Former South Dakota running back transfer LJ Phillips Jr. has committed to Iowa out of the NCAA transfer portal, per On3’s Pete Nakos. Phillips was one of the most dynamic rushers at the FCS level in 2025. He finished the season with 1,921 rushing yards and 19 touchdowns. This included nine games with at least […]
Former South Dakota running back transfer LJ Phillips Jr. has committed to Iowa out of the NCAA transfer portal, per On3’s Pete Nakos. Phillips was one of the most dynamic rushers at the FCS level in 2025.
He finished the season with 1,921 rushing yards and 19 touchdowns. This included nine games with at least 100 yards rushing — including a 301-yard rushing performance against Northern Colorado in September.
In three years at the collegiate level, Phillips has appeared in 35 games where he’s totaled 340 carries for 2,193 yards and 23 touchdowns. Before 2025, he was limited to 46 touches for 272 yards and four touchdowns.
The South Dakota transfer chose Iowa over Penn State. Phillips played against Matt Campbell’s Iowa State Cyclones this past season, but finished that matchup with four carries for 13 yards. Now, he’s heading to Iowa City to help the Hawkeyes rushing attack in 2026.
He’s spent three seasons in college, but will be a redshirt junior in 2026. He redshirted in 2023 before playing sparingly in 2024 ahead of his breakout 2025 season.
This past season’s heroics came after he had a stellar high school career. A two-time all-state selection at running back, Phillips totaled 379 carries for 4,113 yards and 59 touchdowns for Northwest High School. It’s the same high school that produced Breece Hall.
There were some questions regarding whether longtime Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz would return to the program in 2026. After all, it’ll be his 28th season at the helm and for the time being, it appears that he’s not slowing down.
In 27 seasons, Iowa has made a bowl game in all but five years under his guidance. They’ve qualified for 13 consecutive bowl games (they didn’t accept a bowl invitation in 2020 during the pandemic) and 23 in the last 25 years. 2025 marked the 11th time a Ferentz-led Iowa team won at least nine games in a regular season.
“I feel great and enjoy what I’m doing,” he said. “You get to work with the people I work with on a daily basis and our staff — you know, I’m trying to keep our marriage together, too — so I think all those things combined all work out.”
To keep up with the latest players on the move, check out On3’s Transfer Portal wire. The On3 Transfer Portal Instagram account and Twitter account are excellent resources to stay up to date with the latest moves.
Category: General Sports
