The bye week helped to rejunivate a tired Iowa football team.
By BLAKE DOWSON
After a much-needed bye week, the Iowa football team is now right back in the middle of Big Ten season, with a matchup against newly minted No. 12 (College Football Playoff ranking) Penn State in Happy Valley looming this weekend.
Bye-week rest
The Hawkeyes needed a bye week. Badly.
Iowa lost a very physical matchup against Wisconsin right before the bye, and the offense looked extremely stale — both reasons to take a step back.
“More than anything, I think the bye week was just a time to relax,” quarterback C.J. Beathard said. “We did practice last week, got to work on some Iowa scout stuff.”
Beathard and the rest of his teammates also got a little healthier during their almost two-week hiatus from competition.
Most notably may be tight end George Kittle, who was a game-time decision against the Badgers. The senior did play in that contest, but he was fairly ineffective and unheard from.
Kittle, when he is healthy, is one of the most important parts of the offense. It was no coincidence that the offense was stagnant when he was hobbled.
Ferentz said the bye week has been good for Kittle.
“He’s been better in practice,” Ferentz said. “He’s not 100 percent, nobody is right now, at least the guys that have had injuries. He’s a lot further down the road. I was really surprised he was able to play at all against Wisconsin. So that was a pleasant surprise. He tried to gut it up, but it’s tough.”
Opportunities still out there for Iowa
There seems to be a certain gloom around the Iowa program these last couple weeks. Not a single win has come easy since the Hawkeyes lost to North Dakota State, and the three losses in the last six games are three more than they had all of last regular season.
That being said, the Hawkeyes still have a lot to play for this season.
Although the last third of its schedule now looks a little more daunting with the rise of Penn State, Michigan, and Nebraska this season, Iowa is not out of the Big Ten West race.
Nebraska sits one game ahead of the Hawkeyes, but the Cornhuskers have to travel to Kinnick the day after Thanksgiving.
Three top-12 teams left on the schedule isn’t exactly inviting, but the Hawkeyes sure could use a signature win to become bowl-eligible.
“I’d rather be undefeated,” Ferentz said. “We were last year, which was more fun. We aren’t right now. We’re 5-3. But the bottom line is there’s still four games left to play. That’s what it gets down to, and really it’s what we do every day here that’s going to define this season for us.”
Saquon Barkley is really, really good
The sophomore running back is unlike any other back the Hawkeye defense has seen this year. He has already racked up 888 yards on the ground, along with 10 touchdowns, and he is coming off his second Big Ten Player of the Week honor after he rushed for 207 yards and 2 touchdowns against Purdue last week.
“[Barkley] makes a lot of plays for them,” defensive end Parker Hesse said. “He leads the Big Ten in rushing. So it’s just going to come down to tackling for us, being in the right position in our run fits, wrapping up.”