LJ Phillips shining as Iowa football short-yardage back, great vision

This offseason, the Iowa Hawkeyes bolstered an already talented running back room by welcoming in LJ Phillips, the FCS All-American and 2025 FCS leading rusher from South Dakota.

A bit of a different profile from Iowa's current backs, Phillips seems to be carving out a spot in Tim Lester's offense early, displaying his vision, toughness, and physicality as a strong runner in short-yardage situations. Lester discussed what he has seen from Phillips and how he is transitioning to the Hawkeyes' offensive scheme.

"It was fun watching his highlight tape. He came on his official visit with his dad and uncle, two of my favorite people I've ever met in my life, his dad and his uncle. The apple doesn't fall too far, so when you meet the parents, you learn a little bit about the human being. Unbelievable family.

"Showed up. Obviously we have Kamari in the room, and we have everybody coming back. Much like Mark did last year, just showed up and worked. As far as he fits our program very well, just like Mark did.

"He's fit in seamlessly. As you get into spring, you see the ball, and you see what is he about? He runs behind his pads very well. It's impressive as you are trying to find who is your short yardage back, third down back, who is the best at pass pro. First and second downs, those are the easy downs, but on third down, the down that matters, or a third and one, fourth and one, who do you want in there?

"I've been very impressed with his short yardage capabilities. He has great vision. You can tell he has played a lot of football. You don't run for 1,900 yards without having some skill.

"You don't know how long the transition is going to take to a new offense. They ran a lot of the same stuff we did, but the wide zone is probably different, and he's really comfortable with it. You see him make one mistake with his angles and his shoulders, and then it's fixed like a veteran does. You tell him once, and they're on to the next thing. He's a huge addition.

"I do like the way the young kids are coming along. I really like the jump Kamari has made. Even as the year went on, I this thought Kamari got better and better, and he's continued to do that. We have a lot of competition. It's going to be fun to watch them as the fall comes," said Lester of Phillips' impact early on.