George Kittle calls fellow Iowa alum Caitlin Clark 'a dog' with the 'highest grace' in handling WNBA treatment

Kittle and Clark have met before to share their Hawkeye memories, and in discussing the upcoming American Century Classic golf tournament in Lake Tahoe, the star tight end praised her even more.

"Caitlin's a dog. She couldn't be any nicer of a person. And she is just always nice, takes her time for everybody. I think when you go from being a college student to being one of the most popular people on the planet, I think she handles it incredibly well. She always has. She's an ultimate competitor," Kittle said in a recent interview with Fox News Digital.

As for her treatment on the court, notably some hard fouls and what many fans believe is jealousy, Kittle sidestepped a tad, but admitted that Clark "handles whatever is thrown her way incredibly well and with the highest grace."

"Just always proud of her and proud to say that she's a Hawkeye," Kittle said.

Kittle will be on the course later this month for the famed tournament, saying his "anxiety couldn't be any higher" despite being a tremendous underdog to win.

"We were hanging out in the training room after the game just to get away from the crowd a little bit," he recalled. "She comes in, hugs all the athletic trainers, talks to everybody, talks to us a little bit, and you just see how much people care for her. She has this incredible reputation that she's built day in and day out. So, she's done that, and just so excited for her."

"You see how she is on the court. She has this competitiveness. She's got this fire in her," he continued. "But as soon as she gets off the court, there's this flip of the switch. She's just Caitlin Clark. To be able to go back and forth between all that, you have to be very good to be able to do that, and she does that flawlessly."