Perhaps Wisconsin linebacker Joe Schobert said it best Oct. 3, fresh off his team’s 10-6 loss to the Hawkeyes.
“They want to hit you more than Alabama wants to hit you,” he told the Dubuque Telegraph Herald. “Alabama is a good, physical offensive line, but I think Iowa kind of takes it to that next step, and wants to run at you, and wants to physically punch you.”
That’s high praise in the comparison with a perennial title contender and powerhouse recruiting program in Alabama. It also came from a player who had just finished making C.J. Beathard’s life hell for four quarters.
During that game, Iowa made a switch in its offensive approach. With the move to a ground-and-pound, ball-control style, the offense has since transformed to fit the profile of its offensive line.
As the unit prepares to take a Northwestern defense allowing 12.2 points per outing, it doesn’t seem likely to stray far from what worked for it against the Fighting Illini on Oct. 10.
With roughly 10 minutes left in the game, the Hawks dialed up 11 running plays in a row, all going to tailback Jordan Canzeri. The drive took nearly seven minutes off the clock. It ended in a field goal that put the Hawks up 26-20 and took the wind out of the sails of an opposing offense that had been in a passing groove.
“I don’t have any lack of confidence or any anxiety of what’s going to happen or anything,” Canzeri said. “I just trust that [the offensive linemen are] going to get the job done, and they’ve proven it, and it’s easy when you have guys like that that you can really trust when you’re running the ball.”
The run-heavy strategy and Canzeri’s combination of patience and decisiveness paved the way for a career day. The Hawks have called his number 69 times through their first two Big Ten contests. That gives him more carries than any other back in the nation over that span, and he’s compiled 381 yards in the process (256 against Illinois).
The changes coincide with struggles in the passing game. Beathard has not looked as sharp without his top target in wide receiver Tevaun Smith. Injuries to Ike Boettger and Boone Myers have turned a young offensive line even younger, causing confusion in pass protection that has left Beathard under duress.
But the linemen can still hit.
And rather than putting them in a situation in which they have to pick up rushers and handle various defenders coming at them, it appears coach Kirk Ferentz and his staff are content at letting them do the attacking.
“I knew that all along, we’ve got a tough offensive line,” Beathard said. “They’re going to go in there, and fight, and hit people in the mouth, and that’s what they did.”
The offense has allowed 10 sacks on the season — half of which came against Illinois and Wisconsin. In addition to the sacks, Beathard has been hit 11 times when dropping back to throw.
For now, at least, the Hawkeyes don’t have much reason to divert from a style that has carried them past their first two conference opponents. They’re confident the line can clean up some of the problems.