Another Iowa football star is off the draft boards and won't need to change colors as the Pittsburgh Steelers selected offensive lineman Gennings Dunker with the No. 96 overall draft pick in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft.
Dunker is the second Hawkeye to be selected during Friday's Day 2 festivities along the banks of the Allegheny River in Pittsburgh, Penn., with the Chicago Bears picking center Logan Jones in the second round at No. 57 overall. Interestingly, Dunker is now the fourth Hawkeye to be chosen by the Steelers in the past three NFL Drafts.
With the rugged and foundational 6-foot-5, 319-pounder remaining in the Black and Gold color scheme in the Steel City, here are some of the best social media reactions from both Steelers and Hawkeyes fans to Dunker's draft selection:
"A mauler with a mullet" - @MoveTheSticks This may be @richeisen's favorite pick of the draft 😂 pic.twitter.com/ARrImvxZDy
Back in the Black & Gold @gennings_dunker ➡️ @steelers#NFLHawks x #NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/SrnIFMP5Ra
— Hawkeye Football (@HawkeyeFootball) April 25, 2026
All the validation I needed pic.twitter.com/veNCAa4LJr
At 6’5”, 315 pounds of pure Iowa corn-fed chaos, this offensive tackle doesn’t just block defenders — he distracts them with a mullet so glorious it has its own zip code and a mustache that even Tom Sellick would bow down to.He’s part Viking, part ’80s rock god, part guy who… pic.twitter.com/SDIHHexkyQ
YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO DRAFT STEAL!!!! pic.twitter.com/MDQInx1Abe
Gennings Dunker and his mullet are headed to the Steelers 😅NFL Draft on NFLN/ESPN/ABCStream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/rML12jxDA9
The mullet was made for Sundays ⚫️🟡@gennings_dunker x @steelers pic.twitter.com/chWBWGcoAe
— Hawkeye Football (@HawkeyeFootball) April 25, 2026
Built for the Steel City 💪@gennings_dunker x @steelers pic.twitter.com/BtfFkh9Wpr
— Hawkeye Football (@HawkeyeFootball) April 25, 2026
This man has the potential to be the greatest man of all time. pic.twitter.com/YdxB8nrBNX
Daniel Jeremiah rated Gennings Dunker as the 63rd best player in the draft.Mel Kiper Jr had him as the 72nd best player in the draft.And the Steelers got him with pick 96.That's excellent value.
— Andrew Fillipponi (@ThePoniExpress) April 25, 2026
Gennings Dunker is the 4th (!!) Iowa Hawkeye drafted by the Steelers in the last three (3) NFL Drafts.Of the 19 total picks Pittsburgh has made since 2024…Four (4!) have come from Iowa. https://t.co/nWiDzALTuZ pic.twitter.com/nZWF94qS5f
Bold take: I think there's a better chance Gennings Dunker starts week 1 than Max Ihenachor.
— Andrew Fillipponi (@ThePoniExpress) April 25, 2026