Welcome back to our countdown to the 2026 Iowa football season!

Since May 28, we've been counting down the final 100 days until the Hawkeyes swarm out of the Kinnick Stadium tunnel for their season opener against Northern Illinois on Sept. 5. 

Each day of the countdown has primarily featured an article profiling one of the current members of the 2026 Hawkeyes based on their jersey number. Loyal readers already know this by now, but if you're hurrying to catch your football fix, this is how this works: if a player wears No. 2 and we're two days until kickoff, that's the player that will appear on the countdown. 

We've had to mix things up with innovative pieces on days that a current Hawkeye doesn't wear the number that fits the countdown, but that's not going to be a problem since we're down to the countdown's last days. 

This countdown was intended to help you pass the long summer wait before Iowa football, and if you've been reading since day one, give yourself a pat on the back because we have finally reached the last day without Hawkeye football for a long time. 

We're just one day away from kickoff, so that means it's time to take a look at two talented men who wear No. 1 - wide receiver KJ Parker and defensive back Darion Jones. 

Get to know them both here. 

Hometown: Elmhurst, Illinois 

High School: Immaculate Conception 

Year: Third-Year 

Height: 5-foot-10 

Weight: 191 pounds 

Other notable players to wear No. 1: It's very rare for Iowa to issue the No. 1 jersey to begin with, but a notable name to wear the jersey is former wide receiver Quinn Early. Early wore the jersey during the 1987 season, where he led the Big Ten with 978 receiving yards and helped the Hawkeyes win 10 games. He was selected by the San Diego Chargers in the third round of the 1988 NFL Draft and would go on to play 12 seasons in the league. 

Parker is one of those players we've heard excellent things about behind the scenes, but he's yet to register major playing time as a Hawkeye so far. The Elmhurst, Illinois native did see action in 11 games last year, catching two passes for 12 yards and his first career touchdown in a 47-7 blowout victory over UMass in Week 3. 

Parker would snag only one more reception that season, but he may be needed more this year with the departures of Jacob Gill, Sam Phillips, and Seth Anderson. All you have to do to see Parker's potential is watch some of his highlights on the Hawkeye Football social media pages, but he's obviously going to need to prove it in games this year. 

Hometown: Omaha, Nebraska

High School: Omaha North High School 

Year: First-Year 

Height: 6-foot-1 

Weight: 181 pounds

Jones obviously hasn't suited up for the black and gold just yet because he's a true freshman, but there's a lot of hype surrounding the Omaha prospect. He comes in as a four-star prospect and the No. 23 cornerback in the Class of 2026 (247Sports composite), with high school scouts praising his versatility and speed. 

Jones received interest from Power Four programs across the Midwest, including Iowa, Minnesota, Kansas State, Iowa State, and Nebraska, but he ultimately chose the Hawkeyes ahead of his final high school season. 

Iowa is very young in the secondary this year, so there's a chance the highly-touted prospect gets some playing time in 2026. He was taking some reps with the No. 1s during the Kids' Day open scrimmage, so that could be a good sign. Even if he doesn't get on the field right away, Iowa will probably take advantage of Jones' skills on special teams.

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HawkeyeRoundtable publisher Brad Schultz has covered the Iowa Hawkeyes since 2023. To send him story ideas, scoops, or criticize his writing, reach him at [email protected]