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Welcome back to our countdown to the 2026 Iowa football season!

Since May 28, we've been counting down the final 100 days until the Hawkeyes swarm out of the Kinnick Stadium tunnel for their season opener against Northern Illinois on Sept. 5. 

Each day of the countdown has primarily featured an article profiling one of the current members of the 2026 Hawkeyes based on their jersey number. 

Loyal readers already know this, but in case you're just now catching football fever and want to tune in, here's how this works: if a player wears No. 21 and we're 21 days from kickoff, then that's the player we're going to be taking a look at. 

We've had to occasionally mix things up due to Iowa not issuing a jersey number for every day in the countdown, but we've jumped around that problem about 94% of the time. 

Today marks 19 days until the season opener, which means it's time to take a look at the man who wears No. 19 – tight end Mason Woods. 

If the last name sounds familiar, it's because it is. Get to know former special teams coordinator LeVar Woods' son here. 

Bio 

Hometown: Iowa City, Iowa 

High School: Iowa City West High School 

Year: Second-Year 

Height: 6-foot-2 

Weight: 230 pounds 

Other notable players to wear No. 19: He's maybe not an all-time Hawkeye great, but former quarterback Jackson Stratton is a very interesting piece of recent Iowa history. Stratton joined the Hawkeyes as a walk-on ahead of the 2024 campaign before improbably starting the final two games of the regular season – both of which ended with Iowa victories. 

Woods' Career So Far 

Woods opted to take a redshirt year last season, but considering who his father is, it won't be surprising to see him on the field very soon. He played both wide receiver and tight end at Iowa City West, collecting 1,057 yards and 12 touchdowns for a remarkable average of 19.6 yards per catch. 

Ranked as a three-star recruit by 247Sports composite, Woods unsurprisingly chose the Hawkeyes over offers from Kansas, Kansas State, Missouri, and others. LeVar was not the lead recruiter during Mason's recruitment, with that job going to tight ends coach Abdul Hodge. 

LeVar stunned Iowa fans by departing his alma mater to become the special teams coordinator and assistant coach for Pat Fitzgerald at Michigan State, but Mason chose to remain in Iowa City – a sign of his loyalty to Iowa football. 

But role could he play in 2026? It's unlikely he'll see action at tight end because DJ Vonnahme, Addison Ostrenga, Thomas Meyer, and Zach Ortwerth are all in the way, but that doesn't mean he can't contribute elsewhere. 

Some of the greatest players of the Kirk Ferentz era have began their careers on special teams, and that may be a good place for Mason to start with four years of eligibility left. 

You Can Win FREE Tickets To Iowa's Season Opener! 

HawkeyeRoundtable is giving away TWO tickets to Iowa's season opener against Northern Illinois on Sept. 5! 

This is easily the biggest giveaway we've ever done on this site, and it's a great opportunity for two lucky fans to experience the joy of attending a Hawkeye football game at Kinnick Stadium. 

Click here to automatically become a member to enter the contest! Additional contest details can be found in our community section, too! 

HawkeyeRoundtable publisher Brad Schultz has covered the Iowa Hawkeyes since 2023. To send him story ideas, scoops, or criticize his writing, reach him at bradschultz@roundtable.io

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