Here are the former Iowa Hawkeyes and Iowa State Cyclones playing in the XFL
Players across the country are hanging on to pro football dreams through the XFL, an eight-team rebooted spring league littered with former college standouts.
Iowa and Iowa State are both well-represented.
Two weeks into the season, there are three former Hawkeyes and five former Cyclones spread across four different teams. The San Antonio Brahmas and St. Louis Battlehawks lead the way with three apiece.
A quick whip-around of Iowa and Iowa State's XFL representatives.
Landen Akers, San Antonio Brahmas WR
After landing with the Super Bowl champion Rams in 2021, Los Angeles cut the former Iowa State wide receiver right before the 2022 season started. Akers then landed with San Antonio — where he made an immediate impact with seven catches for 35 yards in Week 1 — but he may be out for a bit. The Brahmas put Akers on the injured list prior to Week 2.
More Iowa State football: Iowa State's Will McDonald, a 'freak' who terrorized practice, takes next step to NFL
Jack Heflin, Houston Roughnecks DL
After bouncing around in the Packers and Giants organizations following a productive 2020 season at Iowa, Heflin has already caused disruption along the Houston defensive line. In two games, Heflin has three tackles, one tackle for loss and a fumble recovery.
THIS IS A DOG FIGHT WITH A TEAM FULL OF DOGS! JACK HEFLIN WITH THE RECOVERY pic.twitter.com/qAK8QMrRIg
— Houston Roughnecks (@XFLRoughnecks) February 27, 2023
Shaun Beyer, Arlington Renegades TE
The former Iowa tight end (2017-20) now plays for former Iowa assistant Bob Stoops after spending the last two football seasons on different NFL practice squads. Through two games with Arlington, Beyer has one target and zero catches.
More Iowa football: Why Lukas Van Ness, Iowa football's 'Hercules,' is a dream prospect at this week's NFL Combine
Kamilo Tongamoa, San Antonio Brahmas OL
The former Cyclone was the 15th overall pick in this year's XFL Supplemental Draft and has latched on with San Antonio quite nicely. Before then, Tongamoa helped kickstart the Matt Campbell era with efforts on the 2017 and 2018 Iowa State teams.
GAMEDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!
— Kamilo Tongamoa (@KTongamoa) February 19, 2023
Jack Koerner, San Antonio Brahmas DB
After going from walk-on to secondary fixture over three starting seasons at Iowa, Koerner has made an early impact for the Brahmas. In two games, the former Dowling Catholic product has six total tackles — four solo, two assisted — and two TFLs.
Hakeem Butler, St. Louis Battlehawks WR
The former Iowa State wide receiver has been one of AJ McCarron's favorite targets in St. Louis. After a 1,300-yard season with the Cyclones in 2018, Butler is one of just three XFL pass catchers with multiple receiving touchdowns through two games. Overall, Butler has hauled in seven of his 10 targets for 93 yards.
Willie Harvey, St. Louis Battlehawks LB
Through two games, the former Iowa State linebacker ranks second in the XFL with 15 total tackles. Eight of those are solo with one TFL. Over four seasons with the Cyclones (2015-18), Harvey racked up 289 total tackles.
More Iowa State football: Former Iowa State offensive coordinator Tom Manning is headed back to the NFL
Mike Rose, St. Louis Battlehawks LB
One of the key pieces in Campbell's first wave of success at Iowa State, Rose is tied for fourth in the XFL with 12 total tackles through two games.
Dargan Southard is a sports trending reporter and covers Iowa athletics for the Des Moines Register and HawkCentral.com. Email him at msouthard@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter at @Dargan_Southard.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: These former Iowa State, Iowa football players now play for XFL teams
