How Iowa Attempts to Fill the Cooper DeJean Void
IOWA CITY -- Last Wednesday, Iowa star defensive back and punt returner Cooper DeJean went down with a leg injury that will leave him out for the remainder of the 2023 season.
The first game he missed was Iowa's 15-13 win over Illinois, and Iowa's defense and special teams units missed the presence of one of the best defensive backs and punt returners in the country. On Saturday and going forward, they'll have to continue to figure out how to operate without DeJean.
To be clear -- there's no 'replacing' a player like DeJean. The Hawkeyes will do the best they can with what they have.
"Any time you lose anybody, we're not deep enough to not be affected by it," Kirk Ferentz said at Tuesday's media availability. "Then you talk about a guy like Cooper who is not only a good corner, but one of the best in the country. And he's one of the best, if not the best, returners in the country. Beyond that, what he means to our team emotionally, guys that are really good players add that component."
"But it does -- it hurts. Any time you lose one of your top guys -- and I say top, not just a player, but a top guy, one of our leaders. But then Jermari (Harris) stepped out there, and I think he played his best game as a Hawkeye Saturday, and Deshaun (Lee) came back from injury and really played a good game too. You're not going to replace a player like him with one guy. It's got to be a team effort. Everybody's got to amp it up a little bit, and that's the only way you can overcome losing some guys."
Lee started in place of DeJean against Illinois, and how he plays the remainder of the season will be pivotal in Iowa's passing defense.
"[Deshaun] is disciplined for his age, and he competes hard," Harris said. "He also almost had a few interceptions this year, and I know he's going to get one soon. He's another ballhawk in the defensive backfield, tackling. I think he's just scratching the surface. He's going to continue to rise and hopefully be a fan-favorite here."
"We've had young guys who have been doing a bunch of work throughout the season and getting better. So, it's been next man up," sophomore defensive back Xavier Nwankpa added. "Deshaun has been really good at manning receivers. He's physical with his hands, and he finishes really well."
Another new name that Iowa fans have seen in spurts is true freshman John Nestor, who has received the majority of his snaps this season on special teams.
"Nestor has done a great job coming in on special teams and making an impact there," Harris said. "We preach 'Find your value on the team.' Right now his value is coming in on special teams and being a backup if someone does go down. He's done a great job this year stepping up and bringing value."
"Nestor is a great player," Nwankpa added. "He has done a lot of learning through the season, but I see a lot of potential in him. Kind of like a Riley Moss. I'm excited to see what he's going to do in these coming years."
Nestor has impressed the staff in his early goings as a Hawkeye as well.
"John is just a football guy. He's got a temperament a little bit like Phil's, so it was kind of like love at first sight for those guys," Ferentz joked. "He goes hard."