TJ Hockenson, Amani Hooker, Noah Fant Earn AP all-American Honors

Three Iowa football players have been honored by the associated press as all-Americans.

Safety Amani Hooker and tight end TJ Hockenson were each given second-team honors. Tight end Noah Fant, who was a first-team selection in the preseason, earned a third-team designation.

Hockenson already has a handful of awards which commemorate this past, historic season: one where he racked up 717 yards and 6 touchdowns on 46 receptions. He earned the Kwalick-Clark award, given to the Big Ten’s best tight end. He earned the Ozzie Newsome Award, given to the best tight end in the nation by the Touchdown Club of Columbus. And he earned the Mackey Award, handed to the top tight end in the nation.

Hooker and Fant arguably had less glamorous seasons than Hock, but still earned their designations. Hooker had 4 interceptions to go along with 11 passes defended and 59 total tackles.

The Fant saga has been well-documented, so I’m not going to rehash that here. The junior declared for the draft two weeks ago, and will forego Iowa’s bowl game to prep for the NFL combine. That’s a smart thing to do! He was a treat to watch as a Hawkeye and we wish him the best of luck in his future endeavors.

Now with all this momentum surrounding Hockenson in regards to the accolades he’s racked up this offseason, we’re curious if the sophomore will return to Iowa City for another season. Hooker, a junior, very well could be heading to the NFL early, too!

In any case, these three guys are awesome and deserving. It makes you wonder what three all-Americans are doing on an eight-win team, however.

Best of luck to Fant, and we look forward to watching Hockenson and Hooker beat up on some SEC suckers in the bowl game. Go Hawks.