LaPorta’s 657 yards and one touchdown was 23% of the passing production last year.
Iowa is returning 915 reception yards from last season, and Lachey’s 400 is nearly 50% of that number. The Iowa receiving corps added a lot of value this offseason through the transfer portal. But at tight end, Lachey’s experience will be highly valuable in this offense and he’s likely to be one of McNamara’s top targets. Lachey was listed as the starting tight end following spring practice. He was also named to the Preseason Second-Team All-Big Ten team for this year by Phil Steele, and to the Third-Team by Athlon Sports.
Erick All
After sitting out for most of the 2022 season due to injury, All transferred to Iowa. He will rejoin his former quarterback and roommate from Michigan in McNamara. In Michigan’s 2021 Big Ten Championship season, All was the Wolverines’ second-leading receiver with 38 catches, 437 yards, and two touchdowns. Not only was he productive, but he also showed great physicality in the position. All forced five missed tackles after the reception that season, the second-most on the team. He also came down with four contested catches on the year, also good for second-most on the team. Of his 437 total yards, 224 came after the catch.
All already have built-in chemistry with McNamara from their years in Ann Arbor. He has a great instinct for the position and really played well during spring practice. The former Wolverine moved with ease coming off of a back injury last season. As a graduate transfer this spring, All will have up to two years of remaining eligibility at Iowa.
Depth at Iowa Tight End
Addison Ostrenga was listed as the team’s third-string tight end following the spring practice season. He was a three-star recruit in the class of 2022 out of Wisconsin. Ostrenga saw action in all 13 games last season for the Hawkeyes, one of just eight true freshmen to get on the field. He caught a pass for six yards at Minnesota last November and still has a redshirt available to use if necessary. Ostrenga is a unique tight-end player because he can play the position of a receiver. He has great hands and route-running ability and can make things happen after the catch. Playing behind Lachey and All will allow him to develop under the best, and he’ll be a valuable depth piece this season.
Behind Ostrenga, Iowa has a load of true freshmen including Jalyn Thompson, Grant Leeper, and Zach Ortwerth. Johnny Pascuzzi and Andrew Lentsch walked on in 2021, both redshirting that season. Pascuzzi got in against South Dakota State last year, but Lentsch has yet to see the field. Cael Vanderbush was a highly-rated recruit in 2022, and at 6’-6” he has a lot of upside potential in this position room.
Finally, Steven Stilianos entered the program as a transfer from Lehigh before the 2022 season. He saw action in eight games last season with no statistics. This season will be his sixth year of college ball in his final year of eligibility.
