The Iowa football team beat Iowa State, 31-17.
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By Danny Payne
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AMES — That was a hell of a game. A crazy first half — like, really crazy — followed by a defensive battle in the fourth quarter, and a gutsy Hawkeye drive that ended with a Jordan Canzeri fumble on the 7. From there, Iowa’s defense got stops, and eventually Riley McCarron scored to go up 24-17 with a bit over two minutes left. On the ensuing drive, Desmond King had a pick, two plays later, Jordan Canzeri waltzed in for the dagger.
Here are some quick hits, we’ll have more after we talk to players and write our stories.
- Iowa finished with 445 yards of offense. Whoa. *Eye look emoji*
- Matt VandeBerg is getting Iowa’s game ball. Had a huge catch when the ball was in the end zone to set up the drive that ultimately ended in a Canzeri fumble, but man, he’s looked good today. He finished with 9 catches, 114 yards, and a touchdown.
- If Drew Ott is out for a significant amount of time, Iowa’s defensive line — including Nate Meier and Jaleel Johnson — are going to have to step up big time.
- C.J. Beathard is a gamer. That third quarter was garbage for everyone involved, and he drove his team down the field before the Canzeri fumble. He may not be the most physically gifted guy, but he competes big time.
- Desmond King did not have his best game ever, probably one of his worst. He missed a pick 6, and he has been bad in kickoff and punt returns. King is a good player, but has not shown up today in Trice. (This was written before the following).
- All of that is true, except for his pinballing 37-yard return to begin Iowa’s drive at 6:08 in the second half, which ended in a McCarron touchdown catch. King then had a pick to put the game on ice before the Canzeri score. Talk about ebbs and flows, man.
- McCarron put a NASTY double move on the ISU defensive back to get that score. Great throw from Beathard.
- Canzeri with a touchdown to seal it. Man, what a gutsy performance from Iowa in the fourth quarter.
We’ll have more here later and in Monday’s DI. Be sure to check back. That was fun.