7 More Hawkeyes to the NFL

July 26, 2011

IOWA CITY, Iowa — Seven members of the 2010 University of Iowa football team signed NFL free agent contracts Tuesday, joining six teammates who were drafted in April.

Punter Ryan Donahue was signed by the Detroit Lions, safety Brett Greenwood by the Pittsburgh Steelers, linebacker Jeremiha Hunter by the New Orleans Saints, receiver Derrell Johnson-Koulianos by the Philadelphia Eagles, tight end Allen Reisner by the Minnesota Vikings, long snapper Andrew Schulze by the Atlanta Falcons and linebacker Jeff Tarpinian by the New England Patriots.

Since 2002, 84 of 94 senior starters have been drafted or signed as free agents (36 draft picks, 48 free agents). This season’s total of seven free agent signees is the second-most since 2002, trailing the nine that signed in 2004.

Last season, Donahue punted 54 times for an average of 44.6 yards per punt with a long of 73 yards. He had 22 kicks inside the 20 and 15 of 50 yards or more.

Greenwood was sixth on the team with 61 tackles. He led the Hawkeyes with five interceptions and defended three other passes.

Despite missing a game, Hunter led Iowa in tackles with 90 and in fumble recoveries with two. He also intercepted a pass and broke up four others.

Johnson-Koulianos caught 46 passes for 745 yards and 10 touchdowns in 12 games. He also returned 17 kickoffs for an average of 29.3 yards and a touchdown.

Reisner started all 13 games, catching 42 passes for 460 yards and two touchdowns. His fourth-quarter grab for a first down sealed Iowa’s 27-24 victory over No. 12 Missouri in the Insight Bowl.

Schulze emerged as one of the finest long-snappers in the Big Ten Conference and Tarpinian battled injuries to play eight games and record 47 tackles. He had 2 ½ tackles for loss and two quarterback sacks.

In the past decade, 42 Hawkeyes have been drafted with five first-round selections and nine chosen among the top 50.