Hawkeyes’ Nico Ragaini finds newfound appreciation for football, chip on his shoulder heading into 6th season
Calling Nico Ragaini the elder statesman of these Hawkeyes might not do his longevity justice. The sixth-year senior was a receiver in Nate Stanley’s offense for two seasons prior to the COVID year, was a primary target for all three years of Spencer Petras at quarterback, and will now finish his career catching passes from Cade McNamara.
He’s squeezed every last drop out of his college football eligibility. And before he opens his final fall camp in Iowa City, he had an epiphany of gratitude.
“I had a whole thing about this a week ago. It’s very easy for college athletes to take for granted being a college football player and forget that this is what we wanted to do when we were little,” Ragaini said.
He’s grown to appreciate the little things, and the grind it takes to be able to play the game of football.
“When I was in high school I would literally die to play college football,” Ragaini said. “Sometimes you don’t want to get up and not want to go to workouts. You don’t want to go to meetings and stuff like that. But really just like taking it all in and realizing how lucky we are at a place like Iowa where we get everything we want here. Just trying to enjoy it, talk to everybody, enjoy the people — all that good stuff.”
But alongside gratitude comes determination to put more points on the scoreboard. Ragaini and the Iowa offense finished 130th in yards per game in 2022. The bad taste in his mouth serves as motivation.
“I’m putting last year behind us,” Ragaini said. “I definitely remember the feeling of last year and I don’t want to feel that way again.”
Part of building the offense up from 2022’s blunders was a Cade McNamara-initiated trip to California. It was one Ragaini concurred was necessary, especially since most of the guys in the locker room were new faces.
“I’m the old guy here and I don’t really know Cade and I don’t really know Erick [All] and I didn’t know Kaleb [Brown],” Ragaini said. Then we’re all in houses on the beach in California enjoying each other being boys and stuff. It was a pretty fun trip.”
Ragaini thinks the offense’s chip on its shoulder coincides with the one McNamara has on his after being benched at Michigan in favor of J.J. McCarthy.
“I feel like you see that every time you talk to him. If you asked him how his year went last year I think he would have a chip on his shoulder for this upcoming year,” Ragaini said.
But overall, team bonding and a desire to improve has brought the Hawkeyes offense together and has set the tone for an inspired 2023 season.
“I was looking around at that team — guys on the offense. All of us didn’t play the way we wanted to so I think that brings us together as a unit.”
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