It was a busy Monday for Hawkeye football following its 63-0 demolition of Illinois Nov. 17.

Iowa tight end T.J. Hockenson was announced as a finalist for the Mackey Award that is given to the best tight end in the nation, and Hawkeye defensive end A.J. Epenesa earned Big Ten recognition by picking up his second Defensive Player of the Week award of the season.

Hockenson is the first Hawkeye finalist for the Mackey Award since Dallas Clark won it in 2002. In addition to Clark’s honor, Tony Moeaki (2009), Allen Reisner (2010), and Noah Fant (2018) have been named semifinalists. Hockenson is joined by Stanford’s Kaden Smith and Missouri’s Albert Okwuegbunam as finalists.

Hockenson currently leads Iowa with 41 receptions for 663 yards and ranks second on the team with 6 touchdown catches, only trailing Fant’s 7.

Iowa’s tight end tandem of Fant and Hockenson earned Mackey Award Player of the Week honors after their performance in the Hawkeyes’ 42-16 win over Indiana on Oct. 13.

Hockenson, who has surpassed 100 yards twice in 2018, hauled in 4 passes for 107 yards and 2 touchdowns against the Hoosiers, while Fant recorded 4 receptions for 102 yards and a score.

Epenesa earned his honor after racking up a career-high 8 tackles, including 3.5 tackles for a loss and 1.5 sacks against the Illini to go along with a forced fumble, a touchdown, a pass breakup, and a blocked punt.

In the second quarter, Epenesa forced a fumble, recovered it, and took it back 19 yards for his first-career touchdown. Then, on the first play of the next Illinois drive, he recorded a sack. Epenesa then blocked the punt on fourth down three plays later, setting Iowa up for a score that extended its lead to 28-0.

Epenesa now ranks second in the Big Ten with 8.5 sacks, while also recording 13.5 tackles for a loss.