Take a bow, Caden Buhr!
One of the biggest offseason storylines was the completely revamped special teams unit after LeVar Woods left for Michigan State to join Pat Fitzgerald and took starting punter Rhys Dakin with him. Iowa also lost return specialist Kaden Wetjen (NFL) and starting kicker Drew Stevens (NFL), generating a lot of questions. Iowa quickly promoted Chris Polizzi internally and added multiple talented players from the transfer portal to the special teams unit. Despite all the changes, Iowa native and former walk-on Caden Buhr has been one of the biggest surprises through the first two weeks.
Buhr is still living a dream after nailing the game-winning field goal against Iowa State
After Iowa went out and signed veteran kicker Eli Ozick from North Dakota State, everyone was sure he was going to win the job. Ozick is a former FCS National Champion with the Bison and was even added to the preseason Lou Groza Award watch list, but Polizzi and Kirk Ferentz went in an unforeseen direction. Before week one, the program made the somewhat surprising announcement that Buhr, a former walk-on, earned the starting job, and he has been nothing short of dynamic through his first two career starts.
It started a little bumpy after he shanked his first extra point attempt in week one against Northern Illinois, but he has been rock-solid since. After a roller coaster of emotions during the Iowa-Iowa State rivalry game, Buhr showed why the coaching staff had so much faith in him, nailing the game-winning field goal. After helping Iowa to victory, Buhr is struggling to find the right words to describe his journey.
Caden Buhr on his game-winning kick vs. Iowa State: “Yeah, it was unbelievable. That was really, really cool. You can’t really put words to it. Words can’t describe that feeling when you’re out on the field, you’re with your teammates, you’ve dreamed of this your whole life and… pic.twitter.com/mrux806qq7
— Tyler Tachman (@Tyler_T15) September 13, 2026
Shortly after the game, Buhr was clearly one of the happiest guys in the room, saying that it was an unbelievable feeling and that "you can't really put words to it." He also said words cannot describe that feeling when you're on the field with your teammates and get the opportunity to do something that you've only dreamed of. It was definitely a special moment for Buhr and the rest of the Iowa faithful as the Bettendorf native helped bring the Cy-Hawk Trophy back to Iowa City.
Buhr has been solid through Iowa's first two games, nailing 83 percent of his field goal and extra point attempts. Buhr nailed a 42-yard and a 45-yard field goal against the Cyclones and earned the Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week for his performance against the Cyclones. Iowa's special teams are in good hands, and Buhr has become a big part of that.
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