It didn’t take Nick Dawkins any time at all to catch the attention of the coaching staff. He was named the Developmental Squad Offensive Player of the Year during his freshman season in 2020, winning the weekly honor three times.
He saw the field in 11 games as a redshirt freshman in 2021, and concluding the season by earning Academic All-Big Ten honors.
Dawkins will now look to play a much larger role for the offensive line in year three. The offense will be in need of Dawkins, among other linemen who have been waiting for their shot, to be ready to step in for a retooled offensive line that has many question marks heading into the season.