Recruiting mailbag: Updates on Grant Brix's college decision, Malachi Curvey's injury

Hello friends, and welcome to another installment of the recruiting mailbag.

We’re through the regular season and onto the playoffs for Iowa high school football. In the postseason, there are several teams led by some of the state’s top recruits and some who are being overlooked.

Some of those players are the focus of the mailbag this week. We received questions about Grant Brix, the top-ranked in-state player in the senior class, and Malachi Curvey, a rising star in the recruiting world.

And then there was a question about a player without any offers and no recruiting rankings, but someone with an intriguing resume.

So, let’s get right into it.

Why is Draven Woods, the leader on one of the best defenses in the state, not getting more looks from college coaches this late in his senior year?

The simple answer: I don’t understand it either.

Woods leads Southeast Polk with 48 total tackles, 20 tackles for loss and three sacks this season. He returned one fumble for a touchdown and took an interception 27 yards. Last season, he led the Rams with 70 tackles, 12 tackles for loss and a sack, plus one fumble recovery and two interceptions.

He was a top-three tackler as a sophomore, with 59.5 total tackles and an astounding nine sacks.

Add two state championship rings on top of that and a trip to the postseason as a senior, and yeah, I don’t understand why there isn’t more interest in Woods.

The 6-foot-3, 225-pound defensive lineman has some minor interest from Iowa and Iowa State, so those programs may hold and see if they can get him as a walk-on, which would be a steal. Woods also wrestles and plays baseball, so there is an off chance that he gets recruited in one of those sports.

Malachi Curvey is getting plenty of looks from colleges and seems to perform well in camps during the offseason. Why is his production so low this fall?

Curvey is a four-star athlete and the No. 3 player in Iowa for the 2025 recruiting class, according to 247Sports Composite. He holds offers from Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State and Missouri. When I’ve seen him perform at college camps, he is consistently one of the best players out there.

But I have yet to see him flourish in the high school game.

The tight end/linebacker has just four receptions for 26 total yards this season and, on defense, he has 18 tackles. Last year, Curvey had one four-yard reception on offense but was more successful on defense, with 21 tackles and four sacks.

He’s often double-covered by opponents. Even then, I felt like he was criminally under-utilized in Waukee’s system. So, after the Warriors’ game against Roosevelt on Oct. 12, I asked coach Gabe Bakker about that. Here is what he said:

“This was this is kind of the first time he's played a lot of offense due to some circumstances earlier in the year. Now we're gonna keep getting him in the offense to get the ball in his hands because he's a dynamic football player and one of our better athletes.”

I wanted a better idea of what those “circumstances” were, and it turns out that Curvey has been dealing with some injury issues this season.

Curvey has been slowed down by a back injury for most of the year, but has been battling it out and suiting up because he doesn’t want to miss any games. It is kind of hard to succeed as a receiver if you’re playing with a bad back, so the lower production makes sense.

And maybe it’s because of his injury that Curvey isn’t targeted as much in Waukee’s offense.

But it will be interesting to see what type of player he is without those limitations.

Grant Brix said he planned to commit before the start of his senior season, but he has yet to announce his decision. Is there any update on his recruitment?

I’ll be honest: I have no idea when Brix, the No. 1 senior player in the state, will commit.

But I wouldn’t expect any news until Logan-Magnolia’s season is over.

More: From the farm to the football field, a look at Grant Brix's rise to being the top in-state recruit

Brix told me that one of the reasons he wanted to commit before the season started was so that he could focus solely on high school football. Since he didn’t announce his decision before the first game, my guess is that he will wait until the season is over to make his choice.

I always got the impression that Lo-Ma football is his top priority right now and that recruiting would come second in his senior season.

Here’s what I do know, though: Kansas State doesn’t have the lock on Brix that it had in the summer.

His top four were Alabama, Kansas State, Nebraska and Oklahoma. The Crimson Tide are always an attractive option for recruits, but Alabama seemed too far from home for Brix, and I got that impression when we spoke over the summer.

It seemed like Brix leaned toward Kansas State, and then it looked like his focus shifted more to Nebraska. Now, it seems like Oklahoma is on top.

Is he influenced by the Sooners’ current success, especially compared to the stumbles of the other two Midwest programs? Possibly. But regardless of Oklahoma’s current trajectory, the Sooners look like a fit for Brix.

Alyssa Hertel is the college sports recruiting reporter for the Des Moines Register. Contact Alyssa at ahertel@dmreg.com or on Twitter @AlyssaHertel.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Grant Brix, Malachi Curvey updates in Iowa football recruiting mailbag