Iowa football beefs up offensive line with transfer portal commitment

6 days ago 2

It took an almost five-year-long rebuild, but the Iowa offensive line finally got back to its elite standards in 2025.

After multiple years of recruiting, training, and developing linemen, the Hawkeyes took home the Joe Moore Award this past season, an award given to the best offensive line in the country. Behind proven stars like Logan Jones and Gennings Dunker, and breakout performers like Kade Pieper and Trevor Lauck, Iowa's offensive line was a dominant force all season.

Now the goal is to maintain that standard going into 2026 and beyond. The Hawkeyes are losing a lot of talent from that unit, as Jones, Dunker, and Beau Stephens are all graduating and heading off to the NFL. While there are some great young guys with lots of potential already on the roster, Iowa. needed to hit the transfer portal to add some more depth to that room. And they got some great news in that department recently.

On Tuesday, veteran ESPN college football reporter Pete Thamel announced that James Madison transfer offensive lineman Trent Wilson was transferring to Iowa.

Wilson will be a sophomore in 2026 after a strong true freshman campaign with the Dukes in 2025. He played 382 snaps at both left and right guard for James Madison, helping lead the Dukes to a Sun Belt championship and a College Football Playoff appearance.

The 6-foot-4, 300-pound lineman from Southlake, Texas, was a three-star recruit last year, according to 247Sports. And after contributing right away for James Madison, he'll have a chance to do the same for the Hawkeyes. While right guard Kade Pieper is returning, there's an open spot at left guard that Iowa will need to fill.

Wilson will be a strong contender to start at left guard, and he'll battle with redshirt junior Leighton Jones for the position. Jones was the primary backup at left guard in 2025 and filled in nicely when Stephens had to miss some snaps. Even if Wilson doesn't win the starting role, he'll be a nice depth option and could play big snaps in the case of an injury.

This is a great pickup for Kirk Ferentz and the recruiting staff, and there's a good chance Wilson won't be the only offensive line transfer to come to Iowa City this offseason.

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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Iowa football beefs up offensive line with transfer portal commitment

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