Deavin Hilson commits to Iowa

After landing a scholarship offer from Iowa on Friday night, Des Moines North running back Deavin Hilson has committed to the Hawkeyes. The 6-foot-0, 200-pound Hilson announced his decision today after accepting the opportunity from Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz on the phone last night.

"When Coach Ferentz first told me about the offer, I was quiet for like a minute because I was just in shock, but after that I told him I want to commit," said Hilson. "He said he's glad that I want to be part of the family."

A dynamic football player who is a four-sport athlete in high school, Hilson has major potential and is just beginning to scratch the surface.

"Deavin is a very explosive athlete who is very versatile," said Des Moines North head coach Eric Addy. "There isn’t a play on the field he can’t make."

"What stands out about Deavin is the passion and effort that he plays with," Addy said. "He is a very twitchy athlete, especially for his size. His side to side agility is on another level. He plays with controlled violence and commits a lot of time and effort to his technique."

After initially looking at Hilson on defense at linebacker, the Hawkeyes shifted gears this past month and started focusing on the offensive side of the ball at the running back position, which is one of their top remaining needs in the Class of 2021.

"I think it's just the kind of player that I am where I'm not locked into just one position," said Hilson. "I'm a dynamic athlete that can play a lot of positions, so that worked out in my favor."

As a senior, Hilson's season was cut short due to COVID-19 restrictions, but was he still able to show his playmaking ability as he averaged 9.1 yards per carry and scored a pair of touchdowns in North's two games.

"As a running back, he can be any and every type of runner you need him to be," said Addy. "He’s a big play guy and can go the distance any time he touches the ball. He’ll get downhill and run people over or make you miss in space and run past you. He doesn’t need to do a lot of dancing to get it done."

"He has had to develop great vision being in our system (flexbone) as a runner," Addy said. "He’s had to make reads and cuts with a whole lot less time to process what he’s seeing. He has great ball security and has very soft hands out of the backfield."

As Addy works to build his program at North, having Hilson go on to play in the Big Ten will mean a lot for the next generation of football players on the Northside.

"Deavin has shown what you can do if you have a goal and commit to doing the right things day in and day out," said Addy. "For North, I think it definitely speaks to the culture we’ve started to build and when you buy in what can happen. I would say it goes a long way in validating the phrase 'It doesn’t matter where you’re from, you can do whatever you want.' Hopefully, it’ll make people in, and outside of, our community realize that we have something special over on the Northside."

"I think we have a healthy chip on our shoulder, so this will be statement for us," Addy continued. "Before it’s all said and done, hopefully Deavin won’t be the last Big Ten guy we have here at North. I'm super excited and proud of my guy, Deavin Hilson."

For Hilson, he embraces the responsibility and looks forward to continuing to set an example of what you can accomplish with hard work and determination.

"It means a lot," said Hilson. "Just seeing the younger guys look up to me as someone that did what everybody else thought was impossible. I can be where I'm from and still show people that if you're a great athlete and you put in the work, you can go anywhere that you want."

"I'm not taking anything for granted because I've worked very hard for it and I'm just grateful to be where I'm at right now."

Overall, Hilson is commitment No. 19 for the Iowa Hawkeyes in the Class of 2021.