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The Hawkeyes gained a Early Signing Day commitment, as Michigan CB Daraun McKinney has signed pen to paper and will officially attend the University of Iowa!
The Motor City continues to be good to Iowa City – DB Daraun McKinney | #Swarm19 https://t.co/wAIrCXFeUH pic.twitter.com/z3Askbj469
— Hawkeye Football (@HawkeyeFootball) December 19, 2018
McKinney, a three-star recruit per Rivals and 247, is a former Northern Illinois commit who took a visit to Iowa this past weekend, where he was offered a scholarship. He had a handful of other offers, including Cincinnati, Indiana, UMass, and other MAC schools, but chose to commit to NIU in June, where he was expected to go until Iowa offered him.
McKinney is very good with the ball in his hands and has great return skills - despite only registering a 4.61 40-yard dash time, he was prolific as a returner, setting the Michigan state record for most kick returns (seven) and punt returns (five) in a SEASON. While it doesn’t look like he has breakaway speed on paper, he certainly has a knack for the big play and one would assume tremendous vision. As for his defensive skills, his highlights show that he has the ability to diagnose plays well and that helps him make jumps on the ball in order to be disruptive. Still, he might be most valuable for Iowa as a return man, particularly in his last few seasons at Iowa.
Welcome aboard, Daraun! We can’t wait to see what you bring to Kinnick Stadium in the future!