by Bill Seals
A Class of 2018 defensive end has earned high praise from Rivals.com and other recruiting services, and Iowa State was the first to offer a scholarship back in the spring. The Cyclones have remained in steady contact ever since.
It didn’t take the new staff long to identify Frankfort (Ill.) Lincoln Way East’s Devin O’Rourke as a top recruit in his class. The 6-foot-6, 230-pound defender said it was during the spring evaluation period that he first started hearing from ISU.
“I got my offer from Iowa State in spring break of my sophomore year,” said O’Rourke. “It was my first offer. I had heard something earlier in the day from my coach they were looking at me, and by the end of the day they offered me. They really liked what they saw on tape.”
O’Rourke’s recruitment has continued to pick up in the months since. Rivals has graded him out as a four-star recruit, he’s ranked 10th nationally at strong-side defensive end and is third overall in Illinois for the Class of 2018.
Other programs have taken notice, as he now has Power-5 offers from Illinois, Northwestern and Wisconsin, to go along with MAC program Central Michigan.
The Cyclones are keeping in touch with O’Rourke who is now in his junior season.
“I’ve been getting a lot of messages from a lot of coaches at Iowa State,” O’Rourke said. “I plan on going to a couple of games this season. They’re excited to see how my junior season goes. They like my size, athleticism and how I play with a motor and don’t stop.”
Although he wasn’t able to make it to Ames over the summer, O’Rourke said he got some face time with Matt Campbell’s staff during an event near Chicago.
“I’ve never actually visited, but they had a (satellite) camp at North Central College and I went to that,” he said. “I got to meet all of the coaches and I really like them. They were all fired up and ready to go, excited for the season. It’s a great program that really feels like a family.”
A Class of 2018 defensive end has earned high praise from Rivals.com and other recruiting services, and Iowa State was the first to offer a scholarship back in the spring. The Cyclones have remained in steady contact ever since.
It didn’t take the new staff long to identify Frankfort (Ill.) Lincoln Way East’s Devin O’Rourke as a top recruit in his class. The 6-foot-6, 230-pound defender said it was during the spring evaluation period that he first started hearing from ISU.
“I got my offer from Iowa State in spring break of my sophomore year,” said O’Rourke. “It was my first offer. I had heard something earlier in the day from my coach they were looking at me, and by the end of the day they offered me. They really liked what they saw on tape.”
O’Rourke’s recruitment has continued to pick up in the months since. Rivals has graded him out as a four-star recruit, he’s ranked 10th nationally at strong-side defensive end and is third overall in Illinois for the Class of 2018.
Other programs have taken notice, as he now has Power-5 offers from Illinois, Northwestern and Wisconsin, to go along with MAC program Central Michigan.
The Cyclones are keeping in touch with O’Rourke who is now in his junior season.
“I’ve been getting a lot of messages from a lot of coaches at Iowa State,” O’Rourke said. “I plan on going to a couple of games this season. They’re excited to see how my junior season goes. They like my size, athleticism and how I play with a motor and don’t stop.”
Although he wasn’t able to make it to Ames over the summer, O’Rourke said he got some face time with Matt Campbell’s staff during an event near Chicago.
“I’ve never actually visited, but they had a (satellite) camp at North Central College and I went to that,” he said. “I got to meet all of the coaches and I really like them. They were all fired up and ready to go, excited for the season. It’s a great program that really feels like a family.”
