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Kirk Ferentz's Iowa football program has relied on their special teams unit to win a lot of football games during his tenure. 

Some could say the Hawkeyes have utilized their specialists too often in big games – the 6-4 victory at Penn State in 2004 and punter Tory Taylor bailing out the 2023 squad are good examples – but Iowa still deserves credit for always producing top-notch special teams year in and year out. 

At the forefront of this recent success was special teams coordinator LeVar Woods. Once the NCAA approved schools adding a 10th full-time assistant coach to their staffs in 2018, Woods' sole role was coaching special teams. 

The former Hawkeye quickly earned national praise for his room's consistency, and that was again the case in 2025. Drew Stevens surpassed Nate Kaeding for the most all-time made field goals in Iowa history, while Kaden Wetjen set just about every Big Ten and school record he possibly could in the return game. 

But a lot can change in one year. Woods stunned Hawkeye fans by leaving Iowa in the offseason to become the new assistant head coach and special teams coordinator for Michigan State. Punter Rhys Dakin followed Woods there, and Stevens and Wetjen moved on to the NFL. 

Offensive analyst Chris Polizzi was tapped to take over for Woods, but he's got three crucial positions to fill with just over a week before the season opener against Northern Illinois. 

Who could they be? Read our special teams preview to find out. 

Kicker 

Each of the three main positions – kicker, punter, returner – remain up for grabs, and Polizzi told us at media day that there's probably a good chance they will go into the season. 

We knew the open competitions at returner and punter would probably go the distance, but the lone battle that seemed lopsided at the beginning of fall camp was the kicking contest between North Dakota State transfer Eli Ozick and returning second-year Caden Buhr. 

Ozick seems like the likely candidate to replace Stevens because of his experience. He went 16/18 (including 11 in a row to end the year) last season for a Bison team that finished 12-1 and has a very strong leg. NDSU's potent offense made it difficult for Ozick to show it off, but his lone attempt from 50+ (a 54-yarder against Indiana State) sailed through the uprights. 

But Buhr is still very much in this race, too. 

The two kickers earned plenty of reps at Iowa's Kids' Day open scrimmage on Aug. 15. Though it was only one practice, Buhr outplayed Ozick in front of the fans and the local media, going a very unofficial 5/6 while Ozick went 3/7. 

Again, it's a small sample size, but if Buhr does win the job, it would be an incredible story. The walk-on from Bettendorf has made just one appearance as a Hawkeye – a 65-yard touchback in a win over UMass last year. 

Punter 

In the running to take over Dakin's punting duties are Boston Everitt, a first-year from Australia, and Tanner Philpott, a third-year transfer from Simpson College. Iowa's strong history with recent Aussie punters (Dakin, Taylor) may give Everitt a slight edge in this competition, but Philpott has experience playing live American football. 

It's rare to see players make the leap from Division III to Division I, but the Hawkeyes clearly saw something when they offered Philpott a chance to walk-on. Philpott averaged 43.9 yards per punt for the Storm last season and booted a 78-yard punt in both of his seasons there. 

Everitt may not have the in-game experience just yet, but Australia knows how to develop punters. Take this into account, too: Everitt is in the pre-medicine program at the University of Iowa, so if he's able to manage the rigorous class schedule with football, he's probably got the smarts to be a successful punter in the Big Ten. 

Returner 

Losing Wetjen, a two-time Jet Award winner for the nation's best returner, is a tough blow to this unit, but there are plenty of names in contention to take over the spot in 2026.

Polizzi and Co. allowed just about every player on their roster to take reps in the spring, but as we get closer to kickoff, it appears defensive back Zach Lutmer is the likely man to return kicks and punts this year. Ferentz told us that Lutmer would be his returner if he had to play a game the following day during his media day press conference on Aug. 14, and we indeed saw Lutmer back there taking the No. 1 reps at Kids' Day. 

Most Iowa fans know Lutmer's abilities – speed and agility – as a star defensive back, so this would be a great fit for both parties. Lutmer is likely to see the primary role here, but someone to watch alongside him could be third-year running back Brevin Doll. 

Injuries have prevented Doll from playing much in Iowa City, but he was a star athlete in high school. His football numbers were obviously very impressive, but speed is the name of the game in the return game, and Doll has it.

The Adel native set an ADM school record in both the 100-meter (10.4 seconds) and 200-meter dash (21.10 seconds), and it feels like he's ready to bring those skills to the Hawkeyes this season. 

NIU Ticket Giveaway Closes TONIGHT 

HawkeyeRoundtable is giving away TWO tickets to Iowa's season opener against Northern Illinois on Sept. 5! 

This is easily the biggest giveaway we've ever done on this site, and it's a great opportunity for two lucky fans to experience the joy of attending a Hawkeye football game at Kinnick Stadium. 

Click here to automatically become a member to enter the contest! Additional contest details can be found in our community section, too! 

HawkeyeRoundtable publisher Brad Schultz has covered the Iowa Hawkeyes since 2023. To send him story ideas, scoops, or criticize his writing, reach him at bradschultz@roundtable.io

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