Inside The Hawkeyes

Iowa Announces Honorary Captain vs. UMass

The Iowa Hawkeyes have named one of their former running backs an honorary captain for the program's game against UMass.
Jennifer Streeter|
Iowa junior running back Toren Young runs the ball upfield against Middle Tennessee at Kinnick Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2019, in Iowa City. 20190927 Iowavsmt
Iowa junior running back Toren Young runs the ball upfield against Middle Tennessee at Kinnick Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2019, in Iowa City. 20190927 Iowavsmt | Bryon Houlgrave/The Register, Des Moines Register via Imagn Content Services, LLC

Former Iowa Hawkeyes running back Toren Young will serve as an honorary captain for Saturday's game against UMass.

Young was announced as an honorary captain on Thursday. Kickoff is slated for 7:40 p.m. EST at Kinnick Stadium. The game against the Minutemen follows up Iowa's 16-13 loss to Iowa State on Sept. 6. This will be the first meeting in history between UMass and the Hawkeyes.

Despite the fact that both teams have been playing football since the 1890s, UMass only made the jump to the FBS level in 2011 while Iowa has been in the Big Ten for over a century.

Toren Young Named Honorary Captain

The Iowa alum will accompany the Iowa captains to midfield for Saturday’s pregame coin toss and be with the Hawkeyes in the locker room before and after the game.

"Yeah, Toren! One of my favorite Hawks ever," said one fan in response to the announcement.

Young was a three-year letterman and helped the Hawkeyes win three bowl games — the Pinstripe Bowl (2017), the Outback Bowl (2019) and the Holiday Bowl (2019) — across 2017-19. The Wisconsin native amassed 1,262 rushing yards and nine total touchdowns (eight rushing) in 32 career games. His 1,262 career yards rank 37th in program history. 

His single-season best came during his junior year (2018). That year Young totaled 637 yards rushing and six touchdowns.

Iowa Hawkeyes running back Toren Young
Oct 19, 2019; Iowa City, IA, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes running back Toren Young (28) runs with the ball against the Purdue Boilermakers during the first quarter at Kinnick Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images | Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

Young previously served as a game captain four times in 2019 as a senior.

Since graduation from Iowa, Young went on to get his Master of Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in educational leadership and policy analysis. He is currently a Restorative Justice Coordinator for the Madison Metropolitan School District.

The upcoming game against UMass will be the last matchup for Iowa before they begin conference play. Iowa is projected to win heavily, with wide receiver Kaden Wetjen saying the roster is looking forward to responding to adversity against the Minutemen.

"We know [football] is an imperfect game and not everything is going to go your way," Wetjen said. "And I think you've seen in the past, we have a pretty good tradition of responding after adversity ... the standards we have in plans ... since January we've been working and know the team that we have. I have no doubt we will respond to adversity."

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Jennifer Streeter
JENNIFER STREETER

Jennifer Streeter graduated with a B.A. in journalism from Texas A&M and received her Master of Science from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism. At both schools, she focused on an emphasis of sports reporting. A former athlete herself, "Jenny" was a varsity soccer player and comes from a family who participated in NCAA athletics. She has covered everything from the 2025 Hughes Bowl, SEC football, Ivy League athletics, the 2023 ALCS and the 2023 World Series, the WNBA, and much more.

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