Iowa Hawkeyes Star Delivers Urgent Message

The Iowa Hawkeyes are just 5-3, and their national championship hopes are gone. However, they are still playing for a bowl game, not to mention themselves.

There are plenty of Iowa players who won’t be around in 2025, and star linebacker Jay Higgins is one of them.

As a result, the burly defender is preaching a rather urgent message to his team heading into the Week 10 matchup with the Wisconsin Badgers.

“We have a lot of guys who won’t be eligible after this.” said Higginsvia Scott Dochterman of The Athletic. “I’m going to play every game like it’s my last, because it’s literally my last. We just don’t want to take these moments for granted. We don’t want to take these games for granted. We only have two games left at Kinnick. We only have 12, 13 of these opportunities.

Higgins himself is a senior who has quickly risen up the NFL Draft boards as a result of exceptional play since last season.

In 2023, the 22-year-old racked up 171 tackles, five tackles for loss, a pair of sacks, an interception, a forced fumble and a pair of fumble recoveries.

In eight games this year, he has recorded 84 stops, a sack, three picks, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.

As the season comes to a close, Higgins is feeling introspective.

“We don’t have the luxury of assuming there will be more football after this,” he said. “I’m totally involved in Iowa football, playing in the black-and-gold, and I think I see a lot of the guys on the team who are more interested in playing today, playing now, and not really looking ahead.

The question is whether the Hawkeyes can actually put together 60 minutes of consistent football against Wisconsin. Or against another opponent the rest of the way, for that matter.