The Hawkeyes were very fortunate that tight end [autotag]Sam LaPorta[/autotag] decided to finish out his career at Iowa with the NFL calling. With a couple of moving parts at key positions on offense, including new Baltimore Raven center Tyler Linderbaum and new Green Bay Packers running back Tyler Goodson, Iowa was able to retain its top receiving threat heading into the 2022 season.
In his junior season, LaPorta made the leap to featured star for the offense. He led the way for the Hawkeyes in the receiving department, hauling in a team-high 53 catches for 670 receiving yards and three touchdown grabs. The 6-foot-4, 249 pound tight end’s totals nearly doubled Iowa’s second-leading receiver Keagan Johnson’s 352 receiving yards.
The former three-star recruit out of Highland, Ill., has also improved his blocking with every season. LaPorta will be expected to help provide stability to a passing offense still in search of it.
Preseason Player Profile
Hometown: Highland, Ill.
Ht: 6-4
Wt: 249
Class in 2022: Senior
247Sports composite ranking
2019 three-star / No. 55 tight end / No. 24 player in Illinois
Career Stats
| Receiving | Rushing | Scrimmage | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | School | Conf | Class | Pos | G | Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | Plays | Yds | Avg | TD |
| *2019 | Iowa | Big Ten | FR | TE | 6 | 15 | 188 | 12.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 188 | 12.5 | 0 | |
| 2020 | Iowa | Big Ten | SO | TE | 8 | 27 | 271 | 10.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 271 | 10.0 | 1 | |
| *2021 | Iowa | Big Ten | JR | TE | 14 | 53 | 670 | 12.6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 53 | 670 | 12.6 | 3 | |
| Career | Iowa | 95 | 1129 | 11.9 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 95 | 1129 | 11.9 | 4 | |||||
Depth Chart Overview
Unsurprisingly, LaPorta sits atop the tight end slot on the Hawkeyes’ depth chart. With the season he had in 2021 and the three years of experience under his belt, there was no way LaPorta wasn’t going to be the starter this season. In Iowa’s tight end heavy system, expect Laporta to once again be a leader of the offense and the go-to guy for whoever is under center in 2022.
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