5 Things You Need to Know About the Iowa Hawkeyes

If it feels like there are a lot of moving parts heading into Kentucky’s bowl game that would make sense. First of all, Big Blue Nation has a difficult decision to make as the annual rivalry game with Louisville tips off at the same time the Wildcats kick off with the Iowa Hawkeyes. Secondly, a handful of opt-outs including Will Levis and Chris Rodriguez, certainly makes the roster less inspiring. Finally, you mix in the fact that people generally have plans on New Year’s Eve, the football season was a bit of a disappointment as a whole, and the ‘Cats just played the Hawkeyes last season, and you have a little bit less excitement than usual for a bowl game against a Big Ten opponent.

However, for those players taking the field, this is another precious opportunity to compete. Earning the extra game, and extra practice time, is always a nice end-of-season reward. Coach Stoops and company are still going to take the field at noon on Saturday with the intent of winning a football game. As fans, we will likely get to see many of the young players take on expanded roles and possibly some new faces getting significant snaps as well. Saturday’s matchup with Iowa could be a glimpse into the future for Kentucky fans.

Kentucky Sports Radio is your go-to source for all the information you need leading up to, during, and after the Wildcats final football game of the season. As always, make sure you check out Adam Luckett’s Scouting Report for a more in-depth look at Saturday’s opponent. Now, let’s dive on in to five things you need to know about the Iowa Hawkeyes.

Head Coach Kirk Ferentz Still Going Strong

Coach Ferentz has become synonymous with Iowa Hawkeyes football. That is what happens when you are the longest tenured head coach in college football. In 24 seasons at the helm, Coach Ferentz has amassed an 185-115 overall record including a 115-83 mark in the Big Ten. He captured Big Ten championships in 2002 and 2004 and went to the Rose Bowl after an undefeated season in 2015.

That run to the Rose Bowl in 2015 kick-started a strong second act as Iowa’s head football coach. Since the beginning of that season, Coach Ferentz is 63-25 and has finished in the Top 15 national rankings twice. Despite a mildly disappointing 7-5 record this season leading into the Music City Bowl, there isn’t a whole lot of signs of Coach Ferentz losing effectiveness on the sidelines.

Only time will tell how much longer he remains in Iowa City, but it has been a successful enough run that he will like get to retire as the head coach of the Hawkeyes.

One of the Worst Offenses in College Football

There were jokes made all season about the Iowa Hawkeyes offense. Whether or not you made money by beating their “under” point totals, you likely heard how much they struggled on the offensive end. The Hawkeyes scored just 17.4 points per game which was 123rd nationally and averaging just 5.8 yards per attempts coming in at T-120th. Some of the other numbers aren’t any prettier. Iowa was 126th in 3rd/4th down conversation rate (31.%) and red zone touchdown rate (42.3%). No matter how you slice it, this was simply a bad offense.

When looking at the raw numbers, Iowa converted just 170 first downs this season with 1,167 rushing yards and 1,898 yards through the air. When you factor in some of the missing pieces for the Music City Bowl and it isn’t hard to imagine why this has the lowest point total in college football bowl history.

Injury, Transfer Portal Eliminate Iowa’s Top Two Quarterbacks

In the final game of the season, redshirt senior quarterback Spencer Petras tore both his labrum and rotator cuff. That injury against Nebraska unfortunately ended Petras’ college career. Normally, in the absence of Petras, backup Alex Padilla would step in. However, Padilla entered the transfer portal leading up to the Music City Bowl and will not be in uniform. He finished the season 21-43 with 173 yards on 21-43 passing including one touchdown and two interceptions.

Forced dig further down the depth chart, Coach Ferentz will be turning to Joe Labas to start the game against the Wildcats. He has yet to record a college snap, but Labas is a dual-threat quarterback capable of extending plays and keeping drives alive with his feet. Kentucky need to account for his scrambling and rushing ability more so than they would have with the previous Hawkeyes quarterback.

Star in the Making at Running Back

The offense might lack production and there may be an inexperienced quarterback taking over the reigns. However, the Iowa Hawkeyes have themselves a stud at the running back position. Kaleb Johnson burst onto the scene in Iowa City as a true freshman this season leading the Hawkeyes run-heavy attack. He finished the regular season with 762 rushing yards on 142 attempts, good for 5.4 yards per carry. Johnson found the end zone six times as well.

Even more impressively, he got better as the season went along. In the final four games of Iowa’s season the freshman went for 502 yards and three touchdowns on just over 16 carriers per game. Johnson will likely be the primary offensive weapon used down in Nashville on Saturday afternoon as the Hawkeyes search for some sort of an identity on that side of the ball against the ‘Cats.

Iowa Hawkeyes Still Feature Dominant Defense

We all know about the issues on the offensive side of the ball. However, the Iowa Hawkeyes still produced an excellent defensive unit this season. That is what was able to get them to 7-5 and earn a big to the Music City Bowl. The numbers certainly back up this being one of the best defenses in all of college football. For as bad as the offensive numbers were, these are pretty darn impressive.

The Hawkeyes were sixth nationally allowing just 14.4 points per game. They led the country in yards per play allowing just 4.1. In the red zone, Iowa was sixth best in the country allowing touchdowns just 41.2% of the time. This was a Top 10 defense nearly across the board.