You've gotta hand it to the Hawks. They have a way of beating up on inferior opponents...50% of the time, anyway. This time, the Hawks and their 4th string QB beat up on 1-7 Maryland and their 2nd string QB 29-13. Will that provide enough momentum to carry over into Black Friday? Let's hope so.
1. Kaleb Johnson is Fun to Watch. Savor every down Johnson plays. NFL ready skill position players don't come around very often at Iowa (unless they transfer to Purdue for coaching first). 35 carries for 164 yards against a loaded box is incredibly impressive. Johnson, more than anyone, could be served well by sitting out the remainder of the season to prepare for the draft...but instead, he's out there taking more punishment than ever (setting a career record on carries) and single handedly winning games. I'd like to see him catch a few passes next week out of the backfield to bolster his NFL tape and Doak Walker Award finalist standing.
2. Kirk's Ultra Conservative Influence Continues to Enrage. It doesn't matter who the OC is, if the Hawks have a 3rd and 8 in a close game...they're the only team in the Big 10 that won't even try for a first down and instead will call a run up the middle. How many 3rd and longs did the Hawks run it on this week? At least 6...and I'm pretty sure they converted on 0 of them. Some coaches play to win and others play not to lose. I had hoped that the new offensive coordinator would buck some tendencies and create a more aggressive offence...but it seems the only tendency he's broken is Iowa's tendency to utilize their star tight ends.
3. Drew Stevens Player of the Game. How lucky were the Hawks to have an out-of-state kid like Stevens walk on and pay his own way to kick for the Hawks. The kid was 5/5 on field goals...and several would have been good from over 60 yards out. If he keeps it up, next year has Lou Groza award written all over it.
4. Higgins NOT a Butkus Finalist? Ironic that the nation's leading tackler had perhaps his best statistical game only to learn that night he was not a finalist for the Butkus Award. 8 tackles, 1 pass deflection, 1 interception, and a half sack. I don't know how Jay's game translates to the NFL, but he's about as good of a college LB as they get. It does beg the question...what happens at the position next year?
5. Introducing Jackson Stratton? I remember shaking my head when the kid agreed to walk on at Iowa. He was Colorado State's 4th string QB going into this year (he had previously completed just 4/17 and been accused by his coach of randying around in backup duty) and seemed destined for DIII football. But what did he do? He went out there and threw a better ball than Iowa's million dollar QB, better than Sullivan's shotput style throws, and better than Tony Cassiopi trained Marco Lainez. 10/14 for 70 yards in a win is a stat line Hawk fans can get behind. If he doesn't start against Nebraska because Cade decides to show up...fans will revolt. Stratton probably isn't a Big 10 QB, but he's got several years of eligibility left and this is his chance to try out for Iowa's QB position next year...or at the very least, get some film that he can shop around during the transfer portal.
6. Hurkett Will Lead Next Year's Defense. The Hawkeye defense is going to be decimated by graduation. However, Hurkett looks to be one of the few bright spots on next year's D (if he chooses to come back...he's being honored at senior day this week). Recording six tackles, including 3 tackles for loss/2 big sacks is no easy task for a DL at Iowa. If Hurkett can put on a few pounds in the offseason and hit the weight room hard, he could be a beast next year.
7. No Thanks, Nwankpa. Did anyone else notice Iowa's 3 year starter 5 star safety flying around the field everywhere except where the ball was going? It became almost comical to see ol' #1 completely out of position, getting burned, then trying to dive onto a pile 3 seconds after a guy is down. X recorded ZERO stats against Maryland after totaling just 5 tackles in the previous two games. People wonder what went wrong with this year's defense and the answer starts and ends with the starting safety. Next year, the Hawks need to take a hard look at LBs, CBs, and Safeties in the portal.
1. Kaleb Johnson is Fun to Watch. Savor every down Johnson plays. NFL ready skill position players don't come around very often at Iowa (unless they transfer to Purdue for coaching first). 35 carries for 164 yards against a loaded box is incredibly impressive. Johnson, more than anyone, could be served well by sitting out the remainder of the season to prepare for the draft...but instead, he's out there taking more punishment than ever (setting a career record on carries) and single handedly winning games. I'd like to see him catch a few passes next week out of the backfield to bolster his NFL tape and Doak Walker Award finalist standing.
2. Kirk's Ultra Conservative Influence Continues to Enrage. It doesn't matter who the OC is, if the Hawks have a 3rd and 8 in a close game...they're the only team in the Big 10 that won't even try for a first down and instead will call a run up the middle. How many 3rd and longs did the Hawks run it on this week? At least 6...and I'm pretty sure they converted on 0 of them. Some coaches play to win and others play not to lose. I had hoped that the new offensive coordinator would buck some tendencies and create a more aggressive offence...but it seems the only tendency he's broken is Iowa's tendency to utilize their star tight ends.
3. Drew Stevens Player of the Game. How lucky were the Hawks to have an out-of-state kid like Stevens walk on and pay his own way to kick for the Hawks. The kid was 5/5 on field goals...and several would have been good from over 60 yards out. If he keeps it up, next year has Lou Groza award written all over it.
4. Higgins NOT a Butkus Finalist? Ironic that the nation's leading tackler had perhaps his best statistical game only to learn that night he was not a finalist for the Butkus Award. 8 tackles, 1 pass deflection, 1 interception, and a half sack. I don't know how Jay's game translates to the NFL, but he's about as good of a college LB as they get. It does beg the question...what happens at the position next year?
5. Introducing Jackson Stratton? I remember shaking my head when the kid agreed to walk on at Iowa. He was Colorado State's 4th string QB going into this year (he had previously completed just 4/17 and been accused by his coach of randying around in backup duty) and seemed destined for DIII football. But what did he do? He went out there and threw a better ball than Iowa's million dollar QB, better than Sullivan's shotput style throws, and better than Tony Cassiopi trained Marco Lainez. 10/14 for 70 yards in a win is a stat line Hawk fans can get behind. If he doesn't start against Nebraska because Cade decides to show up...fans will revolt. Stratton probably isn't a Big 10 QB, but he's got several years of eligibility left and this is his chance to try out for Iowa's QB position next year...or at the very least, get some film that he can shop around during the transfer portal.
6. Hurkett Will Lead Next Year's Defense. The Hawkeye defense is going to be decimated by graduation. However, Hurkett looks to be one of the few bright spots on next year's D (if he chooses to come back...he's being honored at senior day this week). Recording six tackles, including 3 tackles for loss/2 big sacks is no easy task for a DL at Iowa. If Hurkett can put on a few pounds in the offseason and hit the weight room hard, he could be a beast next year.
7. No Thanks, Nwankpa. Did anyone else notice Iowa's 3 year starter 5 star safety flying around the field everywhere except where the ball was going? It became almost comical to see ol' #1 completely out of position, getting burned, then trying to dive onto a pile 3 seconds after a guy is down. X recorded ZERO stats against Maryland after totaling just 5 tackles in the previous two games. People wonder what went wrong with this year's defense and the answer starts and ends with the starting safety. Next year, the Hawks need to take a hard look at LBs, CBs, and Safeties in the portal.
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