Hawkeyes down Scarlet Knights in first Big Ten game

Iowa started off fast and didn’t slow down en route to a conference win over Rutgers.

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Pete Ruden, Pregame Editor

Iowa’s earliest Big Ten game ever started with a 58-yard touchdown pass from Nate Stanley to Ihmir Smith-Marsette, and it didn’t slow down after.

The Hawkeyes dismantled Rutgers on both sides of the ball to pick up a 30-0 win over the Scarlet Knights to move to 2-0 (1-0 Big Ten) on the season.

Although Iowa played well on both sides of the ball, its defense stole the show. The Hawkeyes held the Scarlet Knights to _ yards.

Rutgers quarterback McLane Carter finished 5-of-15 passing for 22 yards and an interception. After that stat line didn’t cut it, Artur Sitkowski replaced him and didn’t do much better. He ended the game 4-of-11 for 19 yards and a pick.

The Hawkeye defense gave up only 121 yards — 41 through the air and 84 on the ground. The unit also forced two turnovers with a Djimon Colbert interception and pick by Michael Ojemudia.

Iowa’s ground game took some time to get going, but the Hawkeyes utilized the air attack to extend their lead.

Despite facing poor field position — Iowa started inside its own 11 five times — Stanley fired a 7-yard ball to Tyrone Tracy on a crossing route for another six points to cap off an 11-play, 97-yard drive.

In the second half, Smith-Marsette hit paydirt once again, finding a wide-open space in the middle of the field for a 23-yard score.

Smith-Marsette, a Newark, New Jersey, native, hauled in four passes for 113 yards and 2 touchdowns against his home-state team.

Stanley completed 16 of his 28 pass attempts for 236 yards and 3 touchdowns.

Next, Iowa will take on Iowa State in the annual Cy-Hawk battle in Ames on Sept. 14 at 3 p.m.