2017 Iowa football commits shine on the field
IOWA CITY, Iowa – The Iowa football team’s 2017 recruiting class is highly acclaimed and some of its members showed why this past weekend.
Iowa running back recruits Ivory Kelly-Martin and Eno Benjamin rushed for 222 and 156, yards, respectively, while leading their teams to a season-opening victory.
Benjamin, a four-star prospect from Wylie, Texas, also led his team in passing, completing both of his attempts for 37 yards.
“It was good to get back on the field after a good offseason,” Benjamin said Sunday. “We’re looking for a huge year as a team this year.”
Fellow Texas native Gavin Holmes caught 12 passes for 147 yards in his senior debut, while Mississippi receiver Brandon Smith had five catches for 70 yards during his team’s lopsided victory.
“It was a hard-fought game,” Holmes said. “I feel as a team we didn’t play our best. But we were able to push through and find a way to win.”
Kelly-Martin made his debut for East High School in Oswego, Ill., this past weekend after transferring from Nazareth Academy for the second semester of his junior year. He led Nazareth Academy to the Class 5A state title last season.
Kelly-Martin scored on runs from 1, 40, 1 and 26 yards this past Friday, leading his team to an easy 49-14 victory over Joliet West.
“I carried the ball twenty-four times, but the last seven or so was garbage time just to run out the clock,” Kelly-Martin said.
Iowa quarterback commit Peyton Mansell, who is from Belton, Texas, performed well in his team’s 28-20 loss to rival Temple this past weekend, completing 25-of-35 passes for 226 yards and one touchdown. He also scored on a 41-yard run in the second quarter.
Iowa has 16 players committed to its 2017 recruiting class, including five from Texas. The class is ranked No. 23 nationally by Rivals.
Iowa recruiting target Oliver Martin also started his senior season in spectacular fashion this past Friday. The Iowa City West receiver caught eight passes for 151 yards during his team’s 42-17 victory over Southeast Polk. Martin also threw a touchdown pass and had an interception.
Martin’s recruiting stock has risen dramatically since he performed well at The Opening 7-on-7 camp this summer. He went from having virtually no scholarship offers to where he is now trying to choose between offers from Iowa, Michigan, Wisconsin, Michigan State, Minnesota, BYU and Oregon among others.