Hard work propels Easley to top of Iowa depth chart

IOWA CITY — Being able to play for the Iowa Hawkeyes has been a dream come true for Newton graduate Nick Easley.

Walking down the tunnel and entering Kinnick Stadium to AC/DC’s Back and Black when the Hawkeyes open the season against Wyoming on Sept. 2 will be another dream come true.

The only thing left for Easley to do though is help the Hawkeyes win games. And show the doubters that Iowa’s receiving corps is not the weakness it’s perceived to be.

“I am just looking to contribute to this team any way I can,” Easley said at Iowa’s annual football media day earlier this month. “Whether that is on offense or special teams it doesn’t matter.”

Easley came to Iowa City after hauling in 72 passes for 954 yards and seven touchdowns at Iowa Western Community College last season. He earned first-team NJCAA All-American honors, too.

He got to campus in January and almost immediately rose to the top of the depth chart. Part of that was because the wide receiver core was a depleted unit but most of it is because of hard work.

Hard work is something Easley knows all about having grown up in Newton and playing for the hometown Cardinals.

“He’s working his butt off and he’s smart and when he makes a mistake, he fixes it,” Iowa Offensive Coordinator Brian Ferentz said. “He takes coaching, he listens, he corrects it and he moves on. You can’t overstate how important that is. Can you make a mistake, correct it and continue to grow? Nick does that at an exponential level, which has been impressive.”

Easley wasn’t really recruited much by Division I schools even after his tremendous season in his final year at Council Bluffs. That didn’t bother the former Newton Cardinal though.

“It didn’t matter to him that he hadn’t been here very long. It didn’t matter to him that we didn’t really recruit him. We called him two days before Christmas and tried to start getting him to come here,” Ferentz said. “Then I start watching him in the spring, and think to myself, ‘we didn’t recruit this guy? Are we crazy?’ He just reminds me of guys who have had success here and most importantly he’s a worker.”

The Iowa wide receivers outside of veteran Matt VandeBerg don’t have experience at the Division I varsity level. In fact, VandeBerg is the only wideout on the Iowa roster to have a caught pass for the Hawkeyes.

Easley is looking to change that right away when the Hawkeyes take the field against the Cowboys on the first Saturday in September.

“I made a lot of progress in the winter, and I just did my job,” said Easley when asked how he was able to ascend to the top of the depth chart so fast. “I made some plays. I also leaned on Matt VandeBerg a lot. He was injured, but he helped me get adapted to this level, whether it was the playbook or with the little intricacies of the offense, he helped me learn everything I needed to know.”

VandeBerg will most likely be the go-to guy for whoever wins the starting quarterback job between sophomore Nathan Stanley and junior Tyler Wiegers. Opportunity beyond VandeBerg for receptions is there though.

Easley hopes to be in the mix with fellow teammates Devonte Young and Adrian Falconer, a sophomore and junior who are looking to make names for themselves, too.

The Hawkeye receiving core got a boost in August, too, when a handful of true freshmen made their way to campus.

“He came into the program, and we essentially had no receivers besides (VandeBerg) who have caught a pass at this level,” Ferentz said. “So there is opportunity, and it seems like a no brainer. But it doesn’t always happen that way. What’s so impressive about Nick is that he’s jumped in and gone after it.

A depth chart has not yet been released since Easley was listed as the starter before the start of fall camp and before the freshmen began practice. He is battling what Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz called a minor injury right now, but Brian Ferentz doesn’t see Easley dropping off.

“I haven’t seen Nick fade after the freshmen came in,” Brian Ferentz said. “He continues to show up, and I am comfortable enough to say that Nick is going to play for us this season. I think he’s going to play a lot. I don’t want to put any added pressure on him because that’s not fair to him, but I can say confidently he’s going to compete his butt off. I have seen guys like him to do that before, and it usually works out well for those kind of guys.”

Brian Ferentz said Easley has taken advantage of every opportunity that he has been given. And he is looking forward to continuing to compete for playing against a now deeper wide receiver group.

“I think our coaches would be disappointed in me if I told them I didn’t like to compete. It’s something that I enjoy and something that I always had to do,” Easley said. “That’s just something I have had. That’s the way I was raised. My parents raised me to work hard, do your job and don’t say much a long the way.”

Easley’s also been influenced in a positive way by current Newton football coach Ed Ergenbright.

“Coach E has helped me a lot. I try to talk to him whenever I can,” Easley said. “I always reach out to him when I am back in town to catch up. He’s been a big influence on me.”

The popular opinion about Easley and his role at Iowa revolve a lot around him playing exclusively in the slot position. Brian Ferentz and wide receivers coach Kelton Copeland don’t necessarily feel that is the way it will shake out though.

“I wouldn’t sell his skill set short. He’s bigger than you think, and he runs a little bit better than you think,” Brian Ferentz said. “He may have to play on the outside, and I think he’ll be able to do that, too.”

Brian Ferentz said the coaching staff may have to line Easley up in different spots on the field. He believes creativity will come into play a lot this season. That means not be limited to where players play.

Copeland also doesn’t see a limit to Easley’s game. His role may depend on how the rest of the wide receivers in the room develop.

“He just needs to keep progressing. He doesn’t have any game experience either, but he’s familiar with our offense,” Copeland said. “We are looking for production. You put guys in a sink or swim situation, and (Easley) is absolutely swimming. He is executing and making plays every day. Every time I put more on his plate, he just seems to soak it up, produce and move on.”

So far, Easley’s experience in Iowa City has been “amazing.”

“I love Iowa City. I love the coaching staff. I have made so many friends here already. It’s been great,” Easley said.

Easley said several people back home have told him that they are excited to see him play. He is unsure about just how many people will be in attendance at Kinnick Stadium this season, but he’s hoping Newton makes their presence known.

“It will be a dream come true. I have been in that stadium a lot as a kid so walking into Kinnick Stadium and the swarm is going to be really awesome,” Easley said.

One of those players joining Easley in the swarm will be VandeBerg, who is eager to make his return back to the lineup after missing all but four games last year with an injury.

It’s impossible to truly know who will be lining up with VandeBerg when the Hawkeyes kick off their season against Wyoming. But not many in Iowa’s locker room are counting Easley out.

“He fit our culture right away when he came on board,” VandeBerg said. “He’s just trying to get better each day. Our entire room is trying to do that. Nick is obviously doing some good things.”