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Kade Wetjen's collegiate football journey took many twists and turns, but ended up right where it belongs: in the Iowa record books.
Kaden Wetjen waited inside his own 20-yard line for the kick from Michigan punter Tommy Doman. It was Dec. 2, 2023, inside a sold-out Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
Iowa was down 20-0 in the fourth quarter of the Big Ten Championship game to the eventual national champion Wolverines. Wetjen, a sophomore at that point, was hoping to spark his Hawkeyes with an electric return. He received the ball at his own 14-yard line and made a few guys miss on his way to a 21-yard return.
While the ball was moved back due to an illegal block in the back, it became apparent to everyone watching that Wetjen could be special with the ball in his hands. But most importantly, it was that night and that game when everything clicked for Wetjen. "I had a bunch of great returns that game, even though the game didn't go really well for us...
I gained that confidence knowing that I could do it against the best team in the country. It boosted my confidence and got me prepared for the next year," Wetjen shared in a recent interview with me. While that 2023 Big Ten Championship game was a pivotal moment for Wetjen, his journey to the Iowa football record books started a few years earlier.
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