Twenty-four hours. That’s the rule.
The Iowa football team gets to dwell on a game for 24 hours before moving on to the next one; that’s it.
Though the Hawkeyes lost a heartbreaker, on a last-second touchdown pass, to No. 4 Penn State on Sept. 23, they are fully focused on the task ahead — Michigan State.
The last time the two teams squared off is still fresh in a lot of minds. In fact, the ending was similar to last week’s game. It was the Big Ten Championship, and Iowa had the chance of making the College Football Playoffs with a win.
Spoiler alert: Iowa didn’t make the playoffs. Last-second field goal.
Almost two years later, the loss is still alive in the minds of those who played in and were there for that game. However, the 24-hour rule was in place back then, too, and they have moved on.
“It was a tough loss. There was a lot at stake there that day … So that was tough. You know, but the other night was tough, too,” Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz said. “It feels like it was 10 years ago. It literally does. It’s so far back. That one’s ancient history. Really, Saturday night is kind of the same way at this point. We’ve got to move on and worry about what’s in front of us.”
Contain, contain, contain
Similar to Penn State’s Trace McSorley, Michigan State’s Brian Lewerke is a threat on the ground.
Michigan State’s leading rusher, the quarterback has netted 206 yards in his first three games, averaging 7.9 yards per carry with 2 touchdowns.
Although the Iowa defense looked rather solid against the powerful Penn State offense, it did allow McSorley to put up 61 yards on the ground in Kinnick. For a strong runner such as McSorley, this was considered a win by the Iowa defense.
According to defensive back Amani Hooker, the key to making sure the Spartans don’t get into a groove is containing Lewerke and keeping him from putting up rushing yards.
“Every week we focus on containing the quarterback, no matter who we play,” Hooker said. “This week, Michigan State has a really good quarterback. He can move so we have to the same thing.”
Josey Jewell refuses to lose
Once again, the senior linebacker earned national recognition.
After his career high 16 tackles — 11 solo, 3 for a loss — an interception, 2 pass breakups, and fumble recovery against Penn State, Jewell was awarded his second Big Ten honor of the year.
Jewell also earned the Bednarik Award Player of the Week, the Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week, and College Sports Madness’ Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week.
The way he plays brings everyone around him to another level competitively, Parker Hesse said.
“He doesn’t lose at any cost. That’s something that’s really special about him. It’s really admirable,” Hesse said. “Me, coming in as a younger player, and even to this day watching him play Saturday, that’s something that I draw inspiration from and something I feed off of.”
His accomplishments result from his competitive spirit, his teammates say, which translates off the football field as well.
Hesse said Jewell is the last person someone would want to play in Bags.