Iowa notes: Kittle moves up, punter still TBA

IOWA CITY — Tight end George Kittle has become a more complete player, Iowa Coach Kirk Ferentz said Saturday. Not only is that important for the junior's development, it's vital for the team.

Kittle (6-foot-4, 235 pounds) quickly moved up the tight end chart this spring. Incoming starter Jake Duzey suffered a knee injury Wednesday and he's out for several months. Henry Krieger Coble — Kittle's cousin — has been limited in contact since offseason shoulder surgery.

That left Kittle and sophomore Jon Wisnieski as the primary tight ends with the first unit. Kittle stepped up as a key contributor Saturday with three catches for 50 yards. He hauled one in across the middle for 24 yards where he was crunched.

'He's blocking better this spring than he ever has and a lot of that is concentration, that's the thing I'm happiest about,' Ferentz said. 'I think he's concentrating at a level much higher than he ever has at a period of 15 practices. It's kind of like (Saturday). It was a very abbreviated appearance. The games are going to be a lot longer than what we did (Saturday), but the concentration, the intensity the player has to bring to the field, that's a learned thing a lot of times. That's what we're seeing with George.'

Kittle was used as a receiving tight end in 2013 when he caught five passes for 108 yards mostly on wheel routes. Last year, he played in 12 games but caught just one pass. Blocking was preventing him from seeing the field in more than just passing situations.

'He's starting to show that he's getting that idea because when he does concentrate, he's a pretty good football player,' Ferentz said. 'When he doesn't, he's just another guy ... another guy who can run well and catch balls. But if you're going to be out there, you've got to do it over the course of a full game. I think he's made a strides. I'm really pleased about that.'

PUNTER UP IN AIR

Iowa's punting situation remains as clear as the cloudy skies over Kinnick Stadium. Three different seniors punted on Saturday, and Ferentz said the competition will remain open through training camp.

Dillon Kidd averaged 46 yards on three punts, while Marshall Koehn hit two for 40 yards. Connor Kornbrath connected on two for 34.5 yards. The swirling winds led to varying distances.

'Right now if we were playing tomorrow, Dillon would be the starter at that position,' Ferentz said. 'But Marshall Koehn has entered the race, which he wasn't previously. We'll probably reserve judgment on that and let them keep competing right through. I think we've made some progress. The key thing there is consistency. We're capable, just not consistent.'

Iowa averaged 33.4 yards in net punting to rank 13th among Big Ten schools. Kidd punted 46 times and Kornbrath 18.

Last year Koehn connected on 12 of 16 field goals. He ranked second in kickoff average and 43 of his 68 kickoffs went for touchbacks. His leg strength prompted Ferentz to move him into the punter competition.

'Marshall is a pretty mentally tough guy, and he's kept his focus to where it needs to be,' Ferentz said. 'He's very focused and doing a good job.'

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