Kamari Moulton Emerges for Iowa Football

Freshman RB Earns More Work in Crowded Room

Sep 16, 2023; Iowa City, Iowa, USA; Western Michigan Broncos cornerback DaShon Bussell (0) chases Iowa Hawkeyes running back Kamari Moulton (28) during the third quarter at Kinnick Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports / Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports

Kamari Moulton’s name at the top spot of Iowa’s running back depth chart was one of the attention-getters when the notes for the Hawkeyes’ season opener against Illinois State were released.

But coach Kirk Ferentz said on Tuesday he expects everyone on the depth chart — Moulton, Leshon Williams and Kaleb Johnson — to get carries in Saturday’s game at Kinnick Stadium.

“The other guys have done a good job too,” Ferentz said. “I feel pretty good about the group. I'm eager to see them play, and Kamari especially, we haven't really seen him go in game activity.”

Williams, Iowa’s leading rusher last season, has been dealing with a nagging injury during training camp, which was one of the reasons Moulton made it to the top of the depth chart, Ferentz said.

“It’s more a by-product of what's going on,” Ferentz said. “Leshon missed some time. He's had an injury that nagged pretty much throughout camp, so Kamari got a lot of work this August.

“The other component there is Kamari's done a nice job. I mentioned that or alluded to that back in December. He started to look comfortable and did a lot of good things, did a good job in the spring and has just been consistent all the way through August.”

Moulton, a redshirt freshman, played in four games for the Hawkeyes last season, the minimum appearances allowed by the NCAA for a player to retain his redshirt year. He had eight carries for 50 yards and two touchdowns.

“Kamari is an awesome dude,” quarterback Cade McNamara said. “He’s a real energetic guy. He’s definitely one of the favorites on the team and me, the rest of the guys, can’t wait to see what he does.”

Ferentz said Moulton’s confidence has grown in the offseason.

“He's had a great attitude since he's been here,” Ferentz said. “He's got good vision. He's bigger and stronger physically than he was certainly a year ago, year-plus ago when he got here. All that's good, and that's one of the benefits of experience. Happy about that. He's got a tremendous attitude, but he's got a real good vision, a good ability to see things that maybe other guys can't see, and that's been pretty consistent.”

Moulton’s play on the scout team during practices last season also gave Ferentz an indication of what was to come.

“It really started showing in December when we were doing more work with the guys,” Ferentz said. “He'd been on the scout team most of the time last year. It seemed like he was maybe a guy who could pop through here a little bit. I think he's certainly done that in August.”

McNamara said Moulton’s consistency was a big factor in his play during camp but, like Ferentz, expects there to be plenty of carries for everyone.

“Overall, the running back room, in general, there’s going to be a lot of dudes playing,” McNamara said. “There’s a lot of talent in that room. And the way our (offensive) line is playing, we’re just excited to see what they can do.”

“Again, I envision us playing a lot of the guys in the group,” Ferentz said. “Max White's done a good job, too. I feel like it's a good group that way. We'll just kind of see how it plays out as we keep going forward. History would say you can never have too many backs, that's for sure.”