Arguably the most talented defender in the Big Ten, Cooper DeJean has the table set for a massive breakout year in 2023. The Iowa Hawkeyes cornerback came out of nowhere last year and now, with the hype, could be one of Iowa’s best cornerbacks to grace the program. He is that good.
Not only do Iowa and its supporters think that, but the national media does. DeJean headlines a top 10 secondary, has been named to just about every award watch list, and is the preseason Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year.
DeJean is also included in ESPN’s top 100 college football players for 2023 due to his past production and future expectations.
46. Cooper DeJean
CB, Iowa, junior
Notable 2022 stats: 5 INTs,75 tackles (19 solo)
2022 ranking: NRDeJean established a new program single-season record by taking three interceptions to the house. All told, he had a team-leading five interceptions on the year to go along with 75 tackles (19 solo), third on the Hawkeyes’ defense. He was the 2022 TransPerfect Music City Bowl MVP as Iowa posted a 21-0 shutout.
DeJean is a certified ballhawk in Phil Parker’s defense. When thrown at, he made teams pay with turnovers and made it hurt even more by taking it to the house. His 2023 stats may not have the interception numbers but that could very well be due to teams simply not throwing at him.
For cornerbacks, sometimes the less they are talked about, the better. That means they aren’t getting thrown at and it frees up 10 other guys on defense to be creative with.
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