Iowa’s defensive coordinator hesitates to name starting cornerbacks more than a week before the start of the 2024 season
Iowa defensive coordinator Phil Parker leaves the field at halftime during a game between the Iowa Hawkeyes and the Minnesota Golden Gophers at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa, Saturday, Oct. 21, 2023. (Nick Rohlman/The Gazette)
IOWA CITY – Phil Parker has a “good idea” of who his starting cornerbacks will be in 2024.
But 11 days before the Hawkeyes’ season opener, Iowa’s defensive coordinator (and 2023 Broyles Award winner) was hesitant on Tuesday to name specific starters.
“I have a list of guys and I rank them, but we change things every day during practice,” Parker said.
Jermari Harris seems like the likely answer for one of the spots as he approaches his sixth season of college football. He started 12 of Iowa’s 14 games last year and Parker said he played “a lot” with the first team during fall camp.
With one more spot on the first cornerback team still up for grabs, the Hawkeyes have TJ Hall, John Nestor and Deshaun Lee to choose from.
Parker has “seen TJ Hall develop and improve his level of play.” Nestor “is really doing a good job, very competitive out there.” Lee, on the other hand, “is doing a damn good job.”
“It’s really interesting to see those four there,” Parker said. “On any given day, one might have a better day than the other. It depends on what day it is and what point of attack it is, how productive they are.”
Lee started six games in 2023, first in place of Harris during his two-game suspension and later in place of Cooper DeJean after his injury. Hall played in six games, mostly on special teams, before getting injured. Nestor played 10 games as a true freshman, with the majority of those appearances also coming on special teams.
Iowa hasn’t always been keen on rotating defensive backs. Iowa’s Week 6 win over Purdue last year, for example, featured just five players in the secondary, according to Pro Football Focus’ snap counts. But the current depth at the cornerback position could create some options there.
“If we have to, we can maybe have more people play further back,” Parker said.
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