Ben McCollum’s recruiting momentum at Iowa keeps rolling, and now the Hawkeyes are making an early play for one of the top names in the 2028 class.
Iowa officially offered 2028 five-star center Bentley Lusakueno on Wednesday, with Lusakueno later announcing the offer on social media. The 6-foot-10 big man from College Park, Georgia, attends Woodward Academy High School and is already ranked as the No. 7 prospect in the class by 247Sports.
The offer adds another high-end target to a recruiting run that has picked up quickly since McCollum arrived in Iowa City. He put together a solid 2025 class on a short turnaround, then raised the bar this past offseason by landing Ethan Harris and Jaidyn Coon. Iowa has also already secured a commitment from 2027 four-star forward Keller Daughtery.
Lusakueno’s profile is already stacked with national attention. He holds nine Division I offers, with Florida State, Georgia, Miami, and Oregon among the schools involved. He’s also been on the radar of USA Basketball, having played for the 2025 USA Men’s U16 National Team and recently being named a finalist for the 2026 USA Men’s U17 National Team.
With two years of high school left, Lusakueno figures to keep climbing. That’s part of what makes Iowa’s timing notable here: getting involved now gives the Hawkeyes a head start in a race that figures to get crowded fast.
McCollum has already shown he can land elite talent against bigger-name programs, and this recruitment could demand that same kind of punch. It won’t be easy, but Iowa is clearly not waiting around.
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The bigger storyline, though, is what Piepers selection says about the offense heading into 2026. He is shifting from right guard to center after starting every game there last season, while Lauck returns after anchoring left tackle and Lutmer is back after a productive year in the secondary. With the opener set for Sept. 5 against Northern Illinois at Kinnick Stadium, Iowa will soon find out whether that preseason praise translates into the kind of offensive stability it has been searching for. [Read more 🡒]