The Next Cooper DeJean? Why Zach Lutmer Could Break Out for Iowa in 2026

Have they done it again? Do the Iowa Hawkeyes and Phil Parker have yet another star defensive back manning the secondary? It may be so.

Zach Lutmer splashed for the Hawkeyes in 2025, becoming a star on defense and in the Big Ten. The 2026 season is ripe for him to ascend to national notoriety. With that, though, have come comparisons to another Iowa star defensive back.

Zach Lutmer drawing comparisons to Cooper DeJean

That would be current NFL All-Pro Cooper DeJean, who also was a Unanimous All-American and Big Ten Defensive Back of the Year with the Hawkeyes. Are those comparisons accurate or fair for Lutmer, though?

Iowa defensive back Cooper DeJean (3) lines up during a NCAA Big Ten Conference football game against Northwestern, Saturday, Oct. 29, 2022, at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa. 221029 Northwestern Iowa Fb 062 Jpg | Joseph Cress / USA TODAY NETWORK

Listen, I get the comparisons. Both are star defensive backs at Iowa. They rock single-digit jerseys. Heck, both are even homegrown Iowa natives living out their dreams playing for the Hawkeyes.

DeJean was listed at 6-foot-1 and 207 pounds. Lutmer is listed at 6-foot-tall and 205 pounds. They even look identical if you removed the number. How do you not compare the two of them?

Want to get even weirder? In 13 games in 2022, DeJean has 75 tackles, three tackles for loss, 13 pass breakups, and five interceptions.

Lutmer's 2025 saw him post 71 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 10 pass breakups, and three interceptions. The output is even mirroring one another.

Yet, Zach Lutmer can pave his own path at Iowa and be the next Zach Lutmer rather than the next Cooper DeJean.

Zach Lutmer Can Come Into His Own With Iowa Football

Iowa Hawkeyes defensive back Zach Lutmer (6) intercepts a pass meant for Minnesota Golden Gophers tight end Drew Biber (87) Oct. 25, 2025 at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa. | Julia Hansen/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Cooper DeJean was a lockdown cornerback for Iowa. He took away half the field for opposing quarterbacks. In college, he provided the traditional one-on-one cornerback that let Phil Parker worry about the rest of the defense.

Zach Lutmer brings a different set of skills for Parker to play with. Lutmer is incredibly versatile as a defensive back. He can play the man coverage style of cornerback, but he can slide back to safety and trust his instincts.

Where Lutmer can really shine is his ability to be a Swiss Army knife and play Iowa's CASH position, a hybrid that mixes slot corner, safety, and linebacker play at times.

Lutmer's versatility should allow Parker to let his true corners and safeties focus on their responsibilities.

While the comparisons to Cooper DeJean are fair and done so in the most complimentary way, Zach Lutmer can come into his own with the Hawkeyes as the next great Iowa defensive back for his own reasons.

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