The Iowa football team was without one of its top offensive weapons on Saturday.
Senior-to-be tight end Jake Duzey did not participate in Saturday’s scrimmage at Kinnick Stadium because of a knee injury that he sustained Wednesday in practice.
Reports about Duzey’s injury had surfaced on Twitter during the week. Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz then confirmed the bad news on Saturday.
“As I think most of you probably know that Jake Duzey was injured in practice on Wednesday,” Ferentz said after the scrimmage. “It is a significant injury right now that is most likely going to require surgery. We’ll probably know a little bit more after Monday.”
Ferentz was optimistic that Duzey, a native of Troy, Mich., would return at some point next season. Duzey finished third on the team last season with 36 catches for 392 yards and three touchdowns.
“I think based on what I’ve heard, realistically, they think we’ll get him back for the season,” Ferentz said. “It may not be right off the bat when we get started in August. But hopefully, we’ll get him back for the season.
“It’s a tough blow. The good news is I think he has an excellent chance to get back with us. That’s something we’re all going to keep our fingers crossed for.”
MITCHELL SHINES: Sophomore Derrick Mitchell appears to have found at home at running back after switching from receiver this spring.
The St. Louis native had several impressive runs during Saturday’s scrimmage, earning praise from Ferentz.
“I’ve really been impressed with Derrick Mitchell,” Ferentz said. “I didn’t know what to expect, quite frankly. I think he’s done a lot of good things.
“He’s improved with each week of practice and looks a little bit more confident. I thought he ran pretty well today. He’s not there yet, but I think he’s on the right track.”
Iowa offensive coordinator Greg Davis said this past Wednesday that Mitchell, who is listed at 6-foot-1, 212 pounds, could be Iowa’s third-down back this coming season.
“So far, so good,” Ferentz said of Mitchell. “So I’m really excited about maybe where this is going to have a chance to take him.”
Sophomore running back Akrum Wadley, who rushed for over 100 yards against Northwestern last season, also progressed during spring practice, according to Ferentz. However, Ferentz said Wadley still has to learn when to hit the hole.
“He still runs a little bit like he’s still in high school,” Ferentz said. When it’s there, you’ve got to hit it instead of sometimes trying to make a big play. Four yards, that’s a big play, too.
“But that will get there, I think. But he’s making progress.”
A BETTER WIEGERS: Redshirt freshman quarterback Tyler Wiegers looked more comfortable behind center on Saturday compared to the open practice two weeks ago in West Des Moines.
Wiegers threw with more accuracy on Saturday and showed poise in the pocket. His progress could be crucial to Iowa’s success next season, considering Wiegers is the backup to starter C.J. Beathard.
“I’d say the last five practices we’ve really seen him start to take off,” Ferentz said of Wiegers, a 6-4, 208-pound native of Lake Orion, Mich. “And the good thing for him now is this will really serve him well this summer.”
BUILDING DEPTH AT LINEBACKER: Depth shouldn’t be a problem for Iowa at linebacker with five players competing for three starting positions.
Whether it is quality depth remains to be seen. Iowa struggled at linebacker last season with three new starters.
Sophomores Bo Bower, Ben Niemann and Josey Jewell were listed as the starters throughout spring practice. However, senior Travis Perry and junior Cole Fisher also are in the mix for playing time.
“Right now, it’s almost a coin flip with all five of the guys in terms of who the starters would be,” Ferentz said. “I just want to emphasize that Cole Fisher and Travis Perry both had really good springs.”
Bower, a former walk-on from West Branch, started all 13 games last season, while Jewell started the last four games. Niemann played mostly on special teams last season.
PUNTER UPDATE: Ferentz said senior Dillon Kidd would be the starting punter if Iowa had a game tomorrow. Kidd is competing for the starting position with seniors Connor Kornbrath and Marshall Koehn, who is also Iowa’s starting kicker.
Neither Kidd nor Kornbath distinguished themselves as the top punter last season.
“We’ll probably reserve judgment on that and let them keep competing right on through,” Ferentz said. “But I think we’ve made some progress.”
ATTENDANCE: There was no official attendance for Saturday’s scrimmage, but fewer than 5,000 probably would be a fair guess. The UI Sports Information Office estimated 8,000, but that seems high based on the number of people who were in the stands.