All-American with high NFL Draft stock returning to Iowa

Iowa is coming off a solid season in 2025, going 9-4. It ended with an Iowa victory over Vanderbilt in the ReliaQuest Bowl. Now, a major part of the offense has made his decision to return to Iowa for the 2026 campaign.

All-American redshirt sophomore offensive lineman Kade Pieper has announced he will be returning to Iowa instead of heading to the 2026 NFL Draft, per Matt Zenitz of CBSSports.

The Iowa offense was great, by Iowa standards, this campaign. They finished the season 42nd in the nation in points per game while sitting 118th in yards per game. Further, they are 54th in the run this past season. A major part of that was the success of the offense was due to the play of the offensive line.

Gennings Dunker, Beau Stephens, and Logan Jones, all three starting linemen for Iowa, have exhausted their eligibility and will not be returning. Dunker is seen as a late first-round to early second-round pick, while the other two could be selected in the draft. They had no choice but to head to the NFL, find another professional league, or end their football careers. Pieper did have a choice, and he chose Iowa.

Pieper was seen by some as a potential first-round pick in the NFL Draft. Still, ESPN’s Mel Kiper did not have the Iowa guard in his top ten of interior offensive linemen. Mock drafts have had Peiper as late as a fourth-round selection and as high as an early second-round pick. Clearly, opinions were mixed about the All-American, which could have impacted his decision to stay at Iowa.

Iowa will be replacing three starting linemen when they open the season against Northern Iowa on September 5.

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