The Iowa football team lost in the Big Ten Championship Game to the Michigan Wolverines this past season, highlighting the team's needs on offense. In the offseason, Coach Kirk Ferentz's team hired former Western Michigan Broncos coach Tim Lester to be its new offensive coordinator, replacing the oft-maligned and now departed Brian Ferentz.

Even with the team's struggles on offense over the past few years, Iowa has secured a 34-15 record since 2020, ranking 19th overall in college football on a list that includes several small colleges that aren't among the top teams in Division-I.

Recently, Coach Lester broke his silence on joining the Hawkeyes. Iowa football lost arguably the biggest star off of its 2023 Big Ten Championship competing team to the 2024 NFL Draft.

The Hawkeyes have been active this off-season to say the least.

Last year, the Hawkeyes made a splash in the transfer portal with the additions of former Michigan stars Cade McNamara and Erick All. This season, their addition of an ex-Alabama offensive lineman is their best and sneakiest transfer portal move.

Iowa Native Kadyn Proctor is Sneakiest Hawkeyes Portal Move 

Proctor is a native of Des Moines, Iowa who played for the Alabama football team as a freshman and had a stellar season to say the least.

Proctor won the starting job at left tackle and started all 13 regular season games. He had 20 knockdown blocks across 743 snaps for Coach Nick Saban's team and flashed NFL Top 10 draft pick potential during his time in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

The Hawkeyes were able to snag Proctor despite negative comments about the program in 2022 during which he flipped to the Tide after saying he “felt like he was settling” by originally committing to Ferentz's program.

Proctor was ranked as the number two transfer portal prospect behind former Alabama teammate Caleb Downs, who transferred to Ohio State football.

For the Des Moines native, returning to Iowa will be a chance to work with one of the top offensive line (and tight end) producer programs in the country.

Proctor's hulking 6-foot-7, 355 pound frame should help the Hawkeyes compete with Michigan football, the Buckeyes, and new Big Ten entrants UCLA, USC, Washington and Oregon.

In a transfer portal season that saw the Hawkeyes lose former starting quarterback Spencer Petras to the Utah State Aggies, Jordan Love's alma mater, the Hawkeyes should feel grateful to land one of the biggest fish in the entire country in this year's class.

Iowa Football Way-Too-Early 2024 Outlook 

The Hawkeyes have three home games to start the 2024 college football season followed by road contests at Minnesota and Ohio State.

They play NCAA runners-up the Washington Huskies at home on October 12 and play UCLA on the road November 9.

The Hawkeyes are expected to be a solid team against next season, but whether or not they can get over the hump and win the Big Ten or make the College Football Playoff depends on the young players like Proctor taking the next step.

Iowa football's 2024 recruiting class is ranked 32nd in the nation according to Rivals.com and includes almost all three-star prospects.

As their rivals the Michigan Wolverine showed last season in beating Alabama and Ohio State football, star rankings aren't everything and coaching and player development are equally if not more important.

That being said, there's no overstating the importance of Iowa football landing Proctor in this past season's transfer portal.

He should instantly become an All-Big Ten caliber performer and an anchor on the Iowa football offensive line in pursuit of the program's first Big Ten title since 2004.