Chima Chineke commits to Iowa
Defensive end Chima Chineke is headed to the University of Iowa. The 6-foot-5, 230-pound Texas native announced his verbal commitment to the Hawkeyes today after making an official visit to campus in late June.
“What made me make up my mind was just the feeling I had there,” Chineke told HawkeyeReport.com. “It really felt like home ever since I first got there in the spring and then the official visit really solidified that.”
A three-star prospect with an On3 Industry Ranking of 87.48, Chineke chose Iowa over scholarship offers from Texas Tech, Kansas, Vanderbilt, Oklahoma State, Oregon State, Houston, Memphis, and Tulsa, among others, citing his relationship with lead recruiters Kelvin Bell and LeVar Woods.
“The main factors would be the great relationship I have with the staff, especially Coach Bell and Coach Woods, and also the development that I will receive there will be amazing and hopefully will lead me to the NFL” said Chineke.
Chineke, who had 35 tackles and 6.5 sacks last season at Plano East High School, will be coming in at defensive end for the Hawkeyes and looks forward to learning from Bell, who has sent several players to the NFL in recent years including Lukas Van Ness in the 2023 draft.
“I mean he just sent a defensive end to the league in the first round this past draft, so I’d say that’s a big factor in me choosing to be coached by him and how great the opportunity is for me,” Chineke said.
Overall, Chineke is commitment No. 20 for the Hawkeyes in the Class of 2024. He joins Cam Buffington, Cody Fox, Preston Ries, Derek Weisskopf, Josh Janowski, James Resar, Drew Campbell, Xavier Williams, Brevin Doll, Bodey McCaslin, Will Nolan, Michael Burt, Devan Kennedy, Reece Vander Zee, Gavin Hoffman, KJ Parker, Joseph Anderson, Rashad Godfrey, and Jaylen Watson in the Iowa’s recruiting class, which currently ranks No. 30 in the country.
