In the entire history of Iowa football, only four offensive linemen have had the distinction of winning the Outland Trophy.
Calvin Jones (1955), Alex Karras (1957), Robert Gallery (2003), and Brandon Scherff (2014) are the only Hawkeyes in program history to be awarded the Outland Trophy, given to the best offensive lineman in the country. For a program with such a rich history of developing great linemen, that’s not a huge number. But that number could change this season.
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On Tuesday, the Outland Trophy released its initial watch list for 2025, consisting of 50 of the nation’s best offensive linemen. It’s the 80th anniversary of the award, and this year’s field is stacked. It features a pair of Hawkeyes, giving Iowa a better chance to bring the Outland Trophy back to Iowa City.
Which Hawkeyes were named to the Outland Trophy watch list?
Gennings Dunker and Logan Jones were the two Hawks named to the preseason watch list. And both of them for good reason. They’re both preseason first-team All-Big Ten selections from Athlon Sports and Phil Steele.
Last year, Jones was a first-team All-Big Ten selection, while Dunker was named to the second team. Both of these guys are senior leaders on an offensive line trying to put together one of its best seasons in recent memory.
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Jones and Dunker are two of 11 nominees from the Big Ten conference for the Outland Trophy. Iowa joins Penn State and Ohio State with two nominees each, while Oregon leads the pack with three players on the watch list. The Big Ten is one of the best conferences in the country, all the way down to its offensive linemen.
It’s a great accomplishment for Jones and Dunker, but their work is just beginning. To win the Outland Trophy, they’ll have to be anchors on the Hawkeye offensive line this season.
They’ll need to protect new quarterback Mark Gronowski, create holes for Kamari Moulton, and establish the line of scrimmage in every game. If they can do that, there’s a chance one of them could join those legendary names and join Iowa football history as an Outland Trophy winner.
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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Iowa football duo named to Outland Trophy watch list
