Iowa football defensive captain confirms return for 2026 season

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As No. 23 Iowa (8-4, 6-3 Big Ten) readies for the ReliaQuest Bowl against No. 14 Vanderbilt, one of the Hawkeyes‘ defensive captains shared great news for the 2026 season.

Redshirt junior defensive back Koen Entringer confirmed that he is returning to Iowa for the 2026 college football season. Iowa head football coach Kirk Ferentz had indicated earlier this month that he thought Entringer would return, but the 6-foot-1, 211-pound defensive back cemented that reality on Friday.

Entringer, a product of Walled Lake Western in Michigan, has started all 12 games for Iowa at strong safety in 2025. The Ypsilanti, Mich., native is Iowa’s second-leading tackler with 69 tackles and has also added four pass breakups, 3.5 tackles for loss, one quarterback hurry, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery this season.

In his Iowa career, Entringer has amassed 96 tackles, six passes defensed and one interception.

Iowa kicks off against Vanderbilt at 11 a.m. on New Year’s Eve from Raymond James Stadium with the game airing on ESPN.

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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Iowa football defensive captain confirms return for 2026 season

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