Back in June, ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg tabbed Iowa special teams coordinator LeVar Woods as one of his 45 minority coaches under the age of 45 to watch as candidates for future Division I head coaching jobs.
Now, as the 2022 college football season rapidly approaches, Woods is back on another ESPN list for potential future head coaching vacancies. ESPN’s Pete Thamel included Woods among his top assistants as a name to know for the next wave of head coaching jobs.
He has coached on both sides of the ball during his time at Iowa, along with being the special teams coordinator since 2017. Woods would be considered the staff member most likely to replace Kirk Ferentz, as he’s from Iowa, served as a captain there and has been a linchpin since 2008. – Thamel, ESPN.
Woods is certainly among the fan favorites to replace Kirk Ferentz after the longtime coach steps away. Of course, that doesn’t appear to be any time soon with Ferentz having inked a four-year contract extension through the 2029 football season.
Woods has been in charge of some of the nation’s premier special teams units. Since taking over as the Hawkeyes’ full-time special teams coordinator in 2018, Woods and Iowa have boasted some of the best units and specialists in the country.
Last season, Iowa had a pair of first-team All-Big Ten specialist selections in kicker Caleb Shudak and return specialist Charlie Jones. Jones was named the Rodgers-Dwight Return Specialist of the Year due to his performance in returning both punts and kickoffs, while Shudak earned first-team honors after leading the team in scoring with 108 points and setting a school record for career field goal accuracy.
Iowa’s special teams last year ranked among the national leaders in kickoff return defense (No. 14), kickoff returns (No. 17) and punt return defense (No. 18). Punter Tory Taylor was 12th in the nation in punting average with 46.1 yards per boot.
Taylor earned first-team All-Big Ten honors in 2020 and helped Iowa lead the Big Ten and rank fifth nationally in net punting at 42.9 yards per punt. Ihmir Smith-Marsette was also named the Rodgers-Dwight Return Specialist of the Year in 2019 after returning a pair of kickoffs for touchdowns.
Woods joined the Iowa staff following his NFL career and served as Iowa’s administrative assistant from 2008-11. Then, Woods served as the Hawkeyes’ linebackers coach from 2012-14.
Anthony Hitchens, Christian Kirksey, and James Morris each recorded over 100 tackles while earning All-Big Ten recognition in 2013. Kirksey and Hitchens were selected in the third and fourth rounds of the 2014 NFL draft.
The Hawkeyes’ defense ranked seventh in the nation in pass defense and 22nd in total defense in 2014 and Woods was honored as the national Linebackers Coaches of the Year by FootballScoop.
Then, from 2015-17, Woods was Iowa’s tight ends coach where he was instrumental in the development of George Kittle, Noah Fant and T.J. Hockenson.
Kittle led the Iowa tight ends in 2016 with 22 receptions for 314 yards, while sharing the team lead with four touchdown receptions. He earned All-Big Ten honorable mention recognition.
In 2017, Fant led all FBS tight ends with an average of 16.5 yards per catch, and his 11 touchdown receptions—an Iowa tight end record—tied as the top figure nationally among tight ends. As a result, he was a third-team All-Big Ten honoree.
In addition, redshirt freshman T.J. Hockenson added 24 receptions for 320 yards and three touchdowns. Fant earned third-team All-Big Ten recognition.
With all of these accolades and Woods’ diverse coaching background with Iowa, it’s no surprise to see him once again listed among the nation’s top assistant coaches that are poised to take over as Division I head coaches in the future.
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