With the 2026 Iowa and college football season just around the corner, former Hawkeyes consensus All-American tight end Dallas Clark has been named to the 12-member committee for the John Mackey Award, which honors the nation’s most outstanding tight end.
The award’s selection process will be led by a committee whose collective experience spans generations, positions and levels of the game. The group includes former NFL players, John Mackey Award winners, Super Bowl champions, All-Americans, coaches, executives and broadcasters who remain actively connected to the sport.
The full 12-person committee will include: Brian Mitchell, Greg Jones, Jake Marsh, Noah Eagle, Aaron Taylor, Jarvis Johnson, Adam Breneman, Owen Daniels, and former John Mackey Award-winners Nick O’Leary (Florida State, 2014), Jake Butt (Michigan, 2016) and Clark (2002).
Clark, who lettered for the Hawkeyes from 2000-02, was a consensus first-team All-American and first-team All-Big Ten selection in 2002 after leading Iowa to a Big Ten title and an 11-2 record. He finished with 1,281 receiving yards and eight touchdowns on 77 receptions at Iowa and was inducted into the Iowa Athletics Hall of Fame in 2022.
After declaring for the NFL draft, the Indianapolis Colts selected Clark in the first round in 2003, where he helped lead them to a Super Bowl Championship in 2006 and would later be named to the Colts’ Ring of Honor. After his tenure in Indianapolis, he played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2012) and Baltimore Ravens (2013).
During his NFL career, Clark was a first-team All-Pro and Pro Bowl selection in 2009 and accumulated 505 receptions for 5,665 yards and 53 touchdowns.
Clark and T.J. Hockenson (2018) are the only two Hawkeyes to win the award. However, Sam LaPorta (2022) was a finalist, and Tony Moeaki (2009), Allen Reisner (2010) and Noah Fant (2018) were semifinalists.
Entering the 2026 season, third-year DJ Vonnahme is on the John Mackey Award preseason watch list.
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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Iowa football legend named to John Mackey Award selection committee
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