Unbeaten Iowa comes out on top again
November 1, 2009
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP)—In an effort to explain the unexplainable, some Iowafollowers have begun likening the Hawkeyes to Rocky Balboa.
Yeah, it might sound like a cheesy comparison—if it didn’t fit unbeatenIowa so well.
Much like the fictional Philly southpaw, the Hawkeyes (9-0, 5-0 Big Ten)absorb a barrage of early blows that border on the comical, but opponents can’tput them on the canvas.
Iowa usually enters the fourth quarter needing a knockout and—at least sofar—it’s delivered the winning punch every time.
Though the Hawkeyes eventually blew past Indiana 42-24 on a windy Saturday,their charmed season appeared over after three quarters. Iowa quarterback RickyStanzi, whose five picks had helped put the Hawkeyes in a 10-point hole, bouncedback with long TD throws to Marvin McNutt and Derrell Johnson-Koulianos. ShaunPrater followed with an interception of Indiana’s Ben Chappell, and freshmanBrandon Wegher put the Hoosiers (4-5, 1-4) away with a pair of TD runs.
Iowa has trailed in eight of nine games and four times entering the fourthquarter, and the Hawkeyes have won them all.
“Can’t say enough about our players. They continue to battle and fight andfind a way to be successful,” coach Kirk Ferentz said. “One thing they’ll do,they’ll play the entire game.”
That they do. And though many might see Iowa’s magical run as a lucky one—the pollsters who dropped them behind one-loss Oregon sure do—the truth isthat these Hawkeyes have a knack for making clutch plays that turn games intheir favor when it matters most.
The Hawkeyes caught a lot of heat for needing two blocked field goals in theclosing seconds to beat Northern Iowa, obscuring great individual effortsBroderick Binns and Jeremiah Hunter to get their hands on those kicks.
Iowa’s 21-10 win at Penn State came after defensive end Adrian Claybornblocked a punt early in the fourth quarter and ran it back for a touchdown. In a15-13 win over Michigan State, Stanzi threw a perfect touchdown strike to McNutton the game’s final play.
The hero of the win over Indiana was safety Tyler Sash, whose habit offinding the ball is clearly more than just good fortune. His sixth pick of theseason came on a deflection at the line of scrimmage deep in Iowa territory, andSash took it back 86 yards to bring the Hawkeyes within 21-14 midway through thethird quarter.
Ferentz compared Sash’s interception to Clayborn’s punt block against theNittany Lions, which up until Sunday was the biggest play of Iowa’s season.
“I thought Tyler gave us that boost,” Ferentz said. “Good teams havethat.”
It’s clearly something the Hoosiers lack.
Indiana had the lead in all three of its Big Ten road games this season, yetfailed to close any of them out. The Hoosiers, who blew a 25-point lead in aloss at Northwestern a week earlier, squandered a pair of 14-point leads againstIowa and were outscored 35-3 in the second half by a team averaging fewer than24 points per game.
Indiana has to win two of its last three games to become bowl eligible, notan easy road with Wisconsin (6-2, 3-2) and Penn State (8-1, 4-1) on the horizon.
“It’s really been the fourth quarter. I’m proud of our guys. We’ve goneinto three tough Big Ten stadiums against very good football teams and had thelead in the fourth quarter,” coach Bill Lynch said. “We got to find a way tofinish it off.”
Iowa’s penchant for waiting until the end to finish teams off might costthem even if they finish the season undefeated. The Hawkeyes likely needFlorida, Alabama or Texas lose if they want to earn a spot in the BCS titlegame. The Longhorns certainly didn’t help Iowa’s cause when they trouncedOklahoma State 41-14 on Saturday, clearing what looked to be their final hurdle.
The Hawkeyes aren’t concerning themselves with the BCS. After all, they’veclearly had their hands full with the team they’re actually playing.
“It really doesn’t matter. If we lose, I know we’re going down fast,”Ferentz said. “If we win, they’re going to put us wherever. But I don’t havemuch control of that. So it’s all we can try to do is win the game we have infront of us. That’s as simple as it is.”