Howe: Iowa Football Kids Day Observations

Rundown from Saturday's Hawkeye Action at Kinnick Stadium

Iowa's Diante Vines works through a ball-security drill at Kids Day practice on Aug. 12, 2023 at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa. (Rob Howe/HawkeyeNation.com)

IOWA CITY, Iowa - Comedian Eddie Murphy said if you give a starving man a cracker, it will be the best cracker he ever ate. The rest of that bit was rated R.  

You get the point, however. We cherish what we crave, especially when we've done without it for awhile. 

Kids Day at Kinnick Stadium resembles that cracker for the hungry Hawkeye faithful. It's one of only two times each year that the program holds a public practice. 

The event took place here Saturday. Youngsters received autographs from student-athletes before watching the squad go through its paces. 

For context, let's remember it's just one workout. That said, let's also fully examine the last cracker we get until next spring's open practice.  

Quarterback

Putting a damper on a beautiful day was starter Cade McNamara injuring himself. Coach Kirk Ferentz said after the workout that he'll know more on Monday, but was alarmed by what he knew so far. Ferentz characterized it as a "muscle thing." 

McNamara was noticeably limping. Following practice, he was holding his lower back. 

Here's the play...

Here's the play on which Cade McNamara was injured today

Looks like he pulled something or hurt himself when he fell

Non-contact injury by the looks of it pic.twitter.com/WMOaXE8Ssi

— Rob Howe (@RobHoweHN) August 12, 2023

The Michigan transfer looked sharp up until that point. His accuracy stood out as well as his ability to sidestep pressure. 

Backup Deacon Hill flashed some high upside with a strong arm. He wasn't as accurate as McNamara, and the defense made him pay with multiple interceptions. 

True freshman Marco Lainez came in next. The New Jersey product delivered a few really nice throws, but like Hill, struggled with consistency. It looked pretty clear during this practice that there was clear separation between the top three quarterbacks on Saturday. 

Joe Labas, who started last year's Music City Bowl, was sidelined with an injury. True freshman walk-on Tommy Poholsky received some work on Saturday and wasn't intimidated. 

Offensive Line

The starters from left to right were Mason Richman, Rusty Feth, Logan Jones, Nick DeJong and Gennings Dunker. The second-team from left to right was Jack Dotzler, Connor Colby, Tyler Elsbury, Beau Stephens and Asher Fahey. 

It was an up-and-down day for both units against a defensive line that ranks among the best in the Big Ten. Colby not being with the starting five was interesting. That said, there's a long way to go in camp. 

Wide Receiver

I left the stadium feeling pretty good about this group, And it was without the injured Nico Ragaini and Alec Wick, two of three returning players at the position that caught a pass here last year. 

Diante Vines lived up to the praise he's been receiving from Ferentz this offseason. Transfer Seth Anderson played really well. 

Ohio State transfer Kaleb Brown showed off his high ceiling and also missed some assignments. I liked what I saw from incoming freshman Dayton Howard, too. 

Running Back

There are no problems here. The Hawkeyes are at least three deep with returners Kaleb Johnson, Leshon Williams and Jaziun Patterson. They're all capable of starting from what I saw Saturday. 

Beyond that trio, true freshmen Terrell Washington Jr. and Kamari Moulton ran hard and effectively. Walk-on's Max White and Aidan McDermott found there way to positive yards as well. 

Tight End

It was a modest day from a production standpoint here but that shouldn't worry anyone. The Hawkeyes took a lot of shots down field Saturday, which is a good thing. 

Ferentz had been talking up Steven Stilianos recently. The Lafayette transfer struggled in his first season at the Power 5 level a year ago. 

Stilianos made the coach look smart. He may have led everyone in receptions Saturday. 

Defensive Line 

I went into Kinnick Saturday feeling that this position ranked as the most talented and deepest unit on the team. I left the stadium feeling the same way. 

Redshirt freshman Brian Allen joined Anderson as the pop-up standouts on this day. He terrorized the offense all afternoon. 

Yahya Black also enjoyed a solid practice. He started in place of the injured Noah Shannon. 

Starting ends Deontae Craig and Joe Evans allowed some of the inexperienced guys to get more reps. When they were in there, they wreaked havoc. Max Llewellyn performed like he'd taken a step forward from last year. 

Linebacker

Virginia transfer Nick Jackson appeared to be picking up the scheme well, especially considering he just arrived in June. He worked with the starters on the weak-side with Jay Higgins in the middle. Kyler Fisher played LEO with the ones. 

Jaxon Rexroth held down the No. 2 WIL and Jaden Harrell did the same at MLB. Kelby Telander was the second-team LEO. 

Secondary

With Cooper DeJean sidelined with an injury, Jermari Harris and TJ Hall took most of the first-team reps at cornerback. Quinn Schulte (free) and Xavier Nwankpa (strong) started at safety. 

Any rust Harris felt in the spring after missing last season was gone. He picked off at least one pass and broke up a few others. 

Devin Hilson and Deshaun Lee served as the second-team corners. They played alongside safeties Koen Entringer and Jamison Heinz. 

Extra Points

We didn't see much from the punters during the 11-on-11 portion of practice. Kicker Drew Stevens connected on about all of his field-goal attempts during the live part...In addition to the players already mentioned for being out, I noticed Anterio Thompson, Jacob Bostick, Michael Myslinski, Daijon Parker, Jeff Bowie, Karson Sharar, Kale Krogh and Landyn Van Kekerix in street clothes. Bowie and Krogh were the only ones wearing braces for their injuries...Iowa Sports Information announced Saturday's crowd at a tick over 6,000.