When it took on Penn State on Sept. 23, Iowa played a good football game. The defense was solid, the offense scored when it needed to, and the team never broke down.

The same can’t be said about the Hawkeyes’ performance against Michigan State on Sept. 30, however.

The offense was nowhere to be found, and the defense couldn’t get into a rhythm when it came down to it.

Still searching for its first win in Big Ten play, here’s a look into Iowa’s numbers during the fateful game against the Spartans.

Iowa Rushing Yards: 19

That’s not what Iowa wanted, especially when the ground attack was supposed to be its main way of picking apart defenses this season.

Akrum Wadley only racked up 30 yards on 17 carries, which is good for an average of 1.8 yards per rush.

The only other Hawkeye running back to get a carry, Ivory Kelly-Martin, ended with minus-2 yards rushing on his lone carry.

Even with the underwhelming numbers, Wadley found the end zone, scoring Iowa’s lone touchdown of the game on a 9-yard scamper in the second quarter.

As a team, the Hawkeyes managed to pick up just 19 yards on 25 carries, an average of 0.8 yards per carry.

Michigan State quarterback Brian Lewerke and running back LJ Scott both had more yards on the ground than the entire Iowa offense, recording 42 and 28 yards, respectively.

Iowa has a talented backfield with the potential to come up with a big play at any time, but Wadley’s 9-yard touchdown was the longest run of the day for the Hawkeyes.

Nate Stanley QB Rating: 24.5

It’s probably not a good sign when the punter has a far better QB rating than the starting quarterback, but that’s what happened to Iowa.

Stanley wasn’t terrible and gave his team a chance to win the game, but he had his moments that were less than stellar, too.

The sophomore from Menomonie, Wis., connected on 16-of-31 passing for 192 yards. While the numbers could have been better, they weren’t cause for any immediate concern.

RELATED: Iowa football drops second straight; loses at Michigan State

However, Stanley did have some concerning moments show up. Early in the game, he missed Matt VandeBerg on a throw that could have gone for 6.

He also lost a fumble in the third quarter when Iowa was threatening in the red zone.

The fumble was costly, but it didn’t spell the end for Stanley and Company. Still, the offense never got into a groove in East Lansing, and it showed in the final score.

Fumbles: 4

While Stanley was clear of huge errors in the passing game, he and the rest of team were not on the ground.

Stanley’s fumble in the red zone was a momentum killer, but it wasn’t the only mistake Iowa made in the field.

Freshman wide receiver Brandon Smith recorded one catch on the day for 3 yards but ended the play without the ball, turning it over to a Spartan defense that had a very solid game.

RELATED: Defense does its part against Michigan State

Throughout the game, Iowa coughed the ball up four times, losing two of the fumbles.

Unfortunately for the Hawkeyes, they came up on the wrong end of numerous plays.

Michigan State tight end Matt Sokol fumbled in the first quarter at the Iowa 6-yard line but was able to jump on top of it to preserve the drive.