IOWA CITY, Iowa – Chicago continues to be the gift that keeps on giving to the Iowa football team.

Drew MacPherson a 2025 athlete out of Loyola Academy in Chicago announced his commitment to Iowa on Friday afternoon.

Iowa was the first Power 4 school to offer MacPherson a scholarship and he didn’t need much time to think it over as he was offered just this past Sunday.

The 6-foot-1, 190-pound MacPherson has played running back and receiver in high school, but he projects as a safety for Iowa.

MacPherson announced his commitment on X, which was formerly known as Twitter. He thanked his family and his high school coaches and teammates for helping him achieve this milestone, and he also thanked Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz, assistant head coach Seth Wallace and defensive coordinator Phil Parker for giving him this opportunity.

MacPherson is the seventh player to commit to Iowa’s 2025 recruiting class, and the third from Illinois.

The others are Pleasant Valley lineman Joey VanWetzinga, Clear Lake tight end Thomas Meyer, Fort Wayne, Indiana quarterback Jimmy Sullivan, tight end Eli Johnson from River Falls, Wisconsin, and Illinois linebackers Carson Cooney and  Burke Gautcher.

The Chicago-land area has been a fertile recruiting ground for Iowa dating back to the days of Hayden Fry, and even before that.

Two of Iowa’s top defensive backs – Sebastian Castro and Jermari Harris – are both from Chicago, as is redshirt freshman John Nestor, who is listed as the backup at right cornerback behind Harris.