Two Iowa Hawkeyes Stars Earn Massive Honor

These two Iowa Hawkeyes stars have earned major honors for their contributions in the 2024 college football season.

Iowa linebacker Jay Higgins (34) holds the football after a special teams play during a NCAA Big Ten Conference football game against Penn State, Saturday, Oct. 9, 2021, at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa. Iowa beat Penn State, 23-20. / Joseph Cress/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Iowa Hawkeyes don't exactly have the most star-studded roster. They aren't Oregon, and they certainly aren't Ohio State.

However, Iowa does have a couple of pretty terrific players on either side of the ball: running back Kaleb Johnson and linebacker Jay Higgins.

Johnson and Higgins are among the best players at their respective positions in the entire country, and they are both being honored for their contributions this season.

The Big Ten announced a variety of awards on Tuesday, and among them were Johnson winning the Ameche-Dayne Running Back of the Year award and Higgins taking home the Butkus-Fitzgerald Linebacker of the Year award.

Johnson, who recently declared for the 2025 NFL Draft, led the conference in both rushing yards (1,537) and rushing touchdowns (21) this season while averaging a robust 6.4 yards per carry. He also set Iowa's all-time record for rushing scores in a single campaign.

Meanwhile, Higgins racked up 118 tackles, three tackles for loss, a sack, four interceptions, a couple of forced fumbles, a fumble recovery and five passes defended.

The Hawkeyes went 8-4 this year, and their solid record was thanks much in part to the play of Johnson and Higgins.

Iowa has qualified for a bowl game and is waiting on its opponent. The problem is that Johnson will not be participating in the contest as he opts to prepare for the draft.

It will certainly be a rough go for the Hawkeyes' offense without Johnson in tow, but Iowa can thank the breakout halfback for getting the squad to this point.