Orion, Illinois is not what you’d consider a college football factory. But there was one player that quickly got on everyone’s radar. A tight end that was making high schoolers look like 5th graders. Nine, yes nine Power 5 schools offered Logan Lee a scholarship.
Lee decided to stay close to home, and took an offer from Reese Morgan and the Iowa Hawkeyes in 2018.
“From the beginning, I knew that was the place for me,” Lee said on his signing day 2018. “I really like their coaching staff. I like them, I like the way they coached.”
By Lee’s sophomore season, he was a full-time starter and impact player. That’s when Lee decided to make another big decision, proposing to his girlfriend Tori. That reminded Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz of one of his former Hawkeyes.
“I just mentioned Aaron Kampman. When Aaron was here, he was like a 45-year-old guy on our team,” Ferentz said in November 2023. “You worry about those guys having fun sometimes — like did they miss out on some of the good stuff they do in college?”
Lee earned the respect of his teammates and in his final year at Iowa, he was one of four team captains.
“I’ve been extremely blessed with opportunities,” Lee said. “Whether it be God, my wife, my family, my teammates here. I’ve been so blessed.”
In three seasons as a starter, Lee racked up nine sacks, 18.5 tackles for loss and 158 total tackles on the defensive line. But it’s what Lee did as a tight end at Orion that has also caught the attention of NFL teams.
“There’s a couple of teams that asked me to run a few routes, so I did just about everything.” Lee said.
Lee probably won’t be the next tight end representing the Hawkeyes in the NFL, but he thinks getting in work as a special teams player will help him at the next level.
“I’m just trying to show versatility any time I can,” Lee said. “The more things you do, the better off you can be. Everybody still sees me as a D-lineman, but it’s just an extra bonus.”
Now Lee will take on the challenge of the NFL. Experts tab him as a Day 3 selection. He’ll be chomping at the bit for his opportunity.
“I definitely believe that I have a chip on my shoulder,” Lee said. “That’s what sets me apart — the willingness and ability to play through adversity and be able to push the pace as much as I can. A lot of that stems from me just being a competitor.”
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