You know who knows that Jack Campbell is very good at football? Everybody. Everybody realizes that Campbell is an absolute stud. We know it -- we've watched him cover the field every week this season. The players and coaches he's played against it know it -- he caused them nightmares in game prep and then planted their offensive players in the turf game itself. The media knows it -- they've also watched him do this thing week in and week out since September. And now Campbell's stellar senior season has recognition in the form of a slew of end-of-year honors from the Big Ten.
First up, the big one: the Nagurski-Woodson Defensive Player of the Year award.
The Jack attack - @jackcampbell133 counted 118 tackles, 2 interceptions, 3.5 TFL and 3 pass breakups for a Top 6 defense in @HawkeyeFootball. @bigten - pic.twitter.com/6eOACaKO27
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) November 29, 2022
Prior to 2017, Iowa had only had one player win the Defensive Player of the Year award -- Leroy Smith in 1991. (The award was created in 1990.) Since 2017, Iowa has won three of the last six awards -- Josey Jewell won it in 2017, Daviyon Nixon won it in 2020, and now Campbell has added it to Iowa's trophy room as well.
Campbell was second in the Big Ten with 118 tackles (behind Michigan State's Cal Haladay, who had 120). He also had 3.5 tackles for loss, 2 interceptions, 4 QB hurries, and a forced fumble, but his impact went beyond the stat sheet. He was both the beating heart and the calculating brain for an outstanding Iowa defense that ranked among the nation's best in every meaningful defensive category. He led by example with his play, as well as by organizing and directing the defense on the field. Iowa has been blessed with some phenomenal defensive players (and linebackers in particular) over the last 25 years, but Campbell ranks among the best of the best.
Campbell also won the Butkus-Fitzgerald Linebacker of the Year award as well.
x 2 @hawkeyefootballs Jack Campbell is the Nagurski-Woodson Defensive Player of the Year the Butkus-Fitzgerald Linebacker of the Year!#B1GFootball x #Hawkeyes pic.twitter.com/7YdyGlqLbv
— Big Ten Football (@B1Gfootball) November 29, 2022
Campbell is the second Iowa player to win the Linebacker of the Year award (created in 2011) and the first since Josey Jewell in 2017.
It's no surprise that he was also a consensus pick for the All-Big Ten first team defense.
1st-Team Defense pic.twitter.com/mXE2ElShFs
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) November 29, 2022
He was joined on the first team by Riley Moss (per the coaches) and Cooper DeJean (per the media). Several Iowa defenders earned second team All-Big Ten honors as well: Moss (media), DeJean (coaches), Lukas Van Ness (coaches/media), Seth Benson (coaches/media), and Joe Evans (media). Kaevon Merriweather, Logan Lee, and Noah Shannon earned honorable mention All-Big Ten distinction as well.
Iowa was also on the receiving end of some appreciation in the special teams department. Tory Taylor did not win the Eddleman-Fields Punter of the Year award (that went to Michigan State's Bryce Baringer), but he was named All-Big Ten first team by the media (the coaches gave him third team honors). Baringer is a defensible choice -- he had a very good season and his average of 49.0 yards per punt led the Big Ten (and the nation). Taylor had a worse average (45.1 yards per punt) and more touchbacks (11, versus 4 for Baringer), but he also punted a lot more (74 attempts, versus 50 for Baringer) due to Iowa's putrid offense. Taylor also put 32 (!) punts inside the 20-yard line, tied for the most in the nation. Despite attempting 24 more punts than Baringer, Taylor also conceded fewer return yards (just 67, versus 83 for Baringer). #Tory4Heisman
Drew Stevens also got some love -- he was named All-Big Ten second team by the media and All-Big Ten third team by the coaches. Not bad at all for the freshman. Stevens had the best conversion percentage in the Big Ten (88.9%) and his 16 made kicks (out of 18 attempts) were the second-most in the conference, behind Michigan's Jake Moody (26/32), who was named All-Big Ten first team by the coaches and media and won the Bakken-Anderson Kicker of the Year Award.
Congratulations to Jack Campbell for winning Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and Linebacker of the Year honors, richly deserved honors for a superlative-defying. And congratulations as well to DeJean, Moss, Van Ness, Evans, Benson, Taylor, Stevens, and all the players who earned All-Big Ten recognition. Iowa's defense and special teams were truly outstanding this season and it's extremely gratifying to see the excellent performances of those units earning well-deserved recognition.
