Hawkeyes land hard-hitting safety Hooker

Iowa addressed one of its primary recruiting needs Tuesday when three-star Minnesota safety prospect Amani Hooker announced his plans to join the Hawkeyes next year.

The 6-foot-1, 195-pound rising senior from Park Center High School in Brooklyn Park picked Iowa over offers from New Mexico, Northern Iowa and South Dakota and interest from Wisconsin, Minnesota and Iowa State.

"He'll come up and smack you in the mouth," Rivals.com Midwest analyst Josh Helmholdt said last week. "He's a solidly built kid, plays a downhill brand of football and he's another kid who plays in Minnesota and if he played in Cincinnati or Chicago probably has a few more offers."

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The Hawkeyes signed just one defensive back in February — safety Michael Ojemudia — and extended offers to at least a dozen safeties in the 2016 class, according to Rivals.com.

Hooker is believed to be the ninth player to commit to Iowa's 2016 class and the first defensive back.