By Hawk Fanatic

IOWA CITY, Iowa – While Iowa football fans wait anxiously to see who will be the next addition from the transfer portal, two former Hawkeyes have found new homes.

Quarterback Marco Lainez and tight end end Johnny Pascuzzi have committed to Elon University and West Virginia, respectively.

The Elon University football account on X announced Lainez’s commitment, while Pascuzzi announced his commitment on social media.

Elon competes at the FCS level and is located in Elon, North Carolina.

Lainez only appeared in one game for Iowa over the past two seasons. He played in the fourth quarter of Iowa’s 35-0 loss to Tennessee in the 2024 Citrus Bowl and rushed for 57 yards on six carries.

Lainez is among three former Iowa quarterbacks that have entered the transfer portal since the end of the 2024 regular season, along with Cade McNamara and James Resar.

Resar came to Iowa as a quarterback as a true freshman last summer before switching to receiver midway through the 2024 season.

Iowa has added one quarterback from the transfer portal since the end of the 2024 regular season in Auburn backup Hank Brown, and Iowa also recently hosted South Dakota State quarterback Mark Gronowski on a visit.

Gronowski threw for over 10,000 yards and led South Dakota State to two FCS national titles.

He is also the son of former Drake quarterback Ray Gronowski.

Declaring for the 2025 NFL draft is also an option for Gronowski, though he could put those plans on hold for one year if he were to receive enough NIL money.

Brad Heinrichs, CEO of the Iowa Swarm Collective, raised some eyebrows on Monday when he posted this on X:

“Alright Hawkeyes fans … you know the drill! We are on the verge of making a bit of a splash in the portal!!!

“For those of that are willing/able, please help us at iowaswarm.com, or Venmo Swarm Collective.”

It is reasonable to assume that Heinrichs was referring to Gronowski’s situation.

As for Pascuzzi, he came to Iowa as a walk-on and made significant contributions in each of the past two seasons, mostly as a run blocker.

He appeared in 10 games this past season and had one catch for 40 yards.

Former Iowa running back Leshon Williams and former Hawkeye receiver Kaleb Brown both entered the transfer portal during the regular season and have since signed with Memphis and Alabama-Birmingham, respectively.

Iowa also recently added two defensive linemen from the portal in Bryce Hawthorne and Jonah Pace.

Hawthorne was a redshirt freshman for South Dakota State this past season and he finished with 22 tackles, while Pace played three seasons for Central Michigan.

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