By Pat Harty

IOWA CITY, Iowa – Floyd of Rosedale usually has the stage mostly to himself in the days leading up to the annual battle for his presence, but this week has been different because of something that happened about 11 months ago.

That something is Cooper DeJean’s punt return for a touchdown against Minnesota, which in a matter of a few minutes had gone from being one of the most spectacular plays in program history to a play that never was as it was ruled dead for an invalid fair catch signal.

Minnesota would hang on to win 12-10 at Kinnick Stadium, and Hawkeye fans have been stewing ever since, convinced that the officials were mistaken.

Floyd has had to share the spotlight this week with Cooper DeJean simply because this is first time the teams have played since what Iowa fans insist was an injustice.

A year from now, DeJean’s punt return might not even be brought up.

This past Tuesday, however, it was probably the hottest topic in the weekly press gathering with select Iowa players..

Some in the media are promoting a rally behind Cooper narrative as motivation for Saturday’s game at Huntington Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.

Star linebacker Jay Higgins didn’t seem very receptive to that idea.

“I think Coop is happy with his NFL contract,” Higgins when asked about rallying behind DeJean. “I’m sure he’s watching us. But I think his head is in a different place.

“I’m happy for Coop, but we’re doing it for ourselves, we’re doing it for this team this year. I guess I’ll send Coop a text if we win.”

Higgins seemed to be saying that it’s time to move on, and that DeJean has certainly moved on as he now plays defensive back for the Philadelphia Eagles after being selected in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft.

For Higgins to say that we’re doing it for this team isn’t showing disrespect or dishonor to DeJean, but rather respect for his current team.

Iowa fans certainly have an argument about the now infamous punt return, because for one, the officials didn’t rule the play dead, and allowed for it to play out on the field, and because DeJean insists that he was simply motioning with his left arm while pointing with his right arm for his teammates to stay away from the ball.

The problem with Iowa’s argument is that DeJean did wave his left arm, and the rule says that when any waving happens, the ball is going to be called dead.

It’s also easy to forget that Iowa still had a chance to win the game after taking over at its own 46-yard line with 1 minute, 32 seconds left to play.

All that was needed was about 20 to 25 yards to give kicker Drew Stevens a chance to win the game, but the Iowa offense, which at the time was led by former backup quarterback Deacon Hill, showed why it was arguably the worst offense in the country as the Gophers intercepted on third down.

Hill was sacked for minus-7 yards on first down and threw an incompletion on second down.

As far as the punt return itself, it was one of those rare moments when a great athlete and competitor uses all his skills to do the unimaginable.

From his vision to his balance to his elusiveness, DeJean needed all of those skills to reach the end zone.

The way in which he spun away from several Gopher defenders and then tight-roped down the sideline before crossing the field and finding the end zone was a thing of beauty.

To have something that beautiful and exhilarating taken away was a gut punch to Iowa fans.

It was a brutal way to lose to a heated border rival, and Hawkeye fans certainly have the right to say that an injustice had occurred, and to dwell on it if they choose.

But for the current Iowa players, they should have plenty of motivation without having to think about what happened last year to a player that isn’t on the team anymore.

Hopefully, that doesn’t get interpreted as trying to minimize DeJean’s legacy or his effort on that play because it was truly spectacular.

It’s more a case of saying that the current Iowa team has its own identity, its own heartbeat and chemistry and its own path to carve.

What happened last season is history.

All that matters now is living in the moment and trying to avoid being 2-2 heading into the first of two bye weeks this season, and with Ohio State up next on the schedule on Oct. 5 in Columbus.

Should the Gophers win on Saturday, the odds of Iowa falling to 2-3 would be almost insurmountable considering how few times Iowa has won at Ohio State.

Any chance of making the new 12-team playoff would also vanish with three losses.

It would be hard enough for Iowa to make the playoff with two losses.

So, yes, it could be argued that Saturday’s game under the lights is a must win for Iowa, even with it being the Big Ten opener.

But if Iowa were to beat Minnesota and then lose to Ohio State, the final seven conference games would all be must wins for Iowa to have any chance to mkae the playoff.

And don’t underestimate the power and influence of Floyd, the statue of a bronze pig that goes to the winner of this game.

He can’t change what happened last season, but he can be a powerful motivator.

Floyd has spent most of the past decade residing in Iowa City.

And to think it took a controversial play involving a former star player to make him move.

The Gophers haven’t won two straight games against Iowa since the 2010 and 2011 seasons.

Minnesota started this season with a 19-17 loss to North Carolina at home, a game in which Gopher All-Big Ten kicker Dragen Kesich missed a potential game winning field goal in the final seconds.

The Gophers have since rebounded with back-to-back shutouts against Rhode Island and Nevada by scores of 48-0 and 27-0, respectively.

And now they have Iowa coming to town, determined to get Floyd back where the Iowa players feel he belongs.

Prediction: Iowa 20, Minnesota 14

Iowa (2-1) vs. Minnesota (2-1)

When: Saturday, 6:34 p.m.

Where: Huntington Bank Stadium, Minneapolis

TV: NBC

Radio: Hawkeye Radio Network

All-time series: Minnesota lead 63-52-2.

Last meeting: Minnesota won 12-10 on Oct. 21, 2023 in Iowa City

As far as the play itself, Cooper DeJean’s 54-yard punt return against Minnesota last season was one of those rare moments when a great athlete and competitor has it all working.

From his vision to his balance to his elusiveness, DeJean needed all of those skills to reach the end zone.

Unfortunately for Hawkeye fans, DeJean while pointing with his right arm also moved his left arm ever so slightly in sort of waving motion as the ball bounced on the field. That was DeJean’s way of telling his teammate to stay away from ball.

Or, so he thought.

The officials reviewed the play, and after a few agonizing minutes, the play was called dead because DeJean had waved his left arm just enough to make it an invalid fair catch signal.

As it ultimately led to nothing but anger and frustration, Cooper DeJean’s 54-yard punt return for what was at first believed to be a potential game-winning touchdown against Minnesota last season is a play that will live on in infamy.

In a matter of seconds, Iowa fans had gone from cafter having watched DeJean spin away from multiple Gopher defenders near the Minnesota sideline, then tight-rope the sideline across the field and then find his way to the end zone to then booing and protesting after the touchdown was erased due to an invalid fair catch signal.

The ultimate high shifted abruptly to the lowest of lows as Minnesota would go on to win 12-10 at Kinnick Stadium, snapping an eight-game losing streak in the battle for Floyd Rosedale.

Nearly a year later, and with the two long-time border rivals set to square off again on Saturday night in Minneapolis, the controversy surrounding DeJean’s punt return is a hot topic again.

Some in the media are promoting a rally behind Cooper narrative as motivation for Saturday’s game.

Select Iowa players met with the media on Tuesday and DeJean’s punt return was brought up repeatedly.

“I think Coop is happy with his NFL contract,” said Iowa star linebacker Jay Higgins when asked about rallying behind DeJean. “I’m sure he’s watching us. But I think his head is in a different place.

“I’m happy for Coop, but we’re doing it for ourselves, we’re doing it for this team this year. I guess I’ll send Coop a text if we win.”

Higgins seemed to be saying that it’s time to move on, and that DeJean has certainly moved on as he now plays defensive back for the Philadelphia Eagles after being selected in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft.

For Higgins to say that we’re doing it for this team isn’t showing disrespect to DeJean, but rather respect for his current team.

Iowa fans certainly have an argument about the DeJean punt return, because for one, the officials didn’t rule the play dead and allowed for it to unfold on the field, and because it’s debatable if DeJean moved his arm enough to signal a fair catch.

But it’s easy to forget that Iowa still had a chance to win the game after taking over at its own 46-yard line with 1 minute, 32 seconds left to play.

All that was needed was about 20 to 25 yards to give kicker Drew Stevens a chance to win the game, but the Iowa offense, which was led by former backup quarterback Deacon Hill, showed why it was arguably the worst offense in the country as the Gophers intercepted on third down.

Hill had been sacked for minus-7 yards on first down and threw an incompletion on second down.

It was a brutal way to lose to a heated border rival, and Hawkeye fans certainly have the right to say that an injustice had occurred, and to dwell on it if they choose.

But for the current Iowa players, they should have plenty of motivation without having to think about what happened last year to a player that isn’t on the team anymore.

Hopefully, that doesn’t get interpreted as trying to minimize DeJean’s effort on that play because it was truly spectacular.

It’s more a case of saying that the current Iowa team has its own identity, its own heartbeat and chemistry and its own path to carve.

What happened last season is history.

All that matters now is living in the moment and trying to avoid being 2-2 heading into the first of two bye weeks this season, and with Ohio State up next on the schedule on Oct. 5 in Columbus.

Should the Gophers win on Saturday, the odds of Iowa falling to 2-3 would be almost insurmountable considering how few times Iowa has won at Ohio State.

Any chance of making the new 12-team playoff would also vanish with three losses.

It would be hard enough for Iowa to make the playoff with two losses.

So, yes, it could be argued that Saturday’s game under the lights is a must win for Iowa even with it being the Big Ten opener.

Kirk Ferentz and his players would say that every game is a must win, and fair enough.

Some games are just more of a must win than others.