3 Takeaways from the Iowa / Nebraska Game

I know I'm a little late this week, but there is still likely to be over a month before Iowa's next football game, so I think it's still timely enough. Anyway, it wasn't pretty, but at least Iowa got a win over Nebraska. Here are my big takeaways.

1. Mekhi Sargent Is The Man

Iowa has been going by a running back by committee approach this entire season. Sometimes it's Ivory Kelly-Martin, sometimes it's Toren Young, and other times, it's been Mekhi Sargent. As the season has gone on, Iowa has leaned more and more heavily on Sargent. Unfortunately, IKM has been battling injuries all season long. Toren Young is a good power back but Iowa coaches have not trusted him in the passing game. Luckily, Sargent has stepped up, and against Nebraska, he stepped up in a big way. He went for 173 rushing yards and two touchdowns and had teh big game from an Iowa running back that fans have been waiting for all season. His vision, quickness, and versatility in that he can fill any role you need from a back separates him from the pack, and I expect to see him as a big part of Iowa's bowl game.

2. TJ Hockenson Is The Best Tight End For Iowa

Before I get going, let me just say that I love Noah Fant. He's a freak of an athlete and should make a team very happy if he leaves school to ply his trade in the NFL. And although Fant is the most talented tight end on the roster, TJ Hockenson is the best tight end for the Iowa Hawkeyes. He's a better blocker, he consistently finds ways to get open, and he is more sure handed. Never was this more apparent than Iowa facing a fourth and eight with less than a minute to go while in Nebraska territory. They had plenty of options, but they chose to go for it, and they chose to throw it to Hockenson. It paid off as Hockenson caught the ball and two plays later, Miguel Recinos hit a game winning field goal as time expired. Yes, they should be using Fant more, but don't let it overshadow how great TJ Hockenson has been for the Hawkeyes.

3. Let's Appreciate Our Senior Defensive Linemen

AJ Epenesa had his one "holy shit" play, and Anthony Nelson was an absolute monster against Nebraska, but let's take a step back and appreciate the contributions of Matt Nelson and Parker Hesse, two seniors who were instrumental in filling a gap for Iowa's defensive line before helping build something special by the end of their time in Iowa City. Neither guy is a future first round pick, and honestly, I'm not sure if they will even be drafted at all. 

Parker Hesse ends the year with four sacks, a solid, yet unspectacular total, but the guy hustled his ass off and made some incredible plays in the running game. He was excellent at diagnosing plays which helped him outperform his athletic measurables.

Matt Nelson had even less impressive statistics, but he filled his role as the tallest defensive tackle in Hawkeye history (not looking this up, but it sounds right). Nelson only had one sack this season, but that was not his role for this defense. He was there to take up blockers and allow others to make plays. Had he stayed at defensive end, he may have been able to put up some decent numbers as he had five sacks in his sophomore year before moving inside. That just speaks to the type of player Nelson is. He is not built like a defensive tackle, but the team needed one so he moved inside and did the dirty work. Although Iowa has guys waiting in the wings, both of these guys will be missed in 2019.

4 Takeaways from the Iowa / Maryland Game

Another week, and another impressive performance from the Hawkeyes. The offense has had the chance to shine the last couple weeks, but today, it was all about the defense in a 23-0 shutout of the Maryland Terrapins. This is the type of win that Kirk Ferentz truly loves, dominance on defense, dominance in the kicking game, and less than 100 yards passing. BIG TEN FOOTBALL. Here are my four takeaways from the game.

Parker Hesse Is Always There
I know I give a tremendous amount of love to AJ Epenesa, and yes, Epenesa is, by far, the most talented guy on the defensive line, but nobody maximizes their impact quite like Parker Hesse. This is a guy who is nonstop hustle and knows how to be in the right place at the right time. He blew up Maryland's jet sweep on multiple occasions and added a sack late in the third quarter on a third down play that had Maryland converted, they may have actually had a chance to score on the Iowa defense. It's rarely flashy, but Hesse has been starting for what feels like a decade, and I am going to miss that constant next season.

Chauncey Golston Deserves Some Love
As I stated above, AJ Epenesa is the freak; Parker Hesse has started forever, and both Nelsons are massive human beings, starters, and yet somehow not related. Iowa has eight defensive linemen rotating in, and I feel like Golston is the least talked about, but damn, that dude is legit. Every game, there is a split second where I ask myself who linebacker #57 is and why he's tearing it up in an opponents' backfield, but then I realize it's Golston who makes plays every game. His stat line of three tackles with one tackle for loss isn't going to jump off the page, but watching him play in and play out is impressive. Hell, his most impressive play was stopping an outside run in the backfield, the runner was able to jump out of Golston's grasp, but the rest of the defense, led by Epenesa cleaned up the mess. Still, it was Golston that made that play happen, and even with the turnover up front, the future of the defensive line is still bright for the foreseeable future.

Kirk Ferentz Loves Field Position
Although Iowa is more dynamic and aggressive on offense, Kirk probably hasn't noticed at all. He's just staring at the flags at the top of the stadium to judge that wind. When he's not lost in those flags, the man is only thinking about punting and gaining all of the slightest edges. We all know that punting is winning, but Kirk puts his kickers and punters in the best position possible by calling timeouts at the end of the first and third quarters in order to ensure that Iowa would have the wind, and Maryland would be fighting against it in the kicking game. This man doesn't care about a seven point advantage, but a seven yard advantage? That's why Kirk Ferentz got into coaching.

Where Is The Weakness?
Iowa just keeps kicking ass. They had almost no passing game today, and it didn't matter as there were enough other parts that stepped up to make this a stress-free victory. So outside of Iowa biffing multiple punt returns, how does this team lose? The passing game has an improved Nate Stanley throwing to great tight ends and a receiving corps that seems to make incremental improvements every week. The running game looks better and better as there is are usually two running backs delivering, and the offensive line has dominated the past couple weeks. On defense, the defensive line is phenomenal, the linebackers fill the role, and Amani Hooker being able to step up in the box against spread formations really helps with the defense's versatility. At corner, nobody is challenging Julius Brents which is a pretty damn good sign that he will never see the bench again in his Iowa career, and Riley Moss has improved each week, although I think I still feel more comfortable with Hankins if he is able to get healthy.

There are only two things that could sidetrack this team, and they both revolve around the quarterback. The first is Nate Stanley dropping from nine to seven hours of sleep, so hopefully things don't get too tough on him during the second half of the semester. The second is what we saw late in the game yesterday where not one but two backup quarterbacks were put in the game with Peyton Mansell and Spencer Petras. WHO IS THE TRUE #2? Will this divide the Iowa locker room?

If Stanley sleeps and no backup quarterback peeps, this will be a season with memories we will keep.

4 Takeaways From The Iowa / Northern Iowa Game

Another week, another win for the Hawkeyes. Although Northern Iowa scored some touchdowns during garbage time, Iowa throttled the Panthers from the very start and finally had a dominating game where you can exhale and just enjoy the beatdown. Iowa should always beat a team like Northern Iowa in that manner, but as we know, it doesn't always work that way. Here are five big takeaways from Saturday night's game.

1. Nate Stanley Is the Best QB of the Kirk Ferentz Era...and the Worst Fit
Nate Stanley has the most talent of any quarterback Iowa has had on its roster during the Ferentz era. I would be very surprised if he wasn't the highest draft pick in a couple years, but although the talent is there, it's still very raw. That leads to total inconsistency, so although the ceiling is the highest, the floor is Jake Christiansen levels. The guys that have been successful under Ferentz haven't had the biggest arms, but they were accurate and quick decision makers. During Saturday's game, Stanley showed what he could he could be as outside of the interception, he looked great all game long. This is going to sound like a massive insult, but he kind of reminds me of Josh Allen with less arm strength and mobility. He still has a really good arm, but it's not a howitzer. His mobility, uh, yeah, that's not going to win any games. It's possible that he can gain consistency and accuracy in his throws, but in the meantime, he will guarantee that Iowa fans yell at their TV, sometimes in celebration, sometimes...not so much.

2. Iowa Doesn't Need a Lead Back
Ivory Kelly-Martin was supposed to be the starter this season, but due to an injury in game one, those plans have changed. In his place, Toren Young has taken over the lead role with Mekhi Sargent right behind him. It was always supposed to be a time share, but the percentages have changed. Luckily, the production hasn't. Iowa has two, and possibly three when IKM returns, backs that can be trusted to get in the game and make plays happen on the ground. In this game, Young led in rushing yards with 84 on the ground, including a touchdown, but Sargent had the more standout day as he had 72 yards, two touchdowns, and a 48-yard reception. The Iowa offensive line appears to be a lot closer to good than great, but these backs will get yards if given some holes, so even with an injury, there is enough depth to still keep the ground game churning.

3. Good God, This Defensive Line
Is it fair to ask whether this is the best defensive line during Kirk Ferentz's tenure? I know it's a bit absurd at first glance, but even if the starters can't quite be considered the best, Iowa has never had this amount of depth at all positions of the defensive line. Right now, the starters are Matt and Anthony Nelson, Sam Brincks, and Parker Hesse. If you swapped to the reserves of AJ Epenesa, Cedric Lattimore, Brady Reiff, and Chauncey Golston, that would still be a really good defensive line. There isn't a single one of those guys that I feel bad about when they are in the game, and that ability to swap guys out and keep them fresh may make this the most effective defensive line that Ferentz has ever had. As with all things Iowa, the big test comes this week, but even with the big hogs up in Wisconsin, they can't be feeling great about their chances on neutralizing this Iowa defensive line.

4. Tyrone Tracy Had 1 Catch, and I'm All In
Tyrone Tracy Jr. caught a pass from Peyton Mansell, and the fact that he caught the ball and looks fairly fast is enough to sell me on him being Iowa's best receiver. The wide receivers did have BY FAR their best game of the season, but I still don't have overwhelming confidence in any of them. Brandon Smith seems to be the most talented, and somehow Nick Easley emerged from the darkness to get ten receptions and a touchdown, but I haven't seen any of them reliably finding ways to get open. When Iowa can stretch the field with the vertical passing game, they are legitimately dangerous on offense. It gets them away from predictability where opposing defenses actually have to line up guys more than five yards off the line of scrimmage. I have no way of knowing whether Tracy can be that guy, but Iowa still needs one, so I'm just going to keep my wishful thinking.