The Athletic
First Team: Daviyon Nixon & Tyler Linderbaum
Second Team: Tory Taylor
DT Daviyon Nixon, Jr., Iowa: Nixon spent one season at Iowa Western as a juco player, then redshirted upon arrival at Iowa. He’s enjoyed a meteoric rise, from starting one game last year to becoming an Outland Trophy finalist in his abbreviated junior season. The 6-foot-3, 305-pound Nixon faces constant double-teams and yet leads the Big Ten in tackles for loss per game (1.69). If that’s not enough, he had a 71-yard pick six against Penn State.
C Tyler Linderbaum, Soph., Iowa: It sounds like a typical Iowa story: A three-star recruit from inside the state, ranked as the No. 28 defensive tackle in the 247Sports Composite, converts to center and becomes the best player at his position in his second year as a starter. The Rimington Trophy finalist has been dominant as the anchor of another stellar Hawkeyes offensive line.
First Team: Daviyon Nixon & Tyler Linderbaum
Second Team: Tory Taylor
DT Daviyon Nixon, Jr., Iowa: Nixon spent one season at Iowa Western as a juco player, then redshirted upon arrival at Iowa. He’s enjoyed a meteoric rise, from starting one game last year to becoming an Outland Trophy finalist in his abbreviated junior season. The 6-foot-3, 305-pound Nixon faces constant double-teams and yet leads the Big Ten in tackles for loss per game (1.69). If that’s not enough, he had a 71-yard pick six against Penn State.
C Tyler Linderbaum, Soph., Iowa: It sounds like a typical Iowa story: A three-star recruit from inside the state, ranked as the No. 28 defensive tackle in the 247Sports Composite, converts to center and becomes the best player at his position in his second year as a starter. The Rimington Trophy finalist has been dominant as the anchor of another stellar Hawkeyes offensive line.
