IOWA CITY — Eli Ozick saw some familiar faces when attending the Iowa men’s basketball game against UCLA on Jan. 3.
After starting his college football career at North Dakota State, a stint that included capturing an FCS national title, Ozick entered the transfer portal and took a visit to Iowa. That experience included going to a game at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, where Ozick was able to reconnect with someone from his past: Roger Stirtz.
You might recognize that last name.
Roger is the father of Bennett Stirtz, the Hawkeyes’ star point guard last season. As it turns out, Ozick attended the same high school — Liberty High School in Missouri — as Bennett Stirtz (Bennett graduated one year before Ozick). Roger was Ozick’s weight-lifting coach when he was a freshman at Liberty.
So when Ozick was at the Iowa basketball game during his visit in January, they crossed paths again.
“I know coach Stirtz,” Ozick said, “So I went over up to him, and he was like, ‘Yeah, Bennett’s loving it here.’”
Bennett Stirtz delivered a masterclass in Iowa’s 74-61 win over UCLA, dropping 27 points on 8-of-10 from the field and 4-of-6 from deep to go along with five assists and four rebounds.
“They’re great people,” Ozick said of Bennett and Roger. “Bennett’s got to be probably one of the hardest workers I’ve ever seen. You’re coming into school at whatever time and he’s in there getting shots up. Just unbelievable worker. You always knew he was going to be special. And then, does his thing at Northwest Missouri State and then just keeps jumping up tiers. Now look at him. He’s about to get drafted.”
One day after Iowa’s victory over UCLA, Ozick announced his commitment to the Hawkeyes.
“Great dude and he’s a good kicker, as well,” Bennett Stirtz said of Ozick. “So it’ll be good for the team.”
Ozick is now in competition for Iowa football’s kicking job.
There are big shoes to fill after the departure of Drew Stevens, the program’s all-time leader in made field goals. Ozick is in a battle with Caden Buhr to replace Stevens. Buhr appeared sparingly last season behind Stevens. Ozick, who converted on 19-of-23 field goals during his North Dakota State career, is the more experienced of the pair.
“That’s one I don’t foresee us saying or naming any starter until we run out of that tunnel (for the 2026 season opener) versus Northern Illinois just because I think you allow it as much time as it can to play out and see who has the hot hand,” special teams coordinator Chris Polizzi said. “But you enjoy having the experience of two guys that you know can go out there and kick with confidence.”
There was an interesting layer to Ozick’s recruiting process: Iowa did not have a special teams coordinator in place at the time. It was the period between LeVar Woods’ departure and Polizzi’s promotion. Ozick committed to Iowa with a level of blind faith.
“When I was on my visit, I just fell in love with it,” Ozick said. “I trusted coach (Kirk) Ferentz was going to make the right decision with hiring the right (special teams) coordinator that’s going to develop me the most they can. If you look around, it’s unbelievable facilities, four hours from home, great Big Ten football school. I love the culture here. It’s definitely one thing that stood out to me.”
A meeting with Ferentz gave Ozick confidence, despite the fact that there wasn’t a special teams coordinator in place yet.
“I was in his office for 45 minutes,” Ozick said. “Someone knocked on the door, probably like a minute thirty (in), and he just, not a care in the world, blew through the knock at the door and really just the took the time to get to know me. He’s been doing it so long, I trust that he was going to make the right decision for this program and for me as a kicker. Just complete trust in him.”
That hiring process eventually landed on Polizzi, who moved up the ladder after spending last season as an analyst in the Hawkeyes’ program.
Iowa’s special teams unit looks vastly different than it did last season after the departures of returner Kaden Wetjen, punter Rhys Dakin, Stevens and Woods. Beyond the kicking competition, Iowa has a pair of newcomers vying for the punting job — Simpson College transfer Tanner Philpott and Australia native Boston Everitt.
“The dynamic’s funny,” Ozick said of Iowa’s new-look special teams room. “Tanner’s the funniest guy I think you’d ever meet. He’s like the nicest dude. It was like probably about a week after I got to know him, I was like, ‘Dude, you’re like Ted Lasso.’ That’s got to be the best way to put you. But he’s a really nice kid. Probably like one of the nicest dudes I’ve ever been around. But the dynamic’s been great. Everyone wants to get better. Everyone wants to work.”
Since Buhr did not participate in Iowa’s spring open practice, Ozick was the only kicker in action. Ozick showed his leg strength, making kicks from roughly 52 and 50 yards. Ozick made a 54-yarder in each of his last two seasons at North Dakota State. Ozick was not perfect, missing a few kicks, but Ferentz saw growth from the previous Saturday.
“One easy (area of improvement) to cherry-pick from last Saturday is our kicking game,” Ferentz said. “It was really windy and just miserable out there. There’s nothing that looked too good. Our punting was bad and the field goals and all that. But today, saw some good things there. So, consistency — at the end of the day, with this whole football team — consistency is going to be a big part. I think we’re capable of doing some things, but haven’t shown much consistency during this period of 15 days. But seeing guys grow. And that’s good.”
Follow Tyler Tachman on X @Tyler_T15, contact via email at ttachman@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: What new Iowa football kicker Eli Ozick has in common with Bennett Stirtz
Reporting by Tyler Tachman, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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