Iowa’s Seth Wallace: ‘This linebacker group is the deepest we’ve had’

The Iowa defense has allowed less than 20 points per game for the last nine seasons. A big reason for that is linebacker play. The 2026 Hawkeyes have a younger linebacker group than past years, but there is a lot of optimism in Iowa City about the unit as a whole. "In my 13 years coaching linebackers, like, this might be the most depth we've had, and probably the most competition we've had," said Seth Wallace, Iowa's linebackers coach. "Some of that stems from just losing two guys last year, three guys last year, that were starters so there is some open vacancy there, and Jayden (Montgomery) is really the only one returning with significant experience so. In regards to Cam (Buffington), Cam is doing a really good job, but I would share this with everybody. There's 6-7 guys that have really shown up in a significant way, and that started back in January. It really started back in bowl prep and everything up until now has just been an upward arrow, in terms of what they've accomplished and what they are doing." Iowa opens the year against Northern Illinois on Sept. 5 in front of a sold out Kinnick Stadium crowd. Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WHBF - OurQuadCities.com.