Iowa Football: Oliver Martin will have major impact on offense in 2019

Iowa football added a key piece to its Big Ten title quest on Wednesday, as transfer wide receiver Oliver Martin was ruled eligible to play immediately.

Oliver Martin, one of the top prospects in the state of Iowa coming out of high school, signed with Michigan but decided to leave Jim Harbaugh’s program after last season. He transferred back home to join the Hawkeyes, and according to reports, was cleared by both the NCAA and the Big Ten to play this season.

Martin will have three years of eligibility left with Iowa, who opens with Miami of Ohio this Saturday night inside Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City. Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz has stated that Martin would be ready to play this weekend if he was cleared, so Hawk fans should expect to see the 6-foot-1, 200-pounder on the field.

In his first season with the Wolverines, Martin redshirted. Last year he caught 11 passes for 125 yards and a touchdown. As a senior at Iowa City West — which is located right in the heart of Hawkeye country — Martin hauled in 85 passes for 1,272 yards and scored 14 touchdowns.

He will provide a nice, big target for experienced quarterback Nate Stanley, joining Brandon Smith, Ihmir Smith-Marsette, Nico Ragaini and Tyrone Tracy, Jr. as the top receivers for Iowa.

In a release sent to the Des Moines Register, Martin said “I am ecstatic that the NCAA and the Big Ten Conference have approved our waiver request. I want to thank my coaches and my teammates for their help as I work to get ready. I have been dreaming of running out of the tunnel wearing black and gold ever since I decided to join the program. I can’t wait to contribute to this team on the field.”

Martin will fill a huge void left by the departed T.J. Hockenson and Noah Fant. The pair of tight ends were top draft picks after catching 88 passes for over 1,200 yards and 13 touchdowns a year ago. The Hawkeyes also lost Nick Easley from the group.

Smith and Smith-Marsette each had 361 yards last year, a number that Martin is sure to surpass playing with Stanley. The senior completed almost 60 percent of his throws for over 2,800 yards with 26 touchdowns.

The presence of Martin on the field should also help with the ground attack, which is deep and experienced led by Mekhi Sargent, Toren Young and Ivory Kelly-Martin.

After this week, Iowa hosts Rutgers before an in-state collision with Iowa State in Ames. The Hawkeyes also play Middle Tennessee before taking on Martin’s old team, Michigan, and Penn State to start October.