Two Hawkeyes are named to the AP First Team, extending Iowa’s All-American streak. The Associated Press announced its 2025 All-American teams this week, adding another chapter to Iowa football’s reputation for reliability, toughness, and outstanding line play. The Hawkeyes were well-represented once more, as was to be expected, carrying on a run that has quietly grown to be among the most remarkable in college football. Iowa now has two spots on one of the most prestigious postseason honor lists in sports thanks to the selection of offensive linemen Beau Stephens and Logan Jones as AP First-Team All-Americans. It’s a fitting honor for a program that consistently produces players who are among the best in the country, particularly up front.
Although Iowa had extremely high expectations going into the season, including the possibility of contending for a Big Ten championship and a College Football Playoff spot, the year fell short of those ultimate objectives. Nevertheless, the season was a success by almost every other metric. The Hawkeyes relied on a strong offensive line, maintained their national relevance, and once again included several players in the All-American discussion. The NCAA recognizes the AP as one of five sources for selecting consensus All-Americans, and Hawkeyes have appeared on every list that has been made public thus far. With the most recent announcement, that pattern persisted, highlighting Iowa’s longstanding capacity to generate top talent.
Iowa now has at least one player on the AP First or Second Team for 12 straight seasons after Stephens and Jones were named to the First Team. That level of consistent success is uncommon in contemporary college football and says a lot about Kirk Ferentz’s program culture. Iowa is now in exclusive company thanks to the recognition. The Hawkeyes’ dominance throughout the season is demonstrated by the fact that they are one of only two programs in the nation to have two offensive players selected to the AP First Team.
Beau Stephens considers the award to be the culmination of an exceptionally consistent and successful season. The Blue Springs, Missouri, 6-foot-5, 315-pound lineman anchored a unit that continuously set the tone for Iowa’s offense by starting all 12 games at left guard. Stephens is also more than a one-year contributor. As a two-year starter who has started all 33 games in the previous two seasons, he offers the kind of dependability coaches look for. Although Stephens’ style of play lacks flash, excellent interior linemen frequently have it. He succeeds by using strength, technique, and awareness doing the grunt work that makes everything else possible. For a player who has been quietly outstanding every week, his selection to the First Team All-American feels like long overdue recognition.
On the national awards scene, Logan Jones, meanwhile, has become anything but quiet. The 6-foot-3, 302-pound center from Council Bluffs, Iowa, has amassed postseason accolades at a remarkable rate, and the AP First-Team pick might be the high point. Jones recently received the 2025 Rimington Trophy, which is given to the top center in the country each year. In addition, Walter Camp, The Athletic, and USA Today named him a First-Team All-American, and he was a finalist for the Outland Trophy. In other words, very few college football players have improved their resumes this season.
Jones became the undisputed leader of Iowa’s offensive line, captained the team, and started all 12 games at center. Throughout the season, the Hawkeyes’ identity was defined by his presence in the middle, which offered physicality, stability, and communication. These honors feel particularly significant for a program that has long been referred to as “O-Line U.” The fact that Iowa’s offensive line unit was named a finalist for the Joe Moore Award further confirmed to opponents that winning the line of scrimmage against the Hawkeyes was a difficult undertaking.
Replacing athletes like Stephens and Jones won’t be easy as Iowa looks to the future. There are significant emotional and physical gaps left by their absences. However, if the last ten or so years have shown anything, it is that Iowa is adept at reloading up front. But for the time being, Stephens and Jones two seniors who personified Iowa football’s ideals and made sure the Hawkeyes’ All-American record was maintained are in the spotlight.
