The Iowa Hawkeyes found the lightweight depth they were looking for.
Former Oklahoma Sooner Joey Cruz announced his commitment to the Hawkeyes via Instagram on Saturday.
“I’m excited to announce that I will be furthering my education and athletic career at the University of Iowa. Thank you for everyone who’s been on this ride, we’re just getting started. Go Hawks!” Cruz wrote in his Instagram post.
Cruz entered the NCAA’s transfer portal on May 5 after former OU head wrestling coach Lou Rosselli abruptly resigned. He chose the Hawkeyes as his transfer destination over Maryland, Oregon State, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
Joey Cruz announced today that he’ll be transferring from OU to Iowa.
Redshirted for the Sooners this past season. Was a top-15 overall prospect in the 2022 class. California native. 125-pounder. pic.twitter.com/nylOzSd8YC
— Cody Goodwin (@codygoodwin) May 27, 2023
Cruz arrived in Norman, Oklahoma, as the No. 13 overall prospect and as the No. 3 recruit at 120 pounds by FloWrestling in the 2022 signing class. The Fresno, California, native also spent time as the nation’s top recruit per MatScouts.
He originally picked Oklahoma over offers from Oklahoma State, Iowa State and Little Rock. Cruz went 2-2 during his redshirt season with OU. All four of his matches came at the Michigan State Open.
Andy Hamilton of FloWrestling caught up with Cruz to discuss his entrance into the NCAA’s transfer portal and why he chose the Hawkeyes.
“I figured since there was a change (at Oklahoma), it wouldn’t be a problem seeing different schools as well. Iowa hit me up and we made it happen. Their wrestling style, I really feel like it fits my style. I’ve always been a Hawkeye fan myself since I was little. That’s what I really like — their style,” Cruz said.
Iowa returns 2022 NCAA qualifier Drake Ayala at 125 pounds and three-time NCAA qualifier Brody Teske at 133 pounds.
The Hawkeyes had a commitment from rising star lightweight Nate Jesuroga, but then he opted to sign up and join the Navy instead. The reason? An understandable one. Jesuroga said he simply fell out of love with the sport.
That meant Iowa was back in the market for lightweight help. They’ve found another potential star youngster.
“I felt more comfortable with this (recruiting) decision, especially with the experience of (going through a year in) college this year. I know what I needed and I feel like being here will take me to the next level I need to get to,” Cruz said.
The Hawkeyes finished runner-up to Penn State with 82.5 points back in March.
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