By Tyler Devine

IOWA CITY, Iowa – After receiving his first scholarship offer from Iowa over the weekend, Cedar Rapids native Ethan Hurkett wasted little time deciding that he wanted to be a Hawkeye.

Hurkett knew that there was no point in waiting for other offers to come along.

“It feels amazing,” Hurkett said. “It’s a dream come true. I just knew that I wanted to be a Hawkeye so I didn’t see a point in waiting for other offers. Iowa has always been my dream school so it was kind of a no-brainer for me.”

Hurkett’s committed to Iowa for multiple reasons, not the least of which being its proximity to his hometown, making it easy for his family to travel to games.

“The coaches are awesome and I trust them,” Hurkett said. “It’s very close to home so my family can come and watch games and I love their tough and hard-nosed mentality.”

Having grown up so close to Iowa City, Hurkett has vivid memories of attending Iowa games with loved ones growing up.

I can just remember tailgating with friends and family and having a great time,” Hurkett said. “My first night game at Iowa was a crazy experience as well. I believe it was Wisconsin. The atmosphere has always been insane.”

During his junior season, Burkett helped lead Cedar Rapids Xavier to a state championship with 81 tackles, including 10.5 for loss.

He is the sixth player to commit to Iowa's 2020 recruiting class and is the first linebacker to commit to the class.

Iowa’s 2020 recruiting class

Gavin Williams, RB, 6-0, 195, West Des Moines, Iowa

Deuce Hogan, QB, 6-4, 191, Grapevine, Texas

Michael Lois, DE, 6-4, 260, Elkhorn, Wisc.

Isaiah Bruce, DE, 6-2, 247, Lena, Ill.

Logan Jones, DE, 6-3, 252, Council Bluffs, Iowa

Ethan Burkett, LB, 6-3, 230, Cedar Rapids, Iowa