** 2019 Opponent Previews : Iowa (Game 12) **

Saunders

Saunders

Heisman Trophy Winner
Athlon: #18 Iowa Hawkeyes Preview & Prediction

Kirk Ferentz is heading into uncharted territory as he enters his 21st season as head coach. Ferentz is surpassing the legendary Hayden Fry in longevity at Iowa, with Fry having coached the Hawkeyes for 20 seasons, from 1979-98. Ferentz also surpassed Fry to become Iowa' all-time winningest football coach last season, and he enters this season with 152 career wins, becoming only the fifth Big Ten head coach to win 150 games. He shows no signs of slowing down, nor has he offered any hints about retiring. Iowa is coming off a four-year stretch in which it combined to win 37 games, including nine victories last season capped off by a 27–22 win over Mississippi State in the Outback Bowl.

https://athlonsports.com/college-football/iowa-football-hawkeyes-prediction-preview-2019
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CollegeFootballNews: 5 Things You Need To Know About Iowa & Season Prediction

You know what you’re about to get from yet another strong Kirk Ferentz team. There might be some flaws and concerns with your 2019 Iowa Hawkeyes, but it’s going to be yet another hard-nosed team that might just be a whole lot better than anyone wants to give it credit for. Yeah, the 2018 version went 8-4, but it lost to Penn State, Purdue and Northwestern all by six points or fewer, and it would’ve lost to Wisconsin by one score if there wasn’t a late oh-by-the-way touchdown. One Outback Bowl win over Mississippi State later, and the Hawkeyes proved they were for real. They’re about to do that again, but the schedule is going to be a big, big issue, so …

https://collegefootballnews.com/2019/05/iowa-football-preview-prediction-players-2019
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The Athletic: A daunting schedule awaits, but Iowa still has its sights set on a trip to Indianapolis

Iowa’s final spring practice featured decent weather, good football and an air of promise that both topics would improve over the next few months.

Turf replacement at Kinnick Stadium forced the Hawkeyes to move their finale to a nearby practice field where only family and invited guests were allowed to watch. Like most years, the defense was dominant throughout the scrimmage. Unlike most years, the offense moved capably through the air. There’s reserved optimism for an Iowa team that stood midway through the 2018 season with a 6-1 overall record, a No. 18 national ranking and an average victory margin of 21 points. The Hawkeyes appeared the clear favorite to claim the Big Ten West Division title. Then came a sequence of three painful losses by a combined 12 points that neutered Iowa’s shot at a return to Indianapolis.

https://theathletic.com/1024371/2019/06/22/iowa-football-2019-schedule-roster-depth-chart/
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More to come...

 
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We beat Iowa this year. Book it. It's the 375th Sellout. Nebraska has won all but one sellout milestone game since 1962.

The only blemish on that record was Colorado in 1990 - the year they won their national championship. Iowa is not a national-championship caliber football team, and while Nebraska may not be top-ten material like we were in 1990, the Football Gods won't allow anything other than a great team to mar this milestone.

This game's a win, it's over, write it down, end of story.

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Not a preview, but Stewart Mandel was asked which "cupcake" team has the best chance at an upset in Week 1:

Next up: Miami of Ohio (+21) at Iowa. To be clear, I’m very bullish on the Hawkeyes this season, but hey, you want a potential shocker. The RedHawks have gradually but continually improved under sixth-year coach Chuck Martin, beating both a 9-4 Ohio team and MAC champion Northern Illinois late last season. Plus, Iowa over the years has not been immune to an early-season clunker against a Central Michigan or NIU.
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https://theathletic.com/1022593/2019/06/12/mandels-mailbag-which-cupcake-has-the-best-chance-to-upset-its-week-1-opponent/

 


Yep, a conference title would solidify any Iowa QB's legacy...since they only have one (1) outright conference championship in the last 60 years.

 


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4skers89 said:
https://www.hawkcentral.com/story/sports/college/columnists/chad-leistikow/2018/12/13/iowa-hawkeyes-defense-philosophy-change-defense-seth-wallace-amani-hooker-geno-stone-phil-parker/2293595002/
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The opening paragraph of that article is the epitome of two big, dumb (and admittedly very physically tough) B1G teams slugging it out in 60 minutes of terrible football:

 

"IOWA CITY, Ia. — With the clock winding under a minute to go and Iowa leading 17-14, Wisconsin quarterback Alex Hornibrook threw a spiraling football into the heart of the south end zone at Kinnick Stadium."
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So the article's all about some kind of watershed moment that moves them to a nickel defense. Whether right or wrong, it sets off every stereotype that I've always had about Big 10 football; no mention of innovation on the offense to actually put up more points on the board.

This is one of those "it's probably too early" kinds of comments, but this is why I believe the current, visible trajectory of what Frost is doing is going to shred the West apart in just a couple years' time. I'm not saying it's going to happen this season. But when you look at the skill position recruiting (Martinez, Washington, Robingson, Johnson) in conjunction with big bodied linemen like Benhart and Banks...holy crow. It won't matter what defense Iowa runs.

 
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