Sometimes games go like you expect them to, this game last Saturday didn't really follow this pattern. One pattern it did follow was like all of the heartbreaking losses Iowa has suffered against Northwestern the Hawks jumped out to a 10 to 0 lead before Northwestern came back to tie it. I like everyone else was thinking here we go again the Wildcats will beat us but this time it was the Hawkeyes rising to the occasion in overtime to beat the Wildcats 17 to 10. I know this is only one victory but it felt bigger than just one win it puts Iowa in great position to make a bowl game. This game really felt like a turning point for this team, Iowa has lost a number of close games over the years where they should have won the football game. A lot of these games have taken place at Kinnick Stadium so getting a close win finally at home was huge for this team. Kinnick Stadium was as loud as it has been in the last few seasons in that overtime. This was a huge victory for the Hawks so how did they get it done on Saturday.
Offensively this was an ugly football game the winds were very strong out of the Northwest which basically crushed any hope of a consistent passing game for either team. The opening drive once again was a thing of beauty for the Hawks going 74 yards in 14 plays to score a touchdown. This was the second straight game where Iowa scored on their opening possession and really set the tone for how the game would be played. I really thought after we basically ran it right down the field for a touchdown we were going to be blowing out Northwestern but that just didn't happen. The Hawks third drive of the game resulted in a Mike Meyer field goal as they went 42 yards in 11 plays to extend the lead to 10 to 0. That was really all the action for either offense in the first half of the game. The running game for Iowa wasn't nearly as good as I thought it would be but still productive with 136 yards rushing on 41 carries. Mark Weisman led the way with 13 carries for 56 yards and Damon Bullock had 17 carries for 52 yards. The Northwestern defense was very good vs the run in the second half blowing up a lot of the things Iowa was trying on offense.
Jake Rudock didn't have a great game but he was very accurate completing 19 of 27 passes for 169 yards and one touchdown, one interception. The passing game was held down by the wind but the Hawks still were productive through the air. Keyvonte Martin Manley led the way with 5 receptions for 45 yards Tevaun Smith probably had his best game as a Hawk hauling in 3 passes for 41 yards including a huge play in overtime to get the first down on a quick slant. Jake Duzey again had a nice game with 2 catches for 27 yards I expect we see him being targeted a lot the rest of the season. CJ Fiedorowicz had a nice game with 2 catches for 26 yards including the game winning touchdown in overtime. I really like what I see from these receivers they seem to be getting better each week so if we ever run into a team where we can't run the football I think the offense will be able to move the ball and put up points. The one thing that Rudock has that I love is the guts to stand in under fire I have seen him a number of times this season just like the overtime play where a defender comes free. He doesn't get rattled stands in to throw a perfect touch pass to the end zone for the game winner. I think this offense can be very productive passing offense the rest of the year the Hawks have the running game but if they could develop a consistent passing attack they become a very dangerous offense. Those are some of my thoughts on the offense so what did the defense do on Saturday to hold Northwestern to 10 points.
Defensively Iowa got after the quarterback on Saturday sacking the Colter 5 times and Simian one time for 6 total sacks on Saturday. Kain Colter is a tough quarterback to defend and he made Iowa pay running the football 18 times for 60 yards. Northwestern ran the ball very effectively vs Iowa rushing 52 times for 225 yards rushing. Colter provided a spark to that offense and you could tell how big of a factor he is on that team. Iowa's defense was very good in the first half forcing 3 punts and a fumble in the first half. The thing that I liked was after Iowa went on their long opening scoring drive the defense came right back to get a 3 and out on Northwestern's first possession. The second half things changed the Wildcats had the ball a lot in that 3rd quarter where I could tell the defense was getting tired. The defense stopped Northwestern on their opening drive of the second half too but the Iowa offense couldn't take advantage of it. Honestly this game felt like Iowa was about to open it up but that just didn't happen. Northwestern had a very impressive drive going 8 plays in 81 yards where they ran the ball 5 of the 8 times hitting one long pass down the sideline and a TD pass to the tight end. From the 3rd quarter to the start of the 4th quarter Northwestern had a 16 play drive going 69 yards but the Iowa defense stepped up to make a play on 3rd down as Mike Hardy sacked the backup quarterback for the Wildcats to force the game tying field goal.
After Northwestern tied the game it was very encouraging to see the Hawkeyes put a nice drive together going 51 yards in 9 plays but missing a 42 yard field goal. After the missed field goal I was really thinking here we go again. The Iowa defense rose to the occasion on this drive causing a fumble on the option by the Wildcats which Desmond King dove on. A huge play by the defense which kept coming up with the play that they needed to keep the game tied. The Iowa offense stalled and Rudock threw an interception so we were heading for overtime I've seen a few overtime games in Iowa City, they haven't seemed to go our way. This time Iowa made the key play of the game on the clutch TD pass by Jake Rudock to CJ Fiedorowicz. Again the defense stepped up Drew Ott sacked Kain Colter on the opening play of Overtime. Kolter than was able to rush for 3 yards bringing it to 3rd and 8. Desmond King the true Freshman made the play of the game on defense breaking up a potential first down pass for the Wildcats. On 4th down Louis Trincas Pasat had a great pass rush forcing Colter out of the pocket where they Hawkeyes ran him down to finish off the victory.
There were a few things that I really liked seeing for the defense, the first was the pass rush Iowa generated sacking Wildcat quarterbacks 6 times. I really liked the 3rd down defense Iowa went with bringing in Nate Meir, Reggie Spearmen and Quinton Alston to specifically rush the passer. This is a wrinkle I would like to continue to see also on this formation every defensive lineman stayed up so the offense didn't know what player was going where. Iowa won the turnover battle which always a good sign forcing 2 fumbles. The best thing out of the defense is that they didn't give up many big passing plays really the only one was a 31 yard pass where B.J. Lowery was in great position the guy just made a great play. I think the wind did make it harder for a long pass to be complete but overall the secondary only allowed 104 yards passing. Iowa will see other scrambling quarterbacks later this season so what they learned in playing against Braxton Miller and Kain Colter will help them. The defense will see a completely different offensive philosophy next weekend when the Badgers come to town. One thing that seemed to be a problem was giving up big runs between the tackles especially up the middle Northwestern had a lot of success. I think the defensive line got a little tired so we might see some more rotating in that interior defensive line for the Hawkeyes.
Special teams can completely change a game but in this one that wasn't the case each team made a field goal. Northwestern averaged 25 yards per kick return including a 38 yard return Iowa has to improve the Kickoff coverage they continue to give up big returns each game. Punting was better last week as Kornbraith punted 4 times for an average of 40 yards including 2 inside the 20 and one that was downed inside the 2 yard line. Iowa didn't really get a chance to return a punt or kick Canzeri averaged 14.5 yards on 2 attempts and Martin Manley had a 10 yard punt return. The special teams can still use some improvement but they are getting better I think we will have a game this season where we say the special teams was a huge factor in the win.
So now Iowa welcomes Wisconsin to Kinnick Stadium this Saturday I'm very excited for this one. Going back to the importance for Iowa to win last weekend vs Northwestern it was a win that seemed like a turning point in the program I feel Iowa could be back on the rise. They had some down years but I think they should make a bowl game and could do a whole lot more. I mean besides Ohio State and Michigan State the Big Ten isn't full of unstoppable teams. Looking at the Legends division this conference is wide open who would of thought Nebraska would lose to Minnesota, Michigan State still has to play Michigan, Nebraska, Northwestern and Minnesota. Looking at their schedule they shouldn't lose 3 games but who knows what will happen. Iowa has everything in front of them sitting 2-2 in the conference 5-3 overall still have games vs Michigan at home plus a game on the road at Nebraska. Iowa plays Wisconsin this weekend which should be another great game I'm very excited where the team is sitting right now we are in position to make a bowl game and could make this season very special. Does that win last week start a winning streak to end this season I feel it is very possible the Hawks get on a roll. I will have a preview of the Battle for the Heartland Trophy coming up in the next few days so stop back, thanks for reading.
Go Hawks
No comments:
Post a Comment