By: Michael Higgins

School: Iowa (Sophomore)

Position: EDGE

HT: 6’5

WT: 264 lbs

Sideline Prospect Ranking: #35

Lukas Van Ness was a 3-star recruit in high school out of Barrington, Illinois. Iowa was Van Ness’s only Power 5 offer as a 3-star ranked outside of the national top 1000 players. Van Ness has been nothing shy of electric since stepping onto campus. Van Ness does have a good build for a linebacker, with solid size and athleticism, but he plays and moves like he is much lighter. With players in the trenches, it is important not only to look at their overall strength, but their functional strength. Van Ness has just that, elite functional strength. That combination of speed and power that Van Ness displays on every snap is rare. Van Ness has a variety of pass rush moves in his bag, which he executes well due to his movement abilities. He has great bend coming off the edge and shows flexibility in his pass rush sets. He is able to dip low and stack offensive linemen with his generated leverage. Van Ness has the speed to burn linemen on the edge and the power to rush right through them and into the backfield. This transcendent ability on the edge also led to the Iowa Hawkeyes to use Van Ness both on the edge and on the interior as a run stuffer and a gap penetrating 3-tech. Van Ness is able to make offensive linemen vulnerable and knock them off balance with his push-pull technique that he uses frequently to get through to the backfield. Van Ness put up some of his best reps against the top linemen in the country, proving that he can hold his own against the highest level of competition. When in a 3-point stance, Van Ness can generate power from his lower half once he engages with linemen at the line of scrimmage. He has put up great pass rushing numbers, but he has showcased an equal ability to stuff the run. On obvious running downs, Van Ness was lined up in the interior as he was one of Iowa’s best run stuffers even though it was not his primary job. Lukas

Van Ness put the country on notice this past season, one of the biggest risers in terms of draft stock, but he still has some areas to his game that need improvement. Van Ness is a bit raw, being a 3 year player in a limited rotational role made it difficult for Van Ness to put enough on tape. With the talent that Van Ness has, it is more than surprising that he did not start a single game for the Hawkeyes. Nevertheless, he is going to need patience in order to develop. Sometimes Van Ness plays too light, he is a big body but he can get knocked off his base when rushing and taken out of the play. Van Ness also has room to improve his finesse moves. His strength, in terms of pass rushing, is his power. If he can improve his finesse moves, he will be a complete and dynamic pass rusher.

Lukas Van Ness has all of the ability to become an elite edge rusher in the league. He will need time and patience in order to develop, but when he does he will be dangerous. Going to a team that can ease him in with a rotational role is key. Once he shows a more complete game, he can be handed a much bigger role all over the line.

Scheme Fit: Scheme Versatile

Ideal Role: Odd Front DE

Best Team Fits: NO, PIT, SEA

Player Comparison: Sam Hubbard

Player Grade: 81.7