Iowa football's Kaden Wetjen named a Jet Award finalist

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Iowa football's Kaden Wetjen named a Jet Award finalist

After rewriting the Iowa football record books in the Hawkeyes' (7-4, 5-3 Big Ten) 20-17 win over Michigan State (3-8, 0-8 Big Ten) on Nov. 22, graduate senior Kaden Wetjen has been named a finalist for the Jet Award by the Jet Award Foundation on Monday, Nov. 24. The award is given annually to the most outstanding return specialist in college football.

Wetjen, who was the recipient of the 2024 Jet Award, currently leads the nation in combined return yards for a second straight season by an astounding 231-yard advantage. He has 894 combined return yards (356 kickoff, 538 punt) through 11 games, and is No. 1 in the NCAA in punt return yardage (28.3 average) and punt return touchdowns (3) and No. 4 in kickoff return touchdowns (1).

Specifically, his 28.3 punt-return average is listed as the best in Big Ten history, and his three punt-return touchdowns in 2025 rank third-most in a single season in conference history.

While the 5-foot-9, 196-pound native of Williamsburg, Iowa, has amassed several impressive feats thus far, including becoming the first Hawkeye to score a rushing, receiving, punt return, and kickoff return touchdown in a career, Wetjen's 62-yard punt return touchdown against the Spartans cemented his name in Iowa immortality.

The spectacular return gives Wetjen six special teams touchdowns, passing Tim Dwight for the most in Hawkeye history. In a fascinating stat, Kaden Wetjen's special-teams score marks the third straight game in which Iowa has had a punt-return touchdown in Kinnick Stadium against Michigan State, joining Charlie Jones (2020) and Cooper DeJean (2023).

Iowa Hawkeyes wide receiver Kaden Wetjen (21) returns a punt to the endzone against the Michigan State Spartans on Nov. 22, 2025, at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa.

Along with Wetjen, the four other finalists for the award include Louisville's Caullin Lacy, Texas' Ryan Niblett, Notre Dame's Jadarian Price, and South Carolina's Vicari Swain.

The winner of the 2025 Jet Award will be selected by a panel of voters, including media members from the Football Writers Association of America, former recipients of the Jet Award, and two of our founders, Johnny Rodgers and William Reed.

The winner will be announced and presented with the award on Thursday, April 2, 2026, at the 15th annual Jet Award Gala in Omaha, Neb.

Wetjen will look to further cement potentially his second-straight Jet Award win when he and the rest of the Iowa program take on rival Nebraska (7-4, 4-4 Big Ten) from Memorial Stadium at 11 a.m. CT on Friday, Nov. 28, with the game broadcast on CBS.

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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Iowa football's Kaden Wetjen named a Jet Award finalist

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