Diante Vines Dedicates First Touchdown to Fallen Uncle
Junior wideout Diante Vines hauled in the first touchdown pass of his Iowa career on Saturday in the Hawkeyes 41-10 victory over Western Michigan. While that would have been a special moment for a variety of reasons -- his injury history, rising up the depth chart, finally scoring his first collegiate touchdown -- unfortunately, Vines' score came with a heavy heart.
"My uncle had passed a week ago of cancer," he shared on Tuesday. "So, when I put my arms up and I looked up, I was looking up to him. I felt him over me at that moment."
"He called me superstar, so it was hard when he passed. It was cool to get in there a week after. I felt like that was for him."
He finished the game with two catches for seven yards and the touchdown.
"It was something that was in my mind," he continued. "I just wanted to perform, knowing that he was watching over me. He's been asking for a touchdown for a while now. It was cool to finally get that one, and I just know he was watching down."
"He's had so much hardship," added Kirk Ferentz. "It's just good to see him out there playing. I think he's having fun right now, and he's able to practice everyday. It sounds pretty mundane, but those are things he hasn't been able to do during his career."
Vines, who is from Danbury, Connecticut, got to experience the moment with his mom, who has spent the last several weeks in Iowa City.
"She's my favorite person in the world," he said. "We've got the best relationship ever. She does everything for me. Anything I need, she'll get done for me. Her coming out here for three weeks just to watch me -- three weeks in a row -- just means the world to me. Taking off work just to watch her son play, getting to score my first touchdown with her and experiencing that with her after the game, it's been a long time coming."
Vines is grateful that the familial connection will continue into this weekend in a top-25 matchup with Big Ten rival, Penn State. The trip from Danbury to State College, Pennsylvania is a short 4.5 hours.
"I'm definitely going to have extra family and extra friends there, maybe 40+ people over there for me, so that'll be exciting," he said. "It's going to be a great opportunity."