JUCO All-American DE Jackson Filer headed to Iowa
Junior college All-American defensive end Jackson Filer is headed to Iowa. The 6-foot-3, 230-pounder, whose father Rodney Filer played fullback at Iowa in the 90s, announced today that he has accepted a preferred walk-on opportunity from the Hawkeyes.
Named the NJCAA defensive player of the year in 2022, Filer racked up 56 tackles, 28 tackles for loss, and 15.5 sacks for national champion Iowa Western this past season. Along with the preferred walk-on opportunity at Iowa, he also considered scholarship offers from Coastal Carolina, Toledo, Louisiana Tech, Hawaii, Charlotte, UAB, and Ball State, among others.
Ultimately, Filer’s decision came down to Iowa and Coastal Carolina, where he visited in December, but the chance to follow in his father’s footsteps and play close to home in the Big Ten was too good to pass up.
“I had the chance to speak with Coach Bell and Coach Ferentz, along with my parents, and felt like the culture they have created is something I want to be a part of,” Filer told HawkeyeReport.com. “I’ve wanted to be a Hawkeye my whole life and couldn’t miss the opportunity.”
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A December graduate from Iowa Western, Filer will be a mid-year enrollee and start classes at Iowa on January 17. His junior college teammate, defensive tackle Anterio Thompson, will also be among Iowa’s early enrollees this month.
Filer’s impact for the Hawkeyes
Landing Filer as a preferred walk-on is an absolute steal for the Hawkeyes. The JUCO All-American comes in with two years of eligibility remaining and is able to take part in spring practice this semester to get ready for the 2023 season.
It is probably no accident that senior pass rushing specialist Joe Evans served as his host on the official visit as that is the exact type of role that Filer can excel in at Iowa even if he is a bit undersized to be an every down player at the moment. With a long list of scholarship offers from Group of Five schools, there are not many walk-ons that turn down that many full rides to pay their own way in the Big Ten.
