Coming to Iowa just a year ago, Hawkeyes safety Bob Sanders didn’t waste any time embedding his mark on the program – and that’s no exaggeration.

In an intrasquad scrimmage, the then-freshman drilled a member of the opposing team so hard that it separated his teammate’s shoulder and left a dent in his shoulder pad.

“If you go against him, you’ve got to go low,” star Hawkeyes receiver Kahlil Hill said. “If you don’t … he’ll hurt you. I wouldn’t want to run into him.”

But people can’t help but collide with Sanders.

After playing mostly on special teams as a true freshman, the 20-year-old sophomore is having a breakout season. Sanders’ 79 tackles this season — 31 solo — ranks seventh overall in the Big Ten and second among safeties. Six of his tackles have come for a loss, including one quarterback sack. He’s also returned two interceptions for 24 yards this season.

Sanders has already surpassed his total of 52 tackles, which he recorded his freshman year, when he played mostly on special teams. The 5-foot-8, 194-pounder was called on to start the last four games of the season at safety. He was just one piece of a young secondary that featured three new starters at the beginning of the 2000 season and ended with three different faces by year’s end.

Ryan Hansen was the only other true freshman to start at safety last season for Iowa.

“I hate to single guys out, but in our opinion, Bob Sanders is a fine football player,” Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz said. “Last year, he was an aggressive special teams player. We put him in at the end of the year at safety. He’s a good tackler and a good run defender. Now he’s learned how to run backwards and cover some passes.”

But playing with a youthful secondary, Sanders has had to do more than just tip passes and drive receivers into the ground. He has assumed a leadership position as well.

“He’s a vocal leader,” Hill said. “He doesn’t just lead with his play. He definitely tells everybody on defense if they need to step it up. It’s easy to listen to a guy like that who’s backing it up. The guys respect what he says.”

The Hawkeyes don’t need to perk their ears up too much to hear Sanders when he’s on the field. His rocking hits provide them with momentum-swinging excitement. For Hill, one such hit came during Iowa’s first Big Ten win last year, when Sanders crunched a Michigan State return man on a kickoff.

But the headache-inducing tackles don’t stop there.

In this year’s game against Penn State, Sanders smacked running back Eric McCoo so hard that McCoo’s helmet popped off.

“It looked like (McCoo’s) head was rolling around Kinnick Stadium,” Hill recalled.

Luckily for McCoo, his head stayed intact.

But anytime there’s a big defensive play on the field, Hill said Sanders is almost always involved.

“He’s a big spark player,” Hill said. “When he goes up in there I watch the jumbotron and when he hits somebody, everybody yells, ‘Ooh!’ If the fans yell ‘Ooh!’ then I know it’s probably Bob doing it.”

But like most sophomores, Sanders is still learning the ropes. Hill said he gives the Erie, Pa., native hints on staying with wideouts. One tip that the senior had for Sanders was that when a receiver drops his hands, it usually means that he’s going into a cut.

“We’ve helped him a little bit in his coverages,” Hill said. “He’s become more of a pass defender.”

Sanders’ youth gives him time to bloom into one of the conference’s top defensive backs. He’s already following close behind standout Ohio State strong safety Mike Doss and Minnesota safety Jack Brewer. Hill said he sees a lot of similarities in the way Doss and Sanders play.

“They’re both ball hawks,” Hill said. “They’ve got a nose for the football. They’re always around the ball. If there’s a defensive play that’s going to be made, they’re somewhere up in there. If there’s a tackle being made, Bob’s either the first or the second guy there.”

Although the Iowa defense has struggled over the past couple of weeks — allowing 261 passing yards to Wisconsin last weekend and 233 to Michigan the week before — Sanders still provides the Big Ten’s top-ranked pass defense with the bulk of its muscles.

He was named national defensive player of the week following the Hawkeyes’ 42-28 win over Indiana. Sanders made 25 tackles — 14 solo — which tied him for the fourth-highest single-game total in Iowa history.

“He’s a young player, but he’s really come a long way and developed,” Ferentz said. “I think he’s made us a more aggressive defense.”