By Pat Harty

IOWA CITY, Iowa – Unless you follow the Iowa football team more than the typical fan, you maybe haven’t heard of sixth-year offensive lineman Michael Myslinski, and understandably so.

The Jacksonville, Florida native has fallen under the Hawkeye radar while waging his own lengthy battle against a long list of injuries, which have kept his college career on hold for the most part.

But now there is finally a chance for a happy ending.

Myslinski is healthy and eligible after the NCAA recently granted his waiver for a sixth year of eligibility.

If ever there were a player that deserved a medical hardship, it’s the 24-year-old Myslinski.

Since joining the Iowa program in 2021, Myslinski has shown that he can contribute at this level, but he just hasn’t stayed healthy for any length of time.

“Just to have one last shot is everything,” Myslinski said on Wednesday. “I’ve worked my tail off to get to the spot where I am now.”

Being injured can sometimes be a lonely and frustrating experience, but the 6-foot-2, 290-pound Myslinski has had plenty of support along the way. He credits his teammates and coaches, and of course, the UI medical staff, for helping him to endure the pain and suffering, both physically and mentally.

“So many different people around here have helped me get to this position,” Myslinski said. “Now I just need to keep doing what I’m doing and be consistent every day and just have fun.”

Myslinski appeared in seven games this past season, playing mostly as the backup center.

He also saw action in four games in 2024, played briefly in one game in both 2021 and 2022, but didn’t see any game action in 2023 because of injuries.

Myslinski has played mostly at center for the Hawkeyes. But he can also play either guard position, and that could ultimately be his best chance for playing time since preseason All-American Kade Pieper is expected to play center this coming season after playing guard last season.

For now, though, Myslinski is just happy to be in the mix for playing time.

He could’ve easily left Iowa after the injuries started to mount.

But Myslinski has chosen to stay and finish what he started five years ago.

He also hasn’t let the injuries derail his academic pursuits, considering he has made Academic All-Big Ten three times and has twice been named to the Dean’s List in 2023 and 2024.

“There was definitely really hard times here, alone at times,” Myslinksi said. “But it’s helped me grow a lot as a man. And I think at the end of the day, that’s what is going to help me in my future.

“Learning that at some point, everybody has got to grow up. So it helped me mature very early on and now I feel I’m in a good spot. At some point, everybody is going to be done playing. So now I’m able to go on with my life.”

Kirk Ferentz is entering his 27th season as the Iowa head coach, and during that time, Ferentz has built a culture that emphasizes unity and a team-first mentality in which everybody matters.

“I feel like a lot of other places it probably wouldn’t have happened,” Myslinski said. “But they always supported me from the start. No matter where I was in the process, and if they didn’t know if I was going to play again or not, they still supported me.

“I just also never gave up on myself, and I have a real good support staff.”