The Music City Bowl was about getting a win and Iowa ending the season on a good note. (Check.) It was also about sending off some superb seniors (Jack Campbell, Sam LaPorta, Riley Moss) with some final highlights. (Check.) And it was a chance to see the future of the Iowa program as well, with several young players getting new or expanded roles. The best news? Several of those players looked very good -- and made us very excited to see what they can do in 2023.

Iowa fans have been waiting for the X-man to get an opportunity to showcase the talent that made him the highest-ranked recruit to ever select Iowa and one of the top defensive backs in the 2022 recruiting class. For most of the year, there were only glimpses of Nwankpa on special teams, or occasionally on defense in blowouts. Kaevon Merriweather's decision to opt out of the Music City Bowl and begin preparations for the 2023 NFL Draft opened the door for Nwankpa to get meaningful playing time with Iowa's first team defense. After reportedly impressing during December's bowl prep practices, Nwankpa got his first start in an Iowa uniform on Saturday -- and he did not disappoint.

Nwankpa finished the game with 8 tackles (second-most on the Iowa defense), plus an interception and a pass break-up. The interception is the highlight play and the one that everyone will remember from this game, and it was impressive. He read the pass expertly, showed the ball skills that have made Iowa's secondary so good at racking up interceptions in recent years, and then weaved down the field to convert the pick into a touchdown. But Nwankpa impressed beyond that play as well -- he looked at ease in his first start and showed little in the way of nerves, even as some Kentucky players tried to rattle him. He made some very strong open-field tackles as well and looked strong in run support as well as pass coverage. You really couldn't have scripted a better first start than this for the X-man.

Castro's day was a bit overshadowed because of the highlight-reel play from two of his fellow defensive backs (Nwankpa and Cooper DeJean), but his efforts deserve highlighting as well. Unlike several of the other players on this list, Castro is a bit older (he's a junior) and he has far more starting experience (he's been Iowa's main player in the "cash" role all season and started several games). But the Music City Bowl felt like a notable game for him because he really put it all together and played his best game as a Hawkeye. He finished with 5 tackles, including a sack, and two passes broken up. The "cash" role has been a springboard to NFL Draft success for past Iowa defensive backs -- see: Amani Hooker and Geno Stone -- and his showing today suggested that Castro could follow in those footsteps, too. In addition to strong coverage skills, Castro played well against the run and even showed some pass rush skills on a blitz. Castro's play over the season had its ups and downs (he was caught out a few times in Iowa's season-ending loss to Nebraska), but a game like this feels as if it could be a launching pad to a strong senior season.

During the 2022 season, Craig had 7.5 tackles for loss (4th best on the team) and 6.5 sacks (best on the team). Saturday, he added to those totals with 3.5 tackles for loss (!) and another sack. Craig was blowing up the edge of Kentucky's offensive line on a regular basis in the game and looked like a complete player and an absolute menace. The strength of Iowa's defensive line over the past two seasons has been its depth -- what it's lacked in terms of superstar individual performers it's made up for in terms of having 8-10 guys who all consistently play at a high level. Prior to 2021, Iowa had a string of superstar defensive linemen -- Daviyon Nixon, Anthony Nelson, A.J. Epenesa -- and while it's premature to put Craig in that company just yet, he's putting up numbers that compare favorably to what a guy like Nelson did as a sophomore (7.5 sacks, 9.5 TFL). Craig looked better in the second half of the season -- 5.5 of his 7.5 sacks (and 9.0 of his 11.0 TFL) this year came in Iowa's final six games -- and he looks like a player who's really figuring things out. The game has slowed down for him, his technique has caught up to his physical tools, and he's able to more consistently impose his will on opponents.

(NOTE: Aaron Graves almost made this list, despite officially not getting credited for any stats in Saturday's game -- no tackles, no sacks, no QB hurries. He still found a way to flash in his time on the field and continued to show that he's going to be an absolute force on Iowa's defensive sooner rather than later. His strength, speed, and relentless motor make him extremely difficult to block already, and as he hones his technique with more practice, he should be even scarier for opposing offensive linemen.)

It was another rough day for the Iowa offense overall, but one of the few bright spots (outside of tight ends Sam LaPorta and Luke Lachey, who are well-established figures at this point) came from backup running back Jaziun Patterson. This was only his third appearance of the season (which means he'll be able to use a redshirt this year and be a redshirt freshman in 2023) as he was no higher than fourth on the RB depth chart for most of the season (behind fellow freshman Kaleb Johnson, as well as Leshon Williams, and Gavin Williams). Patterson was, surprisingly, Iowa's leading rusher for the game, with 23 yards on four carries, including a long run of 17 yards. Some caveats apply -- his runs came late in the game, against some Kentucky backups and well after the game was at all close -- but Patterson still showed some positive things in his carries. He had some good wiggle to elude defenders and showed some nice pop in the open field. Johnson still looks like Iowa's top running back in 2023 (despite a rough day in the Music City Bowl -- 17 yards on 9 carries), but Patterson looks like he could be another capable option for Iowa and someone who might be able to push Williams for carries, too.