By Pat Harty

IOWA CITY, Iowa – As a heralded recruit who had scholarship offers from the best of the best schools, former Southeast Polk defensive back Xavier Nwankpa became sort of a local hero when he decided to stay home and be a Hawkeye, but he also put himself in a difficult position.

Because with the bar set so high, fair or not, anything short of achieving stardom would be considered by some as failing to meet expectations, or at least viewed with skepticism.

That is the burden that comes with being so heavily recruited.

Phil Parker on the competition at strong safety between Xavier Nwankpa and Koen Entringer. pic.twitter.com/JLId9lgCgW

— Pat Harty (@PatHarty) September 24, 2024

Nwankpa is the highest rated recruit to sign with Iowa during the Kirk Ferentz era, and that covers a lot of territory.

But now in his third season, Nwankpa is fighting to keep his starting position at strong safety against sophomore Koen Entringer, who has made a miraculous recovery from a knee injury that he suffered against Tennessee in the Citrus Bowl, and that required surgery in the offseason.

“They’re both very competitive and they’re about the same size and they both move pretty well,” Iowa defensive coordinator Phil Parker said of his two strong safeties.

The Iowa defense has allowed some big plays this season, which is unusual for a Phil Parker-coached defense.

One such play was Jaylin Noel’s 75-yard touchdown reception that helped Iowa State defeat Iowa 20-19 on Sept. 7 at Kinnick Stadium.

Nwankpa appeared to blow his coverage on the play, and he was replaced by Entringer for the rest of the game.

The switch certainly caught the attention of the media and fans, partly because of Nwankpa being so highly regarded as a recruit.

“When a kid goes in there, there’s a lot of things that go on in a game that happens,” Parker said. “If somebody gives up a play, obviously in the back end, everybody says, hey, I saw who was in. My mom was blind, she could see it.

“But what’s the other details in it and were they jamming people and somebody delivering a guy to you. Was it his footwork? Whatever it is. That really has nothing do when they’re put in. I think they both deserve to be out there. They both have been playing pretty well, and competitive.”

Parker said Nwankpa had one of his better practices on Tuesday.

“It’s very competitive back there,” Parker said. “This is a long season. We’re going to need everybody in it.

“And the good thing about it is I think they’re both happy for each other when they go out there and do make plays. They’re happy that guys make the plays. And it’s a team game. You’re not winning by some individual.”

And while the 6-foot-2, 215-pound Nwankpa has yet to achieve stardom as a Hawkeye, he has been a solid contributor since the moment he joined the team.

He has started 16 games and played in 30 games overall.

He also has two career interceptions, including a pick-six in the 21-0 victory over Kentucky in the 2022 Music City Bowl.

Nwankpa and fellow safeties Quinn Schulte and Sebastian Castro have combined to start 71 games for Iowa.

Castro earned All-America honors last season while playing both safety and the cash position.

He and Schulte hardly ever leave the field, while Nwankpa is usually replaced by linebacker Kyler Fisher when Iowa shifts to a 4-3 alignment, and sometimes by Entringer in passing situations.

The fact that Parker said that Nwankpa and Entringer both support each other and are happy for each other’s success says a lot about both players and about he culture that Parker has built in the secondary.

And as Parker said, it is a long season and Iowa will need all four of its safeties to deliver on game day.

And of course, there is always the threat of injury, so to have four safeties that Parker can rely on is reason for optimism.

If Schulte were unable to play, Parker said Nwankpa would replace Schulte as the starting free safety, while Entrigner would likely start at strong safety.

Entringer first gained attention for a play that he actually failed to make in Iowa’s 26-0 loss to Michigan in the 2023 Big Ten championship game.

He had a chance to tackle Michigan punt returner Semaj Morgan for little to no gain, but missed the tackle. Morgan then broke loose and was on the verge of scoring a touchdown until Entringer raced him down from behind and pushed him out of bounds just a few yards before reaching the end zone.

Entringer, who is from Ypsilanti, Michigan, showed incredible determination and speed on the play. And now he is healthy and pushing for more playing time.

Nwankpa still has more than 1 1/2 seasons to make his mark as a Hawkeye.

And if competition truly does make a player better, then he and Entringer will both benefit from each other.

Iowa is currently in the first of two bye weeks and will face Ohio State in its next game on Oct. 5 in Columbus, Ohio.

The Buckeyes as usual are loaded on offense with explosive players that will test the Iowa secondary.

Nwankpa and the other defensive backs will have to be locked in and ready to face whatever the Buckeyes throw at them.