Iowa City Today

University of Iowa senior Kaden Wetjen has been named to the Jet Award Midseason Watch List, an honor recognizing the top return specialist in college football. The announcement was made by the Jet Award Foundation on Monday.

Wetjen, who won the 2024 Jet Award, currently leads all college players in combined return yards for a second consecutive season. He has accumulated 573 total return yards—262 from kickoffs and 311 from punts—over seven games. Wetjen ranks first nationally in punt returns with an average of 25.9 yards per return and is third in both kickoff and punt return touchdowns with one each.

In Week 3, Wetjen returned a punt 95 yards for a touchdown during Iowa’s win over UMass. This play tied both Big Ten and Iowa records set previously by Michigan State’s Al Brenner in 1966 and Iowa’s Bill Happel in 1984, and it marked the longest punt return ever at Kinnick Stadium. In that game against UMass, Wetjen achieved a personal best of 216 return yards (182 from punts and 34 from kickoffs) as well as a career-high of 236 all-purpose yards. His total of 182 punt return yards is the fourth highest recorded in a single Big Ten game.

The following week, Wetjen returned the opening kickoff against Rutgers for 100 yards, tying another Iowa and Big Ten record. For his performances against UMass and Rutgers, he received Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week honors.

Wetjen was recently recognized as a midseason All-American by The Sporting News. According to available records, he is believed to be the first Hawkeye to score touchdowns via rushing, receiving, punt return, and kickoff return—all within his career—with both rushing and receiving scores coming this season.

A native of Williamsburg, Iowa, Wetjen is currently the only player nationwide to have scored both a kickoff and punt return touchdown this season; he also accomplished this distinction last year.

The Jet Award is named after Johnny “The Jet” Rodgers, a Heisman Trophy winner and College Football Hall of Famer. The recipient of the award will be chosen by a panel including members of the Football Writers Association of America, previous winners of the award, Johnny Rodgers himself, and William Reed.

Iowa holds a record of five wins and two losses overall (three wins and one loss in conference play). The team will next face Minnesota (also at five wins and two losses overall; three wins and one loss in conference) for the Floyd of Rosedale rivalry trophy on Saturday at Kinnick Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 2:40 p.m. Central Time on CBS.