Three takeaways from Kadyn Proctor to Iowa

Kadyn Proctor is proving that you can go home again. The former five star offensive linemen entered the transfer portal and has now committed to play at the University of Iowa.

The Hawkeyes were his initial choice when he was a prep standout at Southeast Polk High School. He verbally pledged to Iowa in late June of 2022 and remained committed until just before signing day in December of 2022 when he flipped to Alabama.

Now he is back with the Hawkeyes and it’s a massive addition, both literally and figuratively to the Iowa program. At 6-foot-7 and 360 pounds, Proctor is a huge individual with outstanding athletic ability for someone his size. He also comes to the Iowa program with a year of playing time in the Southeastern Conference under his belt.

Let’s take a look at three takeaways from Iowa landing Proctor in the transfer portal.

NEVER BURN A BRIDGE IN RECRUITING

It’s easy for a coach to get bitter over missing out on a recruit. It’s really easy for that to happen when you see a recruit flip to another school at the last minute and you don’t have time to really react before signing day.

But, Iowa didn’t do that when an in-state standout like Proctor did a little over one year ago. That’s probably why they had a shot to land him on the rebound and get him in the program in January of 2024.

Director of Recruiting Tyler Barnes was prophetic when he spoke at a signing day press conference after Proctor signed with the Crimson Tide.

“We wish him well. I sent him and his parents a text saying best of luck down there. You just have to do what’s best for you and honestly in the age of the transfer portal, who knows what the future holds.”

Instead of going scorched earth and burying the young man and his family, Barnes wish them well and that level of respect paid off in his commitment to Iowa.

Also, it shouldn’t be lost in all this that it will pay off with in-state recruiting. Southeast Polk is producing quite a few high level recruits and this continues to build that bridge and pipeline to Iowa City.  Also, it will almost certainly help with Iowa’s continued recruitment of Nick Brooks, the 2025 offensive line prospect from Cedar Rapids Kennedy, who de-committed from Iowa in early November.

DON’T GET CAUGHT UP IN THE NUMBERS GAME

I know Iowa fans are scratching their heads over the scholarship numbers. The Hawkeyes are now at 92 scholarship players on the books for the upcoming season. They will need to be down to 85 by the time fall camp starts in August.

They have time and there’s going to be a natural reduction to the roster. Every spring, players see the writing on the wall and hit the transfer portal. The spring portal will be open from April 15-30. I would expect that there will be a few Hawkeye players who find their way there in that window.

Here’s the other thing, there are certain players and talents that you just have to take and Proctor is one of those type of players. It’s a no-brainer to take him and do it very happily and figure out the rest later.

IT’S A BIG WIN FOR THE IOWA SWARM COLLECTIVE

The reality in big time college athletics today is that talent comes at a price. Retaining talent has a price tag, as does acquiring it via the transfer portal. Some are more expensive than others.

While Hawkeye fans have been pretty good about supporting the Iowa Swarm Collective, the reality is that there needed to be more involvement and financial backing.

There have been a couple of events that have set off a strong surge in funding for the Iowa Swarm. The first was a little more than a year ago when Cade McNamara announced that he was transferring from Michigan to Iowa. That was a big day, according to Swarm CEO Brad Heinrichs.

The day that it was revealed that Proctor was heading to the transfer portal also proved to be a massive day. Heinrichs revealed on social media that they were able to raise over 100K in one day from one time and reoccurring memberships.

There will need to be more, but this is a start and the awareness of the impact of the Iowa Swarm continues to grow and so too will the funding.