Breakdowns on the Top 5 Prospects in the Class of 2022

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Wondering where the Top 5 Prospects in the Class of 2022 are at in the recruitment process? In this article, we will cover the status of each and examine their play.</span> <a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/xavier-nwankpa/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="23942" first="Xavier" last="Nwankpa"]</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> (Southeast Polk) </span><a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/10061863/Xavier-Nwankpa"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Hudl</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> (Ranking: #1 Overall, #1 Defensive Back) Uncommitted</span> <a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/xavier-nwankpa/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="23942" first="Xavier" last="Nwankpa"]</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> continues to gain national attention. He holds countless offers from Power 5 schools, including offers from all four College Football Playoff Teams (Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State, Notre Dame). He and his teammate, </span><a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/kadyn-proctor/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="24023" first="Kadyn" last="Proctor"]</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, are in the running to be the best prospects Iowa has ever seen. Xavier has an amazing frame at 6-2 and 190 lbs. Fitting well at every position he’s played for Southeast Polk, Xavier has experience at Safety, Running Back, and returned kicks. He also delivered some insane hits and was an impressive playmaker this season. He totaled 6 Interceptions and returned one of them for a touchdown. He totaled 380 Yards Rushing, 8 Touchdowns, and an insane 10.6 Yards Per Carry on the offensive side. Recruitment-wise, Xavier narrowed his college list to seven on May 1st. These include Clemson, Iowa, LSU, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Texas AM, and Arizona State. Some notable schools he cut from his list are Iowa State, Penn State, Wisconsin, Texas, and Missouri. He is going to make Southeast Polk games exciting and fun to watch this season.</span> <a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/aaron-graves/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="23944" first="Aaron" last="Graves"]</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> (Southeast Valley) </span><a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11577909/Aaron-Graves"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Hudl</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> (Ranking: #2 Overall, #1 Defensive Lineman) Committed to Iowa</span> <a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/aaron-graves/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="23944" first="Aaron" last="Graves"]</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> committed to Iowa fairly quickly, but with good reason. Iowa has done a great job of developing linemen in the past and continues to do so. Watching his film, it’s clear Aaron is unstoppable. He tears teams apart and is one of the biggest hitters I have seen. He had a tremendous junior season totaling 50.5 Tackles, 18.5 Tackles for Loss, and 8.5 Sacks. He also played some offensive line where he continued to be in a league of his own. Aaron is super physical, which is one of the many reasons he dominates. He has a massive frame at 6-5 260 lbs. I believe his commitment to Iowa was a smart decision. I cannot wait to see how his senior season goes and what he will do at Iowa.</span> <a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/hunter-deyo/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="23948" first="Hunter" last="Deyo"]</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> (Lewis Central) </span><a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11080760/Hunter-Deyo"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Hudl</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> (Ranking: #3 Overall, #2 Defensive Lineman) Uncommitted</span> <a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/hunter-deyo/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="23948" first="Hunter" last="Deyo"]</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> has impressed football fans for a long time. He is a bulky lineman standing at 6-3 270 lbs. and has tons of Division I interest. Schools interested in him include Iowa, Arkansas, Iowa State, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Kansas State, and Oregon. Hunter is hyperphysical, and you can tell from his film he is on another level compared to his competition. He played both ways for Lewis Central and excelled offensively and defensively. Hunter also has a great motor, never taking plays off, and works to dominate every rep. There is a play on his film where he sprinted about 30-40 yards to make a block that ended up being a touchdown. Recruitment wise it seems Hunter really likes Iowa and what they do there. I look forward to seeing what his decision will be. I expect him to continue the dominance that he has shown since his sophomore year. He totaled 38 Tackles, 3.5 Sacks, and 22.5 Tackles for Loss. Expect those numbers to rise for his senior season.</span> <a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/will-mclaughlin/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="23949" first="Will" last="McLaughlin"]</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> (Harlan) </span><a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11952049/Will-McLaughlin"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Hudl</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> (Ranking: #4 Overall, #1 Linebacker) Iowa State Commit</span> <a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/will-mclaughlin/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="23949" first="Will" last="McLaughlin"]</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> is ranked as the #1 Linebacker in the 2022 class and it’s with good reason. He has excellent size at 6-3 220 lbs. and is a fantastic tackler. Will delivers some nasty hits on QBs, WRs, HBs - you name it. He has an unusual knack for blocking field goals and extra points, as evidenced in his junior highlights’ first three clips. Fast for his size, he also has great football IQ. Will had 70 Tackles, 4 Sacks, and 12.5 Tackles for loss his junior season. He played some TE as well and had 190 receiving yards. I really like his commitment to Iowa State. Will has some Mike Rose similarities, and I think he will be an excellent fit at this school. Will is one of the most physical and skilled linebackers I have seen in Iowa, and I am excited to see what he does his senior season.</span> <a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/jacob-imming/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="23950" first="Jacob" last="Imming"]</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> (Sergeant Bluff-Luton) </span><a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11419909/Jacob-Imming"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Hudl</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> (Ranking: #5 Overall, #2 Linebacker) Iowa State Commit</span> <a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/jacob-imming/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="23950" first="Jacob" last="Imming"]</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> is one of the hardest hitters in the state. Watching his film, he dominated on both sides of the ball. Sergeant Bluff-Luton did a phenomenal job utilizing Jacob and using him in gadget plays on offense. He had stats in almost every single category. Jacob had 2 Rushing Touchdowns, 502 Receiving Yards, and 7 Receiving Touchdowns on the offensive side. On defense, he had 49.5 Tackles, 1 Sack, and 7.5 Tackles for loss. His level of play was a big reason why Sergeant Bluff-Luton had a winning record. Jacob is a fun prospect to watch. He will stir up some excitement for the spectators at Iowa State games, and I cannot wait to see what he does his senior season.</span> &nbsp;