Iowa Football: Three players that stood out against NIU

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IOWA CITY, IOWA- SEPTEMBER 01: Tight end T.J. Hockenson #38 of the Iowa Hawkeyes is tripped up during the first half by safety Mykelti Williams #8 of the Northern Illinois Huskies on September 1, 2018 at Kinnick Stadium, in Iowa City, Iowa. (Photo by Matthew Holst/Getty Images) /

TJ Hockenson

If you decided to skip the intro and head straight to the five player that stood out, you may have thought this was Fant. If you watched the game or read the intro, you would know that was not possible. Despite the preseason hype, it was TJ Hockenson, not Fant who had an outstanding game against the Huskies.

Hockenson led the Hawkeyes in receptions and receiving yards. In fact, he accounted for nearly half of the total receiving yards for the Hawks. For the day, he finished with four receptions and 64 yards receiving.

Although those numbers are solid, not spectacular, what really stood out about Hockenson’s play was his ability to hang on to the ball. It seemed like with each of his catches, he was taking big shot after big shot and didn’t let go of the ball once. In a day when Nate Stanley couldn’t get on the same page with most of his receiving core, Hockenson became the go to guy.

This isn’t to say Fant had a bad day or that maybe the Huskies game planned to take Fant out of the game leaving Hockenson open, but Hockenson took advantage either way. With Brian Ferentz’s experience running two tight end sets from his days with the Patriots, I am really excited to see how Hockenson continues to develop his connection with Nate Stanley.

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