Iowa Hosts Michigan State Thoughts

     Iowa must respond from last week's 31 to 0 loss to Penn State. I think it's really important for the offense to get off to a good start. If the offense goes 3 and out I could see things getting ugly inside Kinnick Stadium. I know boos could rang out if the offense doesn't have success right from the start. 

    Michigan State is coming off two straight blowout losses, they fired their Coach and all kinds of problems for the spartans right now. So, this is hopefully a game Iowa will be able to handle but after what we've seen from the offense I don't know if we can trust them to win big Saturday Night. It is a night game at Kinnick, and that atmosphere is the best. Michigan State in the last two weeks has allowed 1075 yards in their last two games but Washington's offense is elite and Maryland's offense has looked pretty good. 

    Michigan State is more of a passing team throwing for 266 yards per game. One big thing Iowa needs from the defense this week is they need to get pressure yes, but they also need to make some sacks. The defense just hasn't gotten the sacks. They have gotten pretty good pressure on the quarterback but it's time for one of the defensive linemen to step up and get some sacks. If we can't get pressure, then the Hawkeyes will have to blitz more which opens up holes in the defense. Running defense has to be better too after Penn State racked up 215 yards on the ground. 

    The Biggest improvement I'm hoping to see this week is the offensive line protecting the quarterback. The last couple of weeks Cade has taken a lot of hits. I also want to see the wide receivers more involved but I guess for me it's an I'll believe it when I see it situation. The Running game has to get going I want to see at least 150 yards on the ground this week. Iowa should be angry about what Penn State did to them they need to come home and take that anger out on Michigan State. 

    I think this is a dangerous game I know Iowa has been favored by a lot in this one, but Michigan State isn't nearly as bad as people are making them out to be. They lost to an Elite Washington team and a Maryland team who off to a great start. I think this game could be a close one into the 4th quarter which does concern me a bit with what we've seen from the offense. The Fact are if Iowa wants to accomplish the goals, they set back in the preseason it all starts tonight. They got punched in the mouth on the road now it's time to come back with a vengeance this week and roll Michigan State. 

Iowa Shutout by #7 Penn State 31 to 0 thoughts.

     Wow that wasn't what we were all hoping to see on Saturday Night. Iowa literally could do nothing on offense. Penn State ran 97 plays to Iowa's 33 just an embarrassing performance. Now I know Penn State is a terrific team, but 76 total yards of offense is completely unacceptable. I really don't know where the offense goes from here. 

    This was as brutal of a game as I can remember. Iowa had 4 first downs, 1/9 of 3rd down it was so ugly. Offensive Line was bad, even though Penn State had just 3 sacks they were in Cade's face all game. Early in the game Iowa did have some positive things happen. The fumble by Erick All felt big at the time now I don't know if the momentum changes much or the outcome changes much if Iowa can grab the lead on Saturday. 

    I'm just not sure how they can fix the offense. I really don't know who's at fault because it feels like Iowa does have some playmakers, they just can't get them the ball. 4 Turnovers on Saturday obviously didn't help. I think the tough thing is it just seems like everything has to be perfect on a play for it to work. The offense seems to focus so much on the tight ends which has worked in the past, but we are just too one dimensional. Currently Lachey and All have combined for 20 Receptions for 247 yards the rest of the wide receivers have 14 receptions for 148 yards. Iowa has to find a way to get the receivers more involved it's been this way for a while now. We need to run more rub routes to try and open up some space but to get to some of these passes the offensive line has to be able to protect the quarterback. Ironically, I liked the shovel pass we ran to the TE Erick All of course that was the play he fumbled. If the Offensive Line is going to struggle again, we have to get Cade out of the pocket and maybe that would be the plan if he was healthy. I also wonder if the Coaches hammer into the QB's head so much that we can't have turnovers that they don't take some chances down the field. 

    The Running game did absolutely nothing on Saturday averaging just 1.1 yards per carry. I don't know if it's just me or if others out there feel the same way does the zone running game just not work anymore. Anytime Iowa plays a good defense it just seems like the zone scheme doesn't work anymore. Iowa has tried a bit more gap running schemes, but I don't know. The Zone blocking scheme everyone has to be perfect and if one offensive lineman misses a block or can't get the reach block the play will be blown up. Also watching other teams, I see them running out of shotgun having a ton of success and not all of them have a running quarterback. Even when we put 3 tight ends on the field, we still got very little push in the running game. 

    The Defense did keep Iowa in it for a while, but turnovers were costly. The Run defense was a slight concern though as they gave up 215 yards on the ground. Also, in the second quarter when they needed a stop, they couldn't get off the field. Obviously, they played the entire game because the offense was going 3 and out all the time but there were some plays to be made by the defense to keep the score closer, but they couldn't get stops. 

    The Bottom line is the offense isn't likely to make wholesale changes during the season. It's probably going to be in the offseason potentially but who knows. The biggest key is the offensive line has to get better or it's going to be another year where the defense has to win us games with turnovers. They have been so up and down this year. Utah State we couldn't run the ball, at Iowa State we did run the ball okay, vs Western Michigan, best running performance in a while but now pass blocking. Saturday Night at Penn State they couldn't run or protect the quarterback. Now we flush this game and move on to Michigan State Saturday. Even with this loss the team still can win the West and do a lot of positive things this year. 

#24 Iowa at #7 Penn State (Preview)

     The big game is here as Iowa will travel to Penn State on Saturday Night to take on the 7th Ranked Nittany Lions in front of a sold-out crowd all dressed in white. Iowa finished the non-conference portion of the schedule 3-0 whipping Western Michigan 41 to 10 last Saturday. The First half was a little concerning, but Iowa dominated on the run rolling in the second half.  

    Iowa rushed for 243 yards and that was without starting RB Kaleb Johnson and backup Jazuin Patterson who barely played. Leshon Williams had a big afternoon with 145 yards on 12 carries. Now while the running game was clicking the passing game just didn't look good at all. Iowa QB Cade McNamara was just 9/19 for 103 yards 2 tds 2 ints. He just didn't look comfortable in what he was seeing. I think missing a lot of camp with an injury is really hurting this offense. Hopefully he can have a good practice this week and start trusting guys to be open. The other big blow the Iowa offense was dealt is the injury to TE Luke Lachey as he went down with a right ankle injury and is done for the year after having surgery.  

    Defensively Iowa gave up some big plays in the passing game one touchdown counted and the other didn't, but they have to clean that up this week. Jamari Harris returned to the starting lineup at DB and was beat on both of the touchdowns. Hopefully that was just a little rust for him. So let's look ahead to this week's match up. 

    So, let's dive deeper into Penn State. The Nittany Lions are 3-0 on the season they are 1-0 in the Big Ten after beating Illinois Saturday 30 to 13. Penn State beat West Virginia 38 to 15, Delaware 63 to 7 and the win against Illinois. Looking at the offensive stats for Penn State they are averaging 467 yards of total offense per game with 259 in the air and 208 on the ground. Penn State QB Drew Allar is completing 48 percent of his passes 59/88 for 737 yards 4 touchdowns 0 interceptions. His favorite target is Keandre Lambert Smith who has 13 Receptions for 220 yards and 2 touchdowns. The Nittany Lions have run the ball effectively too Kaytron Allen leads the team with 208 yards rushing on 42 carries with 2 TDS. Nicholas Singleton with 154 yards on 36 carries with 5 touchdowns. 

    Defensively Penn State is allowing 267 yards per game with 165 yards passing and 102 yards rushing. Illinois, who is a physical team, rushed for just 78 yards on 29 carries. This defense is the best Iowa will see this year likely. They have players all over the defense that can make plays. The Nittany Lions have forced 7 turnovers with 5 Interceptions and 2 forced fumbles. LB Curtis Jacobs leads the team with 12 tackles and Safeties Jaylen Reed with 10, Zakee Wheatley with 10. 

    Special Teams Penn State's kicker Alex Felkins has been solid, 4/5 on FG long of 45 and 14/14 on PATS. 

    One of the biggest keys will be can Iowa run the football consistently and pass protect McNamara. Last week he got hit a lot and was sacked 4 times that can't happen this week. I think this could be a week Iowa looks to pass on 1st down a bit because I have a feeling Penn State is going to try and shut down the run first. Now I know Johnson and Patterson could be out, but I think Williams can fill in at RB. He's also a different type of runner who is more downhill and that should help vs an aggressive defense like Penn State. WR Diante Vines caught his first TD Pass last week. The other big key in this game too me for the Iowa offense is they have to convert some 3rd downs and keep drives alive. The Crowd is going to be very rowdy. Can Cade complete some big passes on 3rd down to keep drives alive. Will we see Erick All step into Lachey's role and become that go to guy for McNamara. 

    It's really hard to say what to expect out of Iowa because once again the offense has been inconsistent in the non-conference games. We know that Iowa defense will be ready to go and make things difficult for the Penn State Offense. In an atmosphere like this it's important for Iowa to take an early lead because if they fall behind that crowd will be going even more crazy. A Game like Saturday is why Cade McNamara is here now can he deliver when the pressure is on. This game isn't all on him obviously, but Iowa needs him to make some plays with his legs and arm on Saturday Night if they want to pull off the upset. The Pass protection has me concerned but the first two games they were great then last week they gave up 4 sacks. 

Iowa Hangs on to Beat Iowa State 20-13

     The Hawks did just enough to beat Iowa State in Jack Trice Stadium on Saturday hanging on to beat Iowa State 20 to 13. Honestly this game really went about how it was expected to go for the most part the defenses dominated. Iowa did do some good things offensively but also missed some chances to really put the game out of reach. 

    The biggest surprise on Saturday was Jazuin Patterson having a breakout performance with 10 carries for 86 yards 1 TD. His numbers included a 59-yard run to set up a field goal to give Iowa an early 3 to 0 lead. Kaleb Johnson had 15 carries but only for 28 yards he just seemed a step slow for some reason. QB Cade McNamara had an up and down game completing 12/22 passes for 123 yards 1 Interception. Coming into the game we knew Iowa State had a terrific secondary. Iowa was very aggressive on 3rd and short which I loved running multiple play-action passes. The first big completion came on a 3rd and 2 to set up Iowa's First touchdown as McNamara connected with TE Luke Lachey for 35 yards. Another big completion came on 3rd and 1 with a little over 8 minutes remaining in the 3rd quarter as McNamara connected with Erik All for 23 yards into Iowa State territory. McNamara did miss what probably would have been a 91 yard TD pass to Seth Anderson has he made the corner fall down on a double move but didn't put enough air under the ball. The Wide receivers still need to have some more production on Saturday Anderson had 1 Catch for 14 yards, Nico Ragaini 2 Catches 8 Yards, Diante Vines one Reception for 7 Yards. Iowa State has a good defense but unfortunately, we did see some of the same things that have hurt the offense in the past. This week will tell us a lot because they really need to put a big offensive performance together vs Western Michigan. 

    Defensively they absolutely dominated at times on Saturday. The Defense scored another touchdown with the pick 6 by Sebastian Castro. The Defense completely neutralized the run game allowing just 87 yards on 31 carries. The Pass defense also played extremely well Deshaun Lee was tested a lot again on Saturday he had a couple of nice pass breakups and 9 tackles. Hawkeyes had 5 tackles for loss and put a ton of pressure on Iowa State QB Rocco Becht, now they didn't get a lot of sacks but put some hits on the young quarterback. Joe Evans was all over the field, every drop back it seemed like he was putting some heat on the QB. Other than the first drive of the game where Iowa State went 57 yards on 15 plays. The Cyclones next 5 drives they went punt, punt, punt and Interception for a TD. The only drive Iowa State turned into a TD was a 14-play drive which went 80 yards. The defense ended the game forcing Iowa State to turn it over on downs with a 1:23 to play in the game. 

    Special teams were solid they blocked a field goal early in the game that would have given Iowa State a 3-0 lead. Drew Stevens was 2-2 on Field Goals. Tory Taylor punted 6 times for an average of 46.9 Yards. Iowa's Punt coverage was outstanding too as Iowa State punt returner Jaylin Noel had 3 Returns for -4 yards. 

    Whenever you play a rival like Iowa State you are just happy to get out with a win and the Hawks did that, so mission accomplished. Now they play Western Michigan before the big game at Penn State in two weeks. It would be nice to see the offense have a breakout performance on Saturday, but we will have to wait and see what happens. 

    

Cy-Hawk Preview Keys to an Iowa Victory!

     We've finally made it to Saturday and that means we are just hours away from the kickoff as Iowa invades Jack Trice Stadium to take on Iowa State. This is one of the most exciting days of the year in the State has thousands of people will be in Ames just tailgating outside the Stadium. I'm going to run through a few keys to an Iowa Victory. 

    My Biggest key to an Iowa Victory is the Hawkeyes have to run the ball. My key player this week is Iowa RB Kaleb Johnson, he has the potential to be a game changer in this game. Iowa has to be able to rush for over 100 yards as a team today. Iowa State has a very aggressive defense so they will be run blitzing a lot which could open up some lanes for the running game to make some big plays. 

    Another big key in my mind is the Iowa Receivers have to make some plays. Iowa doesn't need McNamara to go out and throw for 300 yards and 3 touchdowns or anything like that all though that would be amazing. I think Iowa State will likely try and take away Luke Lachey so that will open the door for Eric All, Nico Ragaini, Seth Anderson, Diante Vines, Kaleb Brown to make some plays. I would  guess we will see some things this week that Iowa didn't show last week against Utah State. Iowa State has a terrific secondary so it's not going to be easy to pass but Iowa still has to make some plays down the field. 

    Defensively I have two keys one putting some pressure on the young Iowa State QB's with the front four. Also they have to shut down the Iowa State Rushing attack. QB Rocco Becht threw the ball just 13 times in week one vs UNI going 10-13 for 113 yards 2 TDS. Iowa State Rushed for 134 yards on 27 carries led in rushing by Cartevious Norton. Iowa State didn't run no huddle last week which seems like the first time in several years and maybe they will run it today. If Iowa can get some pressure on the QB I think they can force Becht into some mistakes. Iowa State doesn't have Xavier Hutchinson anymore so they don't have that one guy you have to worry about. Now I could be wrong but this is one of the worst Iowa State offense's at least on paper in a long time. That doesn't mean Iowa will crush Iowa State but I just have a hard time seeing them be able to put multiple scoring drives together. 

    The other big thing is Iowa QB Cade McNamara's Experience. He's been through the tough games. He's played in big time stadiums. His health is a bit of a concern, but I think he will be the difference in this game. Both Defenses are very good so this could be a low scoring game I could see 17 points being enough to win this game. Either way we should be in for a very physical battle today. 

Iowa Defeats Utah State 24 to 14! Thoughts!

      The Hawkeyes started the year with a win against Utah State Saturday 24 to 14. It was kind of an up and down game. The offense started really good but kind of fizzled out. Defense also started out really well but gave up some plays and points later in the game. I'll start with my thoughts on the how the offense played. 

    Literally the offense couldn't have started any better with Cade McNamara throwing a TD Pass on the Second play of the game to Seth Anderson. One thing that stood out right away was Cade is a very accurate quarterback, I saw very few passes that were just way off. One big concern again is their just seems to be no Wide Receivers making big contribution. Now there were some good things Anderson had the TD but the Wide Receivers Nico Ragaini, Seth Anderson, combined for just 4 catches. Anderson 2 catches for 41 yards 1 td, Nico Ragaini 2 Catches for 36 Yards. The Tight Ends were the standouts in the passing game again with Luke Lachey catching 7 passes for 73 yards, Eric All had 3 catches for 15 yards. I think for this team to get to where they want to go, they need more receivers to step up. Ohio State Transfer Kaleb Brown and returning receiver Diante Vines didn't have a reception. Neither guy really was targeted. Drops were a problem too as Iowa easily should have led 21 to 3 at Halftime but Ragaini dropped a td on a beautiful fade from Cade and Lachey had a drop too that would have been a big gain potentially a td. It's obvious they have some weapons but once again they have to find ways to get the ball to them. For whatever reason other teams can get the ball to their top Wide Receiver but we can't. The good news is the offensive line's pass blocking was excellent, Cade had plenty of time to throw and was barely hit. 

    The Most disappointing thing for the offense to me was the running game. It just seemed like we couldn't get any push or yards consistently. Iowa had 36 carries for just 88 yards averaging 2.4 yards per carry. Coming into the game I though the run game would really show out but there was nothing other than a few good runs. One thing that was noticeable is Kaleb Johnson is going to be the featured back he had 19 carries for 63 yards 1 Touchdown. The rest of the backs combined for just 11 carries with Leshon Williams getting 6 and Jaziun Patterson 5. Multiple things have to happen for the running game to work first line has to block well and the backs have to see the holes. 

    Play calling I thought was okay nothing really stood out to me other than we ran a lot of screens. Several TE Screens which I think will likely be a big part of this offense moving forward. I did like the jet sweep that worked a couple of times to WR Caden Wetjen. Obviously, it's hard to get to some of those deeper play action passes when the run game averages just 2.4 yards per carry. 

    Defensively they were pretty good especially LB Jay Higgins who seemed to fit seamlessly in replacing Jack Campbell. LB Nick Jackson looked a little bit lost at times but he's playing a new position then he did at Virginia so it might take a bit to get adjusted. It was great to see Xavier Nwankpa make a really nice Interception. Iowa only got one sack on Utah State, but they put a lot of pressure on him and sometimes were just one step away. Utah State ran a really fast no huddle offense, that was as quick an offense as I've seen in a while. CB Deshaun Lee making his debut for the Hawkeyes was picked on a bit but did have 7 tackles. He will likely see a lot of action again this coming Saturday at Iowa State. It was a little disappointing to see Utah State put up over 300 yards but a lot of those came after Iowa had already pulled some of their starters. 

    All in All, it was a win but definitely room for a lot of improvement. Offense was inconsistent which we have come to expect. We have a really good QB in Cade McNamara if he gets the time, he got on Saturday he should be able to make plays. The Run game has to be a lot better. I was expecting a little bit more from the Hawks on Saturday, but they are still 1-0. After watching a lot of College Football on Saturday the parody seems to be a lot closer with some of these smaller teams and the bigger teams. Now on to Iowa State so we will really find out about this offense because the Cyclones have a very good defense.