What did we learn?
The alternate uniforms were a hit, unfortunately Iowa couldn't bring home the victory.
Tom Kakert • HawkeyeReport
@hawkeyereport
The scene was all set for a Hawkeye bounce back.
Cool alternate uniforms.
Striping of Kinnick Stadium.
A legendary Iowa team back with one its leaders serving as honorary captain.
And a night game.
All the pieces were in place for the Iowa football team to calm the masses and get a big win.
Instead, this week felt a whole lot like last week, only this time it was at home and James Franklin continued his mastery over the Hawkeyes as the Nittany Lions left Kinnick Stadium with another win.
What did we learn this week? Here are my thoughts.
1. Once again the Iowa offense was the story of the day and not in a good way. While the number of penalties were much lower, the turnovers continue to be a problem. This week Nate Stanley threw another interception and Iowa fumbled three times, losing one.
Iowa had made it through the first four games of the year with just one turnover, which helped lead to a 4-0 start to the 2019 season. In the last two weeks, Iowa has turned the ball over six times and the result is a pair of losses.
There are issues with the Hawkeye offense that go beyond turnovers, but the first step in fixing some of those problems is to eliminate giving the ball away to the opposing team.
2. Perhaps the biggest issue Iowa has right now is the lack of a running game.
Since 2015, Iowa is 40-4 when they rush for at least 100 yards. When they fail to rush for over 100 yards they are 1-14 with the only win being in the Outback Bowl over Mississippi State.
In the last two weeks combined, the Hawkeyes have rushed for a net total of 71 yards. The result, a pair of losses.
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that in order for this season to get back on track, Iowa has to find a way to get the run game moving in the right direction.
3. I do think we can pin some of the blame for the protection issues and the lack of a run game on the constant shuffling of the offensive line.
Saturday marked the fifth time in six games that Iowa had a different starting five on the offensive line. Against lesser teams, you can get by with some changes. Against good teams, the level of continuity needs to be very high and it’s clearly not there. I think a lot of it has to do with the starting five not being the same in nearly every game this year. That’s not blaming the players, but simply the circumstances this year due to injuries has forced Iowa into a lot of movement up front.
Iowa came into the season wanting to rush for an average of 4.5 yards per carry and Tim Polasek, Iowa’s offensive line coach, even mentioned having five explosive rushes in each game.
Iowa is at 4.1 yards per carry right now, which is good. But, let’s dive deeper into this. In the last two weeks factoring in just Iowa’s running backs, the Hawkeyes are averaging just 3.1 yards per carry.
How is Iowa doing in the explosive run category? In the first four games of the season, they had five runs of over 20 yards. In the last two games, they have had one, and that was from true freshman Tyler Goodson.
4. Sticking with the running game, it has been a curious couple of games from a play calling perspective. We all know ideally that the Hawkeyes would like to be balanced with an equal number of run and pass plays.
There are going to be games where it slides one way or the other due to game flow and score, but overall the idea is splitting it close to 50/50.
The last two games, Nate Stanley has thrown 42 and 43 passes. Meanwhile the rush attempt were at 30 in each game and that includes the sacks of Stanley.
Other than when Iowa fell behind 17-6 with just over five minutes left in the fourth quarter on Saturday night, the Hawkeyes really haven’t been in what I would call a must throw type situation against Penn State and Michigan.
5. One last point on the offense and that’s the lack of quarterback mobility and how it’s showed up quite a bit recently.
If you watched Sean Clifford on Saturday night, his mobility really made a difference in the game. Clifford finished with 52 net yards and had 39 rushing yards on the two touchdown drives by the Nittany Lions.
Earlier this year, Nate Stanley was a more willing runner. He had a couple of very nice plays where he actually kept the ball and made positive yardage, picking up first downs on a couple of occasions. At this point he has basically been reduced to quarterback sneaks. I like that Iowa has some of the shotgun read runs in their playbook. I think that’s essentially in today’s game. But, if Stanley isn’t a legitimate threat to keep the ball in those situation, then it seems like of pointless to keep up the illusion.
6. On to the defense where the run game is also a concern. After now allowing over 100 yards rushing by any of their first four opponents, Michigan ran for 120 yards and Penn State had 177 net yards on the ground.
Much like Iowa’s offense being successful when they are able to run the ball for more than 100 yards, the same can be said for lack of success if an opponent rushes for over 100 yards. Iowa is 11-2 since the start of the 2017 season when holding opponents to under 100 yards rushing in a game.
In the last two weeks it really seemed like Iowa lost the line of scrimmage battle and that shows up in the rushing stats. I think the most interesting comment to confirm the issues up front came from A.J. Epenesa when he mentioned communication issues and poor run fits by the defense. Iowa didn’t just seem to lose the line of scrimmage, they struggled to take on blocks and were out of place fairly often, resulting in even more yardage.
7. The Hawkeyes have done a great job of controlling the clock this year, but that didn’t happen against Penn State. The Nittany Lions held the ball for 32 minutes and 52 seconds, while Iowa had the pigskin for 27 minutes and 8 seconds. That’s not a winning formula for this Iowa team. Penn State is credited with running 81 snaps against the Iowa defense that needs a low snap count on their defense.
8. Lost in all the complaining after a second straight loss is the touchdown catch by Brandon Smith. We have all see the junior wide receiver use his athletic ability to go up and make plays, but his leaping 33 yard reception might be the play of the year for the Hawkeyes.
The touchdown also eliminated the talking point that Iowa had gone two straight games without a touchdown. It is fair to point out that in Iowa’s three toughest games this season, the Hawkeyes have scored a grand total of two touchdowns. I’m not counting Rutgers as a tough opponent.
9. One basketball note since folks have asked me a few times about Cordell Pemsl, when the basketball team was introduced on Saturday night the junior forward was down there with his teammates. This week Fran McCaffery indicated that Pemsl was still completing some tasks related to his DWI arrest and he expected him to be back as soon as next week. The fact that he was with the team on Saturday night suggests to be that Pemsl is back in good standing.
10. If you are looking for a great moment from Saturday night, then look no further than seeing former Hawkeye Brett Greenwood walking out with his 2009 teammates when they were recognized early in the second quarter.
It’s been a long road back for Greenwood after nearly losing his life during a workout while he was still chasing his NFL dream. Everyone will remember his last visit to Kinnick in 2015 when Greenwood led the team out of the tunnel as the honorary captain. Greenwood was using a walker and flanked by Iowa strength coach Chris Doyle and teammate Pat Angerer. Saturday evening he didn’t need the walker. He walked out with an assist from Angerer and teammate Joe Conklin, who help with Greenwood’s workouts every week.
The alternate uniforms were a hit, unfortunately Iowa couldn't bring home the victory.
Tom Kakert • HawkeyeReport
@hawkeyereport
The scene was all set for a Hawkeye bounce back.
Cool alternate uniforms.
Striping of Kinnick Stadium.
A legendary Iowa team back with one its leaders serving as honorary captain.
And a night game.
All the pieces were in place for the Iowa football team to calm the masses and get a big win.
Instead, this week felt a whole lot like last week, only this time it was at home and James Franklin continued his mastery over the Hawkeyes as the Nittany Lions left Kinnick Stadium with another win.
What did we learn this week? Here are my thoughts.
1. Once again the Iowa offense was the story of the day and not in a good way. While the number of penalties were much lower, the turnovers continue to be a problem. This week Nate Stanley threw another interception and Iowa fumbled three times, losing one.
Iowa had made it through the first four games of the year with just one turnover, which helped lead to a 4-0 start to the 2019 season. In the last two weeks, Iowa has turned the ball over six times and the result is a pair of losses.
There are issues with the Hawkeye offense that go beyond turnovers, but the first step in fixing some of those problems is to eliminate giving the ball away to the opposing team.
2. Perhaps the biggest issue Iowa has right now is the lack of a running game.
Since 2015, Iowa is 40-4 when they rush for at least 100 yards. When they fail to rush for over 100 yards they are 1-14 with the only win being in the Outback Bowl over Mississippi State.
In the last two weeks combined, the Hawkeyes have rushed for a net total of 71 yards. The result, a pair of losses.
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that in order for this season to get back on track, Iowa has to find a way to get the run game moving in the right direction.
3. I do think we can pin some of the blame for the protection issues and the lack of a run game on the constant shuffling of the offensive line.
Saturday marked the fifth time in six games that Iowa had a different starting five on the offensive line. Against lesser teams, you can get by with some changes. Against good teams, the level of continuity needs to be very high and it’s clearly not there. I think a lot of it has to do with the starting five not being the same in nearly every game this year. That’s not blaming the players, but simply the circumstances this year due to injuries has forced Iowa into a lot of movement up front.
Iowa came into the season wanting to rush for an average of 4.5 yards per carry and Tim Polasek, Iowa’s offensive line coach, even mentioned having five explosive rushes in each game.
Iowa is at 4.1 yards per carry right now, which is good. But, let’s dive deeper into this. In the last two weeks factoring in just Iowa’s running backs, the Hawkeyes are averaging just 3.1 yards per carry.
How is Iowa doing in the explosive run category? In the first four games of the season, they had five runs of over 20 yards. In the last two games, they have had one, and that was from true freshman Tyler Goodson.
4. Sticking with the running game, it has been a curious couple of games from a play calling perspective. We all know ideally that the Hawkeyes would like to be balanced with an equal number of run and pass plays.
There are going to be games where it slides one way or the other due to game flow and score, but overall the idea is splitting it close to 50/50.
The last two games, Nate Stanley has thrown 42 and 43 passes. Meanwhile the rush attempt were at 30 in each game and that includes the sacks of Stanley.
Other than when Iowa fell behind 17-6 with just over five minutes left in the fourth quarter on Saturday night, the Hawkeyes really haven’t been in what I would call a must throw type situation against Penn State and Michigan.
5. One last point on the offense and that’s the lack of quarterback mobility and how it’s showed up quite a bit recently.
If you watched Sean Clifford on Saturday night, his mobility really made a difference in the game. Clifford finished with 52 net yards and had 39 rushing yards on the two touchdown drives by the Nittany Lions.
Earlier this year, Nate Stanley was a more willing runner. He had a couple of very nice plays where he actually kept the ball and made positive yardage, picking up first downs on a couple of occasions. At this point he has basically been reduced to quarterback sneaks. I like that Iowa has some of the shotgun read runs in their playbook. I think that’s essentially in today’s game. But, if Stanley isn’t a legitimate threat to keep the ball in those situation, then it seems like of pointless to keep up the illusion.
6. On to the defense where the run game is also a concern. After now allowing over 100 yards rushing by any of their first four opponents, Michigan ran for 120 yards and Penn State had 177 net yards on the ground.
Much like Iowa’s offense being successful when they are able to run the ball for more than 100 yards, the same can be said for lack of success if an opponent rushes for over 100 yards. Iowa is 11-2 since the start of the 2017 season when holding opponents to under 100 yards rushing in a game.
In the last two weeks it really seemed like Iowa lost the line of scrimmage battle and that shows up in the rushing stats. I think the most interesting comment to confirm the issues up front came from A.J. Epenesa when he mentioned communication issues and poor run fits by the defense. Iowa didn’t just seem to lose the line of scrimmage, they struggled to take on blocks and were out of place fairly often, resulting in even more yardage.
7. The Hawkeyes have done a great job of controlling the clock this year, but that didn’t happen against Penn State. The Nittany Lions held the ball for 32 minutes and 52 seconds, while Iowa had the pigskin for 27 minutes and 8 seconds. That’s not a winning formula for this Iowa team. Penn State is credited with running 81 snaps against the Iowa defense that needs a low snap count on their defense.
8. Lost in all the complaining after a second straight loss is the touchdown catch by Brandon Smith. We have all see the junior wide receiver use his athletic ability to go up and make plays, but his leaping 33 yard reception might be the play of the year for the Hawkeyes.
The touchdown also eliminated the talking point that Iowa had gone two straight games without a touchdown. It is fair to point out that in Iowa’s three toughest games this season, the Hawkeyes have scored a grand total of two touchdowns. I’m not counting Rutgers as a tough opponent.
9. One basketball note since folks have asked me a few times about Cordell Pemsl, when the basketball team was introduced on Saturday night the junior forward was down there with his teammates. This week Fran McCaffery indicated that Pemsl was still completing some tasks related to his DWI arrest and he expected him to be back as soon as next week. The fact that he was with the team on Saturday night suggests to be that Pemsl is back in good standing.
10. If you are looking for a great moment from Saturday night, then look no further than seeing former Hawkeye Brett Greenwood walking out with his 2009 teammates when they were recognized early in the second quarter.
It’s been a long road back for Greenwood after nearly losing his life during a workout while he was still chasing his NFL dream. Everyone will remember his last visit to Kinnick in 2015 when Greenwood led the team out of the tunnel as the honorary captain. Greenwood was using a walker and flanked by Iowa strength coach Chris Doyle and teammate Pat Angerer. Saturday evening he didn’t need the walker. He walked out with an assist from Angerer and teammate Joe Conklin, who help with Greenwood’s workouts every week.
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