IOWA CITY, Iowa – The Iowa football team is preparing for life after All-America punter Tory Taylor and is doing so by continuing to build on its recruiting pipeline to Australia.

Iowa has received a commitment from Australian punter Rhys Dakin, who announced his commitment via X on Sunday.

“Excited to announce my commitment to study and play football on a full scholarship at the University of Iowa,” Dakin said on X, which was formerly known as Twitter.

There have been rumors since late in the summer that Iowa had identified its next punter from Australia, but a name didn’t surface publicly until Dakin made his announcement on Sunday.

Dakin is the third Australian punter to pick Iowa since 2019, joining Taylor and Michael Sleep-Dalton, who transferred from Arizona State and then punted for the Hawkeyes throughout the 2019 season.

Taylor joined the program in 2020 and would go on to become arguably the greatest punter in program history, which speaks volumes, considering the late, great Reggie Roby used to punt for Iowa and helped Hayden Fry rebuild the program in the early 1980s.

Taylor was the recipient of the 2023 Ray Guy Award as the nation’s best collegiate punter.

His ability to flip field position with his punts was a major factor in Iowa winning the Big Ten West Division and 10 games this season despite having a struggling offense.

The 26-year-old Taylor could have used his free Covid year and returned for a fifth season, but instead, he has chosen to pursue an NFL career.

So, Dakin will have some massive shoes to fill as Taylor’s expected successor.

Iowa special teams coordinator LeVar Woods played a key role in landing both Taylor and Dakin as Woods traveled to Australia to recruit both punters.

“Thank you also to coach LeVar Woods for coming to visit me and my family,” Dakin said in his announcement.

Dakin and Taylor are both from Melbourne, Australia.

Dakin also comes from the same Pro Kick Australian (PKA) program that sent Taylor to Iowa.

And while there is limited information about Dakin’s success as a punter, he competed at a camp in Dallas in early June, and was considered the best punter at the camp.

Dakin is commitment No. 21 in Iowa’s 2024 recruiting class. He can sign his official letter of intent at the start of the early signing period on Wednesday, December 20

Dakin will enroll at Iowa in January and will have a chance to participate in spring practice.