By Pat Harty

IOWA CITY, Iowa – The state of Iowa isn’t known for producing dynamic offensive skill players in football, and yet, three of the greatest return specialists in the history of the Iowa football program grew up in Iowa, including one who grew up just across town in Iowa City.

Tim Dwight, Cooper DeJean and now Kaden Wetjen all have defied the odds and shown that where you come from doesn’t really matter as long as you can get the job done.

Maybe it is just a coincidence that Dwight, DeJean and Wetjen are all from Iowa.

But if so, what a spectacular coincidence that three Iowa natives would go on to become arguably the three greatest return specialists in modern program history.

And if you want to go way back in time, Nile Kinnick, who was born in Adel, was also a game-changing return specialist who often flipped field position with a long return.

Cedar Rapids native Bill Happel also stood out as a punt returner in the 1980s, while Ankeny native Andy Brodell did the same for Iowa during his career from 2005 to 2008.

It could be argued that Tim Dwight set the standard as a punt returner, at least in the post-Kinnick era, which dates back to 1940.

Dwight, who grew up on the southeast side of Iowa City, returned five punts for touchdowns as a Hawkeye, and was named a consensus All-America return specialists as a senior in 1997.

He also as a rookie with the Atlanta Falcons returned a kick for a touchdown in the Super Bowl following the 1998 regular season.

Dwight has the distinction of having returned punts for touchdowns against Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State.

He and DeJean were used mostly as punt returners while at Iowa, though Dwight did return kicks early in his career.

DeJean will forever be remembered for having the most famous punt return for a touchdown in program history that didn’t lead to six points.

Officials wiped out his 54-yard punt-return for a touchdown against Minnesota in 2023, which would have given Iowa a late fourth-quarter lead because it was determined that DeJean gave an invalid fair catch signal by waving his left arm.

DeJean fielded a bouncing punt at the Iowa 46-yard line and then spun past several Gopher defenders near the Minnesota sideline before crossing the field and racing into the end zone to give Iowa a 16-12 lead with 1 minute, 32 seconds left to play.

Or, so fans thought.

But after a review, officials ruled that the play was dead due to the invalid fair catch, which was caused by DeJean having waved his left arm.

Iowa threw an interception three plays later, allowing the Gophers to escape with a 12-10 victory.

It was Minnesota’s first win in the series since 2014.

Hawkeye fans, not surprisingly, were outraged by the ruling, while even the soft-spoken DeJean voiced his frustration with the call once he overcame his shock.

“I’ve never called for a fair catch with my left hand ever,” DeJean said afterwards. “I was kind of just keeping my balance I guess, trying to run to the ball. But, it happens. Frustrating, but got to move on.”

Even without his return resulting in a touchdown, DeJean showed all the skills that made him so effective as a punt returner for Iowa. The Odebolt native, who now plays defensive ack for the Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles, used his speed, elusiveness, vision, anticipation and balance to reach the end zone.

Whether he made an invalid fair catch or doesn’t take away from the immense skill that it took to make the play.

Wetjen, meanwhile, is one of the busiest return specialists in program history as he handles both kick and punt returns for the Hawkeyes, as he did last season.

The former walk-on from Williamsburg showcased all his return skills in the win over UMass, compiling 182 punt return yards, which is the fourth most in Big Ten history.

His 95-yard punt return for a touchdown tied an Iowa and Big Ten record and was the longest return in Kinnick Stadium history.

“It puts him in a pretty exclusive category that’s for sure, and well deserved,” Kirk Ferentz said Tuesday. “He’s just a high effort guy and really does a great job and has been doing that.”

Wetjen was named the recipient of Jet Award last season, which goes to the top collegiate return specialist in the country. He led the nation with 1,055 combined return yards last season, and scored two touchdowns on returns.

Wetjen entered this season as a marked man, but still is finding ways to get loose.

Any successful return specialist could be described as a high-effort guy because that’s what it takes to excel in that role, along with talent, of course, courage and self-confidence.

Devising ways to contain Wetjen is almost certainly one of the top priorities for Rutgers heading into Friday’s Big Ten opener in Piscataway, New Jersey.

A punt or kick return for a touchdown can suddenly shift momentum, while a long return flips field position.

It takes a special kind of player to excel as a return specialist, and for the Iowa football team, those players often come from nearby.

As for why that is; well, that’s a great question as Tim Dwight said in a text message reply on Tuesday after being reminded about all of Iowa’s homegrown return specialists.

So, maybe it’s just better for Iowa to shop local when looking for return specialists.