Locked On Hawkeyes - Daily Podcast On Iowa Hawkeyes Football & Basketball - Iowa TE commit Addison Ostrenga joins the show to discuss baseball, recruiting, and what he brings to the Hawkeyes

Episode Date: August 6, 2021

We got Iowa football class of 2022 tight end commit Addison Ostrenga joins us on the show to talk about his recruitment process for both baseball and football including how hard of a decision it was to choose only football. Plus, we hit on name, image, and likeness, and Iowa's fantastic history of developing tight ends.Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!Built BarBuilt Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKED15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.BetOnline AGThere is only 1 place that has you covered and 1 place we trust. Betonline.ag! Sign up today for a free account at betonline.ag and use that promocode: LOCKEDON for your 50% welcome bonus.Rock AutoAmazing selection. Reliably low prices. All the parts your car will ever need. Visit RockAuto.com and tell them Locked On sent you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You are Locked On Hawkeyes, your daily podcast on the Iowa Hawkeyes. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Welcome back, Hawkeye Nation, to a Friday morning episode of the Locked On Hawkeyes Podcast, your daily podcast covering your Iowa Hawkeyes on the Locked On Sports Network. As always, I am your host, Andrew Wade, and I'm excited to be back for another show today. And on today's episode, we have Iowa Hawkeye commit Addison Ostrenga, the tight end prospect out of Sun Prayer, Wisconsin. He is going to be joining us on the show today to talk about his recruitment, the tough decision

to go from baseball to football, and everything in between that. Before we get to that, though, if you do get done listening to this show and you decide you want to listen to some more Locked On content, you have to check out the Locked On Big Ten podcast. There is simply no better place to get all the news on the Big Ten Conference than with Nate Dickinson and the Locked On Big Ten podcast. Follow the Locked On Big Ten podcast on the Odyssey app or wherever you get your podcast at.

And if you are tuning in for the first time, make sure you check out our previous episodes as well. Earlier on in this week, Monday and Tuesday, we had former Iowa offensive lineman Matt Purdy join the show. He talked a lot about the swimming team being shut down for the Iowa Hawkeyes. He also talked a little bit about Hayden Fry and one of his really cool stories about Hayden and just kind of what kind of man Hayden Fry was. So really enjoyed that. On Wednesday's episode, we talked a little bit about basketball recruitment and the NBA draft. On Thursday's episode yesterday, we had NIL company 98 Strong on the show, talking a lot about what they're doing from a business perspective and how they are impacting Iowa Hawkeye athletes and other athletes across the country

that maybe aren't the big-time football player, maybe aren't the big time basketball player. So really cool stuff talking to them as well. And again, we have Addison Ostringa on the show today. One thing I quickly want to make note of as we're talking about recruiting Jazzy and Patterson, the running back out of Florida is set to make a decision August 17th. And all signs are pointing towards the Hawks. So right now we have, you know have Patterson as a running back. We also have the possibility of landing a big-time defensive end recruit as well, who's committing on August 10th.

So lots of opportunity here for the Iowa Hawkeyes to continue to build on this recruiting class. It's been an interesting couple months, but very exciting stuff ahead. And obviously, we have Addison Ostrenger, a tight end prospect. And as you all know, as everyone here is listening knows, tight end prospects seem to thrive at the University of Iowa. So with that being said, let's hop into our conversation with Addison right now. All right, y'all. I'm honored to be joined here by Addison Ostrenga, one of the recruits and commits in the class of 2022 for the Iowa Hawkeyes and the most recent tight end commit. Addison, how are you doing, man? I'm doing great. I'm doing great. I see you got the Hawkeye

flag up in their back. Has that always been there? Yeah, it's been there for a while i love it man did you grow up an iowa fan uh no i grew up a badger fan but i'm not an iowa fan i love it man um was it i gotta be honest was it tough initially kind of leaving that wisconsin fandom because obviously does wisconsin have a baseball team no no i didn't know so was that initially kind of how you got into the i Iowa fandom is through baseball and then you're like man I really like this whole whole athletic program yeah baseball definitely is what kind of got it going um it was tough because there's no baseball team at Wisconsin so I really wanted to be in the Big Ten but um and Iowa was definitely my favorite school so that's what got things started yeah And what was that recruiting experience like for you for baseball?

We'll get to football in a second, but what was that recruiting experience like for you for baseball and why did you choose Iowa? It was fun. I mean, baseball is a little different than football. It's a lot more playing games in the summer with club teams and stuff like that. And I had a good experience with that. I had a few coaches who had connections with the Iowa coaches, so that kind of helped jumpstart that. But, yeah, I really liked the Iowa baseball coaches.

They helped me. I actually went to one of their camps. I believe it was my sophomore winter, I think it was. And that's when things started with that. Nice. And I didn't realize this, but for the Iowa baseball team especially, there is a limited number of scholarships. Do you mind if I ask, were you going to be on scholarship or how does that work when you were going to be joining the Iowa baseball program?

Yeah, so with that know they can't do full scholarships so I had received a half scholarship um usually baseball scholarships tend to be like from anywhere from like 40 to 60 percent but I was blessed to have received that offer. And that was the only baseball offer I had received. Okay. Awesome. And you received a football offer from Iowa after going to a couple of their camps. Did you realize that you were close to receiving an offer when you were at camp or were you just kind of going down there, thought you'd have some fun?

I mean, what, what would can talk, talk me through that thought process of even just cool. Maybe I'm getting recruited for football. I don't know. Yeah. To be what, what would, can talk, talk me through that thought process of even just cool. Maybe I'm getting recruited for football. I don't know. Yeah. To be honest, the first, I ended up going to two camps. Um, the first time I went down there, I definitely, I wasn't expecting an offer. Um, I, I talked to, well, my coaches had communicated with them a little bit, but, um, I was just

going down and see what happens. I mean, i was committed for baseball so i wanted to at least give it a chance and get my name out there um but then the second time they definitely showed a lot of interest after the camp um which got me excited and we just continued to communicate and uh things that ended up going well. Yeah, and what was your initial reaction when you got that scholarship offer? I thought it was unbelievable. I mean, I didn't think I'd be getting any football interest after committing for baseball,

but I'm just glad I stuck with it and gave it a shot. Absolutely, man. When you committed for baseball, did you commit thinking you wanted to play baseball in college and not football? Or do you commit thinking, I have this opportunity, I'm going to do this, and we'll just check out and see if football kind of works out for me later? Yeah, I definitely committed keeping football open. Because at the time COVID had kind of started, and I didn't know if I'd be having a junior football season.

So I definitely wanted to leave that option open and give it a chance. My, after my junior year and just kind of see what happens. All right, y'all want to quickly pause the conversation and tell you about built bar, the best tasting protein bar on the market today. Built bar is the protein bar that tastes just like a candy bar and they have something for everyone.

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They're delicious, they're nutritious, and some of the top athletes in the world use them. Why wouldn't you? Go to built.com, that's B-U-I-L-T.com, and use promo code LOCKED15, L-O-C-K-E-D-1-5, and you'll get 15% off your order. Use the promo code locked 15 for 15% off at built.com. Absolutely, man. And I know the Iowa coaches from everything I hear from a recruiting perspective, they like to be very honest, right?

They want to talk to you about what you're good at, but also what can you improve on and where they see you fitting in the offense. What are some of the things they want you working on in your senior season? The biggest takeaway I've taken is definitely working on my explosiveness and my blocking abilities. I'd never played tight end before. I've always been like a receiver linebacker. So I think it's just going to take a little practice this whole year. And I think I'll be good by the time I'm going into college.

Yeah. Okay. So you're a big wide receiver for high school football. Yeah. What is that like going up against some of these defensive backs that are like, oh, my gosh, I can't cover this kid? Honestly, it's fun. I mean, I just love playing football, and every Friday night with everybody,

it's just fun, to be honest. All right, and would you rather play linebacker or tight end, if you had a choice? I like offense. I like playing tight end. I like just getting the ball and trying to get an open space and just scoring touchdowns. I love it. Yeah.

And as far as football and baseball, obviously you had the opportunity. You could have probably played both sports, I'm assuming. You made the decision to choose only football. Can you walk me through how difficult of a decision that was for you? Yeah, it was very difficult. It took a lot of thinking and I talked to my family and I just, I just really enjoy football and I've always loved both sports. I play basketball too. But football has definitely been my favorite and I just want to stick with my gut and that's what felt right. I love it it man um and you've

obviously known about Iowa tight ends uh how big of a factor was that into your decision and when they're looking at you to tight end you're like wow what a what a legacy this this school has yeah totally that I mean as soon as I got the offer I I almost wanted to commit on the spot like I don't as a tight end I don't know why you wouldn't want to go to Iowa. Just the atmosphere they have, the coaches are unbelievable. Yeah, I'm excited for what's to come. Absolutely. Was Coach Heller sad to see you depart the program?

Yeah, they were sad. They definitely supported my decision. Nobody was upset or crazy mad at me. They supported me and were happy for me, so that really helped. I love it, man. And so you're coming into your senior season. What are your goals for your upcoming high school season? My number one goal as a team is to win a state championship.

That hasn't happened in a very long time in Sun Prairie, and my goal is to bring that to this town. And another goal, personally, I really just want to work. I just want to get stronger and faster. Like, I've never really focused on football lifting

because I've always played three sports, but this year I definitely want to lock in and work on that. Yeah. Are you going to be playing basketball and baseball this season as well? Yep. I'm going to play all three. I love it, man. So I can make the assumption that you're probably not enrolling early. Would that be accurate? No, I will not be enrolling early.

Totally fair. What do you plan on studying when you're at Iowa, or do you have any plans for that yet? I'm not really decided. I've always been interested in engineering or possibly becoming a police officer. My dad is, so one of those two. I love it, man.

And so if you weren't playing football, let's say, obviously, I'm assuming the goal is to go to the NFL. Would that be accurate? Yeah, yeah. If you don't go to the NFL, what would be your dream job? Honestly, probably, like, construction. I love building things. I love hands-on projects, like building houses or designing houses. That'd be my dream job.

That's super cool. This, this show isn't about me, but one time after my freshman year, I laid concrete for a week and I decided, wow, I am not good at this. For the love of God, construction is not my forte. So there has been a lot of, I want to talk to you a little bit about recruiting in general for Iowa. This, this 2022 class has been getting a lot of notoriety,

I guess, from, from Iowa fans and stuff. They're looking at this and everyone's really excited about the recruits we do have, but I think people are focusing very much on the recruits maybe that we aren't getting. I wanted to get your thoughts.

There's been rumors about negative recruiting. I know your football recruiting experience was a little bit quick, right? Because you have a pretty good interest for Iowa, but have you heard anything about the negative recruiting and what are your thoughts on that? I've seen a little bit about it. I personally haven't heard anything. Nobody's told me anything. It all happened really fast so i i never really experienced um much of that but i haven't seen any negative nothing bad like that so awesome yeah

that's interesting and have you been in communication with any of the current commits in your class? Yeah. Yeah. I've talked to a few of them. Jack Dotzler, we used to play basketball together when we were little. So he's been one of my friends for a while. Yeah. You guys are pretty close, right? Wanakee and Sun Prairie? Yeah. Yeah. Nice. I know some geography in Wisconsin. Yeah. Just a couple of light questions here.

What are you most excited about for playing for the Iowa Hawkeyes? Honestly, just the legacy they have with tight ends. I'm excited to be under the coaching staff that they have. Even when I was there at camp, they were helping me with the little things that I'd never been taught before. So I'm just excited to be in full blow with that and be hands-on with all the coaches. Absolutely, man. And who is your favorite Iowa tight end? Probably Kettle. Yeah.

Yeah. I'd have to go with him. And what is your favorite NFLfl team is it the packers gosh wisconsin kids man so so much talk about packers um name image likeness is a big deal now as you probably know um have you given literally any thought to name image likeness to this point honestly no um i i haven't really gotten to or sorry um can you repeat the question no uh yeah so uh have you given any thought to name image likeness uh for you and like kind of what your brand would be going to the university

of iowa yeah yeah um no honestly i haven't i've kind of seen what other people are doing i think it's kind of cool what all the athletes are kind of coming out with and they're different types of brands um but i'd definitely be interested in like learning more and maybe trying to come up with something pretty cool for everybody yeah what would be your dream partnership um anything you have everything on the table it could be anything like like is nike Yeah, what would be your dream partnership? Anything. You have everything on the table. It could be anything. Like is Nike on the table?

Nike is on the table. I would want to get some cool Nike clothes and my own Nike brand. I think that would be pretty sweet. I love it, man. And you grew up in Big Ten country, so you're obviously very familiar with Wisconsin playing a lot of Big Ten teams. What is the team you're most looking forward to playing if it's going to be wisconsin i gotta ask you to say name a second team wisconsin would be my first um i think my second probably minnesota

um i've my uncle is a huge minnesota he went to Minnesota. So every year, you know, the Wisconsin, Minnesota rivalry to have, um, we I've never liked the golfers. So I definitely I'm excited to go and beat them. You'll fit right in with every Iowa fan. Um, yeah. Did you camp at Minnesota though? I thought you did go up to Minnesota for a camp, right? How was that? Yeah, it was cool. I did a did a like unofficial visit type thing and then i did the camp right after that so um it was cool yeah uh is pj fleck is high energy around people as he is on camera

oh yeah oh yeah yeah that guy just i feel like uh he is constantly drinking like he constantly feels like he just drank a bang energy drink yeah you could definitely feel that when you're uh when you're talking to him yeah and then uh comparing that to kirk ferens what is what is it like talking to kirk ferens after you know dealing with uh you know pj flack yeah it was definitely a way different personality. I love Coach Ferenczi. He's a great guy, but they definitely have different personalities. Absolutely, man. My final question for you, what would you want Iowa fans to know about you before you joined the Iowa football team?

Honestly, I'm a hard worker. I'm just excited to be a Hawk i mean i know i've just started getting recruited by them but i i just can't wait to come down to iowa city and serve them what i can do yeah man i mean you couldn't be coming to a better place tight end university i don't care what anyone says i think it's pretty clear when you have two first round picks in the same draft you have an all-american and i don't know if you saw this but we have a former defensive end catching, mossing people in the end zone for the Falcons. I mean, that's,

that's pretty darn good for a legacy perspective. Oh, yes, sir. Yes, sir. I love man. And obviously we did talk about name, image, likeness, where can folks find you at on whether Twitter or Instagram or wherever you're at? My Twitter is just Addison Ostranga, no space or anything. And then my Instagram is AddisonOstranga7, I believe. Awesome, man.

Well, Addison, I appreciate you coming on. Wish you the best of luck. I'm excited to see you in a Hawkeye uniform and have a good season this year, man. Thank you very much for talking to me. It was a great interview. Awesome. Thanks, buddy.

Thank you. All right, y'all. And that does do it for our Friday morning episode of the lockdown Hawkeyes podcast. I hope you enjoyed that as much as I did when I talked to Addison, a phenomenal kid, really excited to see what he can do in an Iowa Hawkeye uniform.

So go make sure to follow him on Twitter and Instagram. Got to get that, you know, the name image likeness credibility up before he gets the university of Iowa. So we can be in prof profiting off some of his name, image, likeness at the University of Iowa as a tight end prospect, which again, we all know tight end prospects seem to thrive at the University of Iowa.

And if you liked the show, make sure to give us that five-star review. Subscribe wherever you downloaded this podcast at. We are a daily show covering your Iowa Hawkeyes, so we'll be back next week, Monday through Friday. We have some awesome content on the way. Might have an interview with the Iowa basketball player. We'll see. We're working on it.

Could be getting it in the works. And we're going to be doing some previews of this upcoming football season as well. So all of that is coming up on the Locked On Hawkeyes podcast next week and the week after. Again, I appreciate you all tuning in. And if you want to listen to more Locked On content, you got to check out Locked On Bets. Betting on your team doesn't have to be a guessing game if you listen to the new Locked On Bets podcast, hosted by your boy Q and handicapping expert Lee Sterling.

Get daily picks, blowout specials, wrong team favorite picks, and Lee Sterling's lock of the day. Follow the Locked On Bets podcast brought to you by betonline.ag, wherever you get your podcast app. And that will do it for our show today. Have a fantastic Friday, an even better weekend, and as always, Hawkeye Nation, let's go Hawks.