Iowa Hawkeyes 2023 Snapshot Profile: No. 94 Yahya Black
If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s to never truly count out a player until they’ve graduated. Just because a player hasn’t broken out within the first couple of years on campus doesn’t mean that it can’t happen.
There are so many factors at play to consider with these things. Injuries, adjustment to the next level, and playing time are all items that factor into how quickly and how well a player can develop.
This is certainly the case for Iowa defensive tackle Yahya Black. The junior is a player that has obvious talent. There’s a reason 247Sports graded him as a four-star recruit coming out of Marshall. Every time he’s on the field you see these flashes, too. It gets you very excited for what he could do.
Unfortunately, due to one circumstance or another, we haven’t really seen Yahya able to put it all together for the Hawkeyes just yet. The key word there though is yet.
In past seasons, Black was really dealt a bad hand with some unfortunate injury luck. The overall strength of the defensive line really made it hard to stand out as well. Even as Iowa has brought back multiple starters, there is still a need for rotational help on this defensive line after the departure of Lukas Van Ness.
Don’t sleep on Yahya heading into the season. If Black can stay healthy, with the heavy amount of rotation that you see from the defensive line, he could play a massive role on the Hawkeyes’ defense. Don’t forget, it took both starters Noah Shannon and Logan Lee a few years before they came into their own.
Here is a look at defensive tackle Yahya Black entering 2023.
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Yahya Black's Preseason Player Profile
Hometown: Marshall, Minn.
Ht: 6-5
Wt: 306
Class in 2023: Jr.
Recruiting Ranking
Stars | Overall | State | Position | |
247 | 4 | N/A | 2 | 14 |
Rivals | 3 | N/A | 7 | 43 |
ESPN | 3 | N/A | 6 | 82 |
On3 Recruiting | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
247 Composite | 3 | 580 | 3 | 31 |
Before Iowa
Earned all-state honors as a senior while being named district Defensive Player of the Year
District Defensive Lineman of the Year as a junior
Earned three letters while playing defensive end and tackle
Career Stats
Tackles | Def Int | Fumbles | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
FR | DL | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
FR | DL | 8 | 7 | 11 | 18 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | ||||||
JR | DL | 8 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
Provided by CFB at Sports Reference: View Original Table
Generated 6/13/2023.
Depth Chart Overview
Yahya Black enters the season as the top rotational piece at defensive tackle. Though there are two returning starters ahead of him, Iowa’s heavy rotation on the defensive line should afford him plenty of playing opportunities. He just has to stay healthy, of course.
Quote Them
“I really like the group…I think collectively that group has a chance to be a strength for us,” Iowa head football coach Kirk Ferentz said in March.
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