Iowa football has built its success on rushing offense and running defense in 2015.
By Charlie Green | [email protected]
Physicality is a term often associated with Iowa football. One of the main threads of a physical football team is winning at the line of scrimmage. Establishing the run and defending it are both results of winning that battle and foundational components of what coach Kirk Ferentz has built his program on.
This season, No. 4 Iowa has done both of those things. Entering the Big Ten Championship on Saturday, those areas could decide the game — along with a little balance on offense.
Games with a 100-yard rusher: 9
One of the reasons the Hawkeye rushing offense is up is its arsenal of running backs replacing the production void left by Mark Weisman. This season, Iowa has seen five players eclipse 70 yards on the ground in a single game.
Two of them were one-time deals. Quarterback C.J. Beathard rushed for 77 in the second week against Iowa State, and running back Derrick Mitchell Jr. went for 79 at Northwestern on Oct. 17. Primarily, it has been LeShun Daniels Jr., Akrum Wadley, and Jordan Canzeri carrying the load.
All three have had games to remember, and Canzeri leads the way with five games eclipsing the 100-yard mark. In terms of Iowa’s Big Ten leading 35 rushing touchdowns, they’ve been split among Canzeri (12), Daniels (8), Wadley (7), and Beathard (6).
Games allowing a 100-yard rusher: 2
The Hawks have given up some frustrating yardage on the ground at times this season, but overall, the defense has been outstanding at stopping the run.
Iowa allows 110.0 rushing per game, ranking third in the conference. The only back that has shredded the team is Indiana’s Jordan Howard, who went for 174 yards and two scores Nov. 7.
The other 100-yard performance came from Maryland quarterback Perry Hills on Oct. 31, when he ran for 104. Although North Texas failed to produce a 100-yard rusher when it visited Iowa City on Sept. 26, the Mean Green did finish the game with 183 yards.
Only once have the Hawkeyes allowed a team to eclipse 200 in a game (Indiana had 227), and the team has held half of its opponents to under 100. That’s why this group ranks sixth in the nation against the run.
Run-to-pass yards ratio: 1.02
In terms of yardage, Iowa is easily the most balanced team in the Big Ten. In terms of play calling, it’s not quite the case. C.J. Beathard has 303 passing attempts on the year. As a team, the Hawks have attempted 506 runs. Only Ohio State ranks lower in passing attempts with 294.
They are one of just four teams in the Big Ten to rush for more yards than they throw. Clearly, this team is built around its ability to run, but it has been able to nearly match its yardage there in the passing game as well.
Beathard completed just nine passes against Nebraska on his 16 attempts. But on the whole, the team has showed it can move the ball via air if the run department is struggling. As Iowa enters postseason play, balance is what could make it effective against the best teams it sees all year.
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