Iose Epenesa commits to Iowa Hawkeyes; 5-star DE is top 2025 prospect in Illinois

Epenesa will become fourth member of family to play football for Iowa Hawkeyes

Edwardsville (Ill.) 2025 defensive end Iose Epenesa / Photo by Nate Latsch, SBLive Sports

Iose Epenesa is following in his family's footsteps.

A 6-foot-3, 265-pound senior defensive end at Edwardsville (Ill.) High School, Epenesa committed to the University of Iowa on Thursday, following his father and brother in playing football for the Hawkeyes.

He had also taken visits to Penn State, Missouri, Utah and Miami during the recruiting process.

Epenesa's father, Eppy, broke the news on his X (formerly Twitter) account.

"Today is a very Special Day for our family," Eppy Epenesa wrote, "our youngest son Iose just Committed to Kirk Ferentz & @HawkeyeFootball."

Today is a very Special Day for our family our youngest son Iose just Committed to Kirk Ferentz & @HawkeyeFootball Let’s Go Hawk’s 🦅💛🖤 pic.twitter.com/nIv1svETUj

— Eppy Epenesa (@EEpenesa) August 15, 2024

The Epenesa family has close ties to the Iowa program.

Eppy Epenesa played defensive tackle for the Hawkeyes. Iose's older brother, A.J., was a standout defensive lineman for Iowa. He was selected by the Buffalo Bills in the second round (No. 54 overall) of the 2020 NFL Draft and is beginning his fifth NFL season with the Bills after signing a two-year deal in the offseason. Another brother, Eric, is currently an outside linebacker for the Hawkeyes.

Iose Epenesa is a 5-star prospect rated as the No. 16 prospect nationally by 247Sports as well as the No. 3 defensive line prospect in the Class of 2025.

Related: Top Illinois 2025 high school football recruits

He is ranked as the No. 1 prospect in Illinois in the Class of 2025 by 247Sports and ESPN – which both rank him among the top 21 prospects nationally in the class – and by On3 as the No. 3 prospect in the state and by Rivals as the No. 4 prospect.

The On3 Industry rankings (which incorporate all four recruiting sites) have him as the top prospect in the state, the No. 3 defensive lineman prospect in the class and the No. 32 prospect nationally. In the 247 Composite rankings, Epenesa is No. 42 nationally.

As a junior, Epenesa recorded 31 tackles (eight for loss), and six sacks.

---

Watch Illinois high school sports on the NFHS Network

Want to watch your favorite team live in action? You can watch several Illinois high school football games each week live on the NFHS Network: Watch live on the NFHS Network

Download the SBLive Sports app

To get live updates on your phone - as well as follow your favorite teams and top games - you can download the SBLive Sports app:  Download iPhone App | Download Android App

Follow Illinois high school sports coverage on High School on SI

- Nate Latsch |  latsch@scorebooklive.com