Newton’s Hammons chooses Iowa Western football

Newton senior Reese Hammons had quite the knack for turning turnovers straight into points for the Cardinal defense the past few seasons.

Hammons will look to continue to make plays for his next team and that program certainly won’t complain about a few defensive touchdowns per season.

That next school will be Iowa Western Community College as Hammons recently made things official with a signing ceremony at Newton High School.

“The program wins every year, everyone there is competitive and the coaches want everyone to grow athletically and academically,” Hammons said when asked why he chose Iowa Western. “I felt like that was the best fit for me.”

Hammons will play safety at Iowa Western. He chose the Reivers over NAIA Waldorf and Briar Cliff.

“I feel like I could have been recruited by bigger schools like NCAA Division II or maybe even FCS,” Hammons said. “I really want to develop for two years, be able to compete at the next level and use this opportunity at Iowa Western to get to the next level after that.”

Hammons was a playmaker for Newton’s defense the past two seasons. He split time at linebacker and safety those two years.

This past fall, Hammons registered 28 tackles, one sack and 4.5 tackles for loss. He returned his lone fumble recovery 30 yards for a touchdown and scored on two of his three interceptions.

As a junior, Hammons tallied 57.5 tackles, five tackles for loss and one fumble recovery. He returned his lone interception 79 yards for a touchdown.

“He has some good instincts and he can find the ball really well,” Newton head football coach Andy Swedenhjelm said. “He makes big plays happen when he gets the ball in his hands. The college coaches recruiting him loved his natural ball skills. Iowa Western will let him run around and make plays.”

Playing both linebacker and safety in high school will give Hammons some versatility and options at the next level. But Hammons feels like safety is his more natural position.

“He’s a great fit for those guys. He’s going to run around the field and make plays,” Swedenhjelm said. “They will give him some simple roles that he can excel in.

“Having experience playing in the box and playing in the deep half safety gives him more experience for the next level defenses that he will be a part of.”

Adjusting to the speed of the collegiate game is something Swedenhjelm says all high school football players need to account for when making the jump.

Another challenge for Hammons as a defensive player is being able to make his reads correctly.

“A lot of college defenses are morphing into having a lot of versatile players who can play multiple positions and do multiple things,” Swedenhjelm said. “Reese does that really well.”

Iowa Western went 10-1 last season with the loss coming in the national championship game. Newton’s Josh Meyer is a former Newton Cardinal who is currently on the Reiver roster as a kicker.

Current teammate Zay Arguello also will join Hammons in Council Bluffs and will play quarterback for the Reivers.

“I don’t think they would tell you they made this decision to be with each other,” Swedenhjelm said. “But they are familiar with one another and are good friends. Whenever you walk into an unfamiliar situation like that, it’s always nice to have somebody you already know around to help you out during the tough times.”