D.J. Johnson first in line to be next 'cash' player for Iowa's defense

IOWA CITY, Ia. — Phil Parker is auditioning athletes for the new “cash” position in his Iowa defense, and is looking exclusively at cornerbacks this spring.

Last year, safety Amani Hooker slid closer to the line of scrimmage to replace outside linebacker Ben Niemann after the fourth game as Parker retooled the Hawkeye defense for good. At 210 pounds, Hooker was so effective against the pass and run that he earned Big Ten Conference defensive back of the year honors.

But he’s off to the NFL Draft now, and Parker told reporters Tuesday that he’s looking for a lighter athlete with quick feet for the “cash” role, with covering opposing wideouts the primary duty. That, and the ability to occasionally blitz a quarterback.

That has led Parker to redshirt freshman D.J. Johnson, at 5-foot-10, 183 pounds.

“He's got good footwork and he's got decent speed and he sees things pretty good. I think he's a tough kid,” Parker said of Johnson.

Starting cornerbacks Michael Ojemudia and Matt Hankins could also move to the cash spot if need be, Parker said. He’s been experimenting with all seven of his corners in the spring session that concludes Friday, knowing that three of them will be counted on to start.

That includes sophomores Julius Brents and Riley Moss, both pressed into starting duty a year ago by injuries.

Parker added one more second-year player to the list of possible contributors: “I think Terry Roberts has really done a good job here in the last week. I mean, he's definitely got good speed,” he said. “It really kind of jumped him up into that same as Moss and Julius area where I feel real comfortable about putting him in the game.”

Defensive front taking shape

Parker is replacing four starters on his defensive line, but feels good about moving last year’s backups into those spots. It helps that one of them is junior defensive end A.J. Epenesa, a potential all-American.

He is joined by junior Chauncey Golston, plus seniors Cedrick Lattimore and Brady Reiff inside.

But the ability to rotate eight defensive linemen a year ago was the key to becoming the best scoring defense in the Big Ten, Parker said.

“The safeties are probably involved in maybe 10 to 12 plays a game. The corners might be seven or eight. They don't get much. All the work is done up in the front seven,” Parker said.

“So you'd better have a lot of those guys playing. And when you have a good front, you have a chance to be a good rush defense.”

So the question becomes finding backups. Parker thinks sophomore Daviyon Nixon and redshirt freshman Noah Shannon can fill the bill inside. He mentioned redshirt freshman John Waggoner on the end. And that leaves one more person to step up to get to the magic number of eight. Junior Austin Schulte has been impressing, Parker said.

And don’t forget that Zach VanValkenburg arrives on campus this summer after transferring from Division II Hillsdale College in Michigan.

No hurry naming starter at middle linebacker

Senior Kristian Welch is listed atop the depth chart at middle linebacker this spring. Redshirt freshman Dillon Doyle is backing him up. There’s no hurry to name a starter, though, Parker said, noting that last year Amani Jones won the job only to be replaced by Jack Hockaday in the opening game.

“I think we've got a bunch of guys that have a chance and have the leadership,” Parker said. “I think it's going to take time. It might be halfway through … fall practice (before he names a starter).

“Things change in a hurry and I think we have enough depth and we have enough competing going on there that it's going to be good for us as a defense.”

He's no Hockenson or Fant, but don't sleep on Nate Wieting

The Hawkeye offense must replace a pair of potential NFL first-round draft picks at tight end. You might have heard that T.J. Hockenson and Noah Fant both left the program early and will probably hear their names called Thursday night.

That leaves a sizeable void. But offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz has seen enough from senior Nate Wieting to believe he’s going to surprise some people this season, despite catching only two passes a year ago.

“(A) good football player that I think will be very productive. And I think if we weren't comparing him to the two guys that we lost, we would feel really, really good about him as a playmaker,” Ferentz said of Weiting. “He's not quite going to be the guys that we lost, but I think that he can certainly contribute in his own way and have plenty of balls go his way.”

Ferentz said junior Shaun Beyer and senior Drew Cook will also contribute at tight end this fall.

Beyond that? It’s a lot of youth.

No wonder hopes are so high for Wieting.

Not enough explosive running plays? Blame the blockers

Ferentz will rely on the same trio of tailbacks he had last season, when the Hawkeyes averaged a mere 3.95 yards per carry. Juniors Mekhi Sargent, Toren Young and Ivory Kelly-Martin each started at least three games a year ago, and certainly had their moments. The fact that there weren’t more of them was not their fault, Ferentz said.

“It's really simple. We need to block better. Certainly, we need to run the ball better, but the more we block, the more yards we are going to make,” Ferentz said, throwing down a challenge for an offensive line unit that he used to coach.

“I'm pretty pleased with how those guys run. … (The) offensive line and tight end and receivers and whoever is involved in that blocking scheme, they have to do a better job of not just covering up the people they are assigned to, but moving them and displacing them and causing some disruption on the defense.”

Mark Emmert covers University of Iowa athletics for the Des Moines Register and Iowa City Press-Citizen.