Iowa is in the process of wrapping up the 2023 regular season after a 10-3 campaign for the Hawkeyes. Kirk Ferentz led the team to another B1G West title as Iowa eventually lost to Michigan in the B1G Championship Game.

For their efforts, Iowa dished out 3 Roy Carver Most Valuable Player awards. The recipients included Leshon Williams with the offense and Jay Higgins and Cooper DeJean with the defense.

For Williams, he led the Hawkeyes with 804 rushing yards and was the team’s most efficient running back with 4.9 yards per carry. Williams had a breakout performance with 145 yards against Western Michigan and went on to record 100+ yards 3 times.

Defensively, Higgins was a standout performer who delivered 155 total tackles to lead Iowa. He also added 4 pass breakups, a forced fumble, 2 fumble recoveries, an interception and 4 TFLs.

Higgins set a career-high with 18 tackles on the road against Penn State. He finished with double-digit tackles in 9 games.

DeJean’s worth to the Hawkeyes cannot be overstated. He was a lockdown piece in the secondary with 2 interceptions and 5 pass breakups to go with 41 tackles and 2 TFLs. DeJean also averaged 11.5 yards per punt and a punt return on special teams before a season-ending injury.

(H/T Tyler Tachman)