We're tracking which true freshman see the field for Iowa football this fall all season. As a reminder, players can see action in up to four games and still use a redshirt to retain eligibility for future season. Playing in five or more games eliminates the possibility of a redshirt season.
WEEK 7 -- OCT 12: WASHINGTON
Three true freshmen seeing action against Washington on Saturday -- the same trio that saw action against Ohio State last week.
(15) Reece Vander Zee: 1 reception, 6 yards, 3 targets
Vander Zee played 39 snaps on Saturday, which was the most of any receiver; Jacob Gill had the second-most snaps with 37. While Vander Zee was on the field a lot for the Iowa offense, he had a quiet day in terms of targets and receptions. Vander Zee was targeted just three times and finished with one catch for six yards. On a day that saw two other receivers -- Seth Anderson and Dayton Howard -- make their biggest splashes of the season, it will be interesting to see what comes next for Vander Zee in the back half of the season.
(9) Rhys Dakin: 2 punts, 116 yards (58.0 yards per attempt), 2 punts inside 20
Dakin had his quietest game of the season in terms of workload -- which was a very good thing for the Hawkeyes overall. Dakin punted just twice all game and had zero punts after the second quarter. The Iowa offense got clicking after that, scoring on seven straight drives en route to a 40-point effort.
The two punts that Dakin did have were two of his best of the season, though. He launched a booming 55-yard punt that combined fantastic length and tremendous hang-time and resulted in a return of just two yards. Then he topped his previous effort with an even more booming 61-yard punt that had even more impressive length and even better hang-time; that punt resulted in no return.
(3) Jaylen Watson: 1 tackle
Watson saw action again, though the freshman defensive back did not log any defensive snaps in the game. He saw the field on special teams, though, and recorded a tackle. Iowa has a bevy of younger options at cornerback, but Watson's playing time now ought to help him compete for bigger roles on defense and special teams in the future.
GAMES PLAYED TRACKER
6 GAMES:
* Vander Zee, Dakin
3 GAMES:
* Watson
1 GAME:
* Fox
