40 Days Until Iowa Hawkeye Football: Turner Pallissard and Josef Smith

Welcome to the beginning our preview of the 2022 Iowa Hawkeyes football season as we take a look at each and every player on the roster counting down the days to kickoff inside Kinnick Stadium on Saturday, September 3rd. You can find each player preview, as well as the complete current roster on the countdown story stream here.

Next up in the countdown is #40, fullback Turner Palissard and linebacker Josef Smith.

Turner Pallissard – RS Senior
Frankfort, IL (Lincoln-Way East)
6’0”, 243 lbs
2022 Projection: backup fullback

Crab cakes and football, that’s what Maryland does. Well, at least crab cakes when it comes to the real world. Fullbacks and tight ends, that’s what Iowa’s offense does. And that’s where Turner Pallissard fits in.

A redshirt senior from Lincoln-Way East in Chicagoland, Pallissard signed with Iowa in the class of 2018 as a hybrid tight end-fullback who also boasted long snapping abilities. Once in Iowa City, he took a redshirt season to pack on 20+ pounds and came into his redshirt freshman season firmly in the fullback camp.

That season saw Pallissard’s only rushing attempt of his career, which went for no gain in a 48-3 win over Middle Tennessee. He saw action in five games in 2019 earning the first of three straight Academic All-Big Ten honors.

In his redshirt sophomore season, Pallissard saw action in seven of Iowa’s eight games but did not record any statistics. He was again named Academic All-Big Ten. Last season, the RS junior played in 12 games and recorded a special teams tackle in a 17-12 win over Northwestern.

Now entering his final year in the program, Pallissard finds himself in a new spot. He was awarded a scholarship in the spring semester and enters fall camp listed as the backup fullback behind true senior and mullet extraordinaire Monte Pottebaum. Look for Pottebaum to shoulder the bulk of the work again this season, especially in terms of touches, but Pallissard will be a key cog again on special teams and a rotational player in the backfield as a lead blocker. However, with the physicality at the position, Pallissard will spend the entirety of the season on notice for a potential injury in front of him on the depth chart.

Josef Smith– RS Sophomore
Britt, IA (West Hancock)
6’3”, 233 lbs
2022 Projection: reserve linebacker

Like Pallissard, redshirt sophomore Josef Smith is a walk-on looking to carve out a role and potentially earn a scholarship. A member of the class of 2020, Smith has yet to find his way onto the field in a game situation. He’s likely to have difficulty cracking the depth chart at linebacker given the immense talent in front of him, but Smith has some talent and athleticism which is likely to put him in play for a role on special teams.

As a prep at West Hancock, Smith spent time at RB and LB finishing his senior season with 1,270 rushing yards and 17 TDs on 146 carries as well as 202 yards and 5 more receiving TDs. On the defensive side of the ball, he had 27.5 tackles, two interceptions and two fumble recoveries. He also played on special teams, both coverage and return, where he added 280 yards and two more touchdowns as a senior.

In Iowa City, he’s exclusively a linebacker but that experience on special teams and his raw athleticism are what are likely to shine through earliest and potentially get Smith onto the field in Kinnick during his third year in the program.

As with Pallissard, Smith is also an Academic All-Big Ten honoree. We’ll see if he can find his way onto the field in 2022.