Sebastian Castro builds on progress from last year as Iowa secondary maintains its ‘standard’

IOWA CITY — Iowa football’s late-November heartbreak “turned on a switch” for defensive back Sebastian Castro.

The Hawkeyes, after losing star player Cooper DeJean early in the game, suffered a 24-17 loss to Nebraska that kept them out of the Big Ten title game.

“I was like, ‘Wow, what could have been if we won that game,’” Castro said. “We didn’t make the Big Ten championship, so I was just thinking like, ‘I just got to focus on this bowl game.’”

Castro’s improvement in Iowa’s Music City Bowl win may not necessarily have shown up in the box score, but they were evident. Castro’s continued progression could be a key part of the Iowa secondary’s efforts to uphold its “standard” set in previous seasons.

Over the last five seasons, Iowa has recorded 83 interceptions. The Hawkeyes led the country in the statistic in 2021 and were tied for 14th in 2022.

DeJean is expected to man one of the cornerback positions after a breakout season in 2022. The Odebolt native had five interceptions, three of which he returned for touchdowns.

Cedar Rapids native Quinn Schulte started all 13 games last year at free safety, filling a void left by fellow walk-on-turned-starter Jack Koerner’s graduation.

After that, Castro has the next-most starting experience with eight starts — including six of Iowa’s last seven games in 2022.

Cornerback Jermari Harris, who missed the entire 2022 season with an injury, has six career starts.

Safety Xavier Nwankpa, a former five-star recruit, made his first career start in the Music City Bowl and returned an interception for a touchdown.

“I definitely noticed his confidence level,” Castro said of Nwankpa. “He is very comfortable in this defense, so that’s really good to see. … He’s going to be good.”

Castro’s Cash progression

After appearing exclusively on special teams in Iowa’s first two games of the 2022 season, Castro took on a larger role in the secondary as the season progressed.

It was partly out of necessity. Terry Roberts’ injury led to DeJean playing almost exclusively at cornerback instead of Cash later in the season.

Now, Castro seems to have found a home at the Cash position — Phil Parker’s hybrid nickel defensive back position.

“Everything that I had to learn with the Cash is all really mental,” Castro said.

From a physical standpoint, Castro said the strength and conditioning staff would ideally like him to be at 207 pounds. As of last week, he was at 210.

“So I got to cut down a little bit,” Castro said.

Castro’s predecessor, Dane Belton, predicted Castro’s Cash success.

When asked at the 2022 NFL Combine who could fill his role at Cash, Belton said Iowa had “a lot of guys in the defensive back room that can do that,” but he singled out Castro.

“He’s very versatile, a very aggressive player,” Belton said last year.

Looking ahead, “being more fluid” has been an area of emphasis for Castro this offseason.

“And I think I’ve done that this past two months,” Castro said. “Not that I’ve got it, but I can always get better.”

Jack Koerner returns to Evashevski Drive

Two years after his final season in a Hawkeye uniform, Koerner is helping Iowa’s secondary in a different role — graduate assistant working with defensive backs.

The free safety signed with the New Orleans Saints as an undrafted free agent in 2022, but did not make the 53-man roster. After a year in the XFL, he returned to his alma mater.

“He is a big help,” Castro said. “He’s an extra eye in the sky.”

Koerner was teammates with Castro and Schulte for three seasons (2019-21). Schulte, a former walk-on, was especially close with Koerner as teammates.

“I was in his hip pocket for as long as I was here and he was here,” Schulte said. “I was just trying to pick his brain back then, and I’ll probably try to do it this fall as well.”

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