Iowa wide receiver Reece Vander Zee was notably absent from the Hawkeyes lineup during Saturday’s season-opening win over Albany. It was quickly revealed that he had missed the game due to a leg injury. Vander Zee arrived to the season opener sporting crutches as well as wearing a boot on his left foot. Ferentz gave […]
Iowa wide receiver Reece Vander Zee was notably absent from the Hawkeyes lineup during Saturday’s season-opening win over Albany. It was quickly revealed that he had missed the game due to a leg injury.
Vander Zee arrived to the season opener sporting crutches as well as wearing a boot on his left foot. Ferentz gave an update on his status following the game, revealing a potential timeline for the wideout’s return.
“Yeah, shame on me for saying we’re pretty healthy on Tuesday, which we were at that time,” Ferentz said after the 34-7 victory. “And then — I mean, full detail is he was in the food line after practice and felt discomfort in his foot. I don’t know how long he’ll be out, but nobody saw it coming, including him.
“I imagine a couple weeks here. We’ll see. But again, anytime a player gets hurt — Kamari (Moulton) seemed to be doing pretty good today, but Bryce (George), really, it’s his last year, and Reece was really disappointed, too, because he’s had a great camp and done a lot of good things. But he’ll be back. He’ll get back.”
OL Bryce George went down with an injury during pregame warmups. Jarriett Buie, a WR, was also ruled out before the game.
While Iowa was short on wide receivers against Albany, it didn’t impact the outcome of the game. In fact, the Hawkeyes only threw for 48 yards during the game. Instead, Iowa opted to run the ball 53 times during the contest and totaled 310 yards and tallied three touchdowns on the ground.
Xavier Williams was the team’s leading rusher with 11 carries for 122 yards and a touchdown. QB Mark Gronowski rushed for a touchdown in his Hawkeyes debut, while Terrell Washington Jr. also found the end zone to round out the Iowa scoring efforts on the ground.
Still, Gronowski was still able to tally a touchdown through the air, too. Senior WR Kaden Wetjen caught a two-yard pass in the second quarter. Iowa’s leading receiver (Jacob Gill) had one reception for 13 yards.
It doesn’t appear that Vander Zee will be available for Iowa’s all-important Week 2 matchup against Iowa State. Instead, he may need to eye a Week 3 or Week 4 return — just in time for Big Ten play.
For now, Iowa will be without their wideout this Saturday against the Cyclones. Kickoff is set for Noon ET live on FOX.
Category: General Sports
