Fifth-year senior Riley Moss remembers the last time Iowa football lost to an FCS team.

Moss, who joined the Hawkeye football program in 2018, went to Iowa’s 2016 game against North Dakota State.

The Bison upset the Hawkeyes, 23-21, with a nine-point fourth quarter surge.

“I was at that game with my pops, actually, I remember that,” Moss said. “It wasn’t a fun ride home, I’ll be honest with you.”

The loss to North Dakota State has been fresh in the Hawkeyes’ minds this week. But Moss is determined to keep the Hawkeyes from incurring another loss to an FCS team. This time around, Iowa is taking on South Dakota State at Kinnick Stadium on Saturday at 11 a.m.

“These teams that you open up with, typically are FCS, and they come out and hit you in the mouth,” Moss said. “So, you gotta be ready to play. I’m excited for this opportunity to come out and play with my boys and to see what we can do.”

Alec Wick, Jack Johnson ready for snaps at wide receiver

The Hawkeye wide receiver room has been plagued by injury ahead of the season-opener.

Senior Nico Ragaini, one of three active Hawkeye wideouts who have caught a pass on the collegiate stage, was missing from Iowa’s depth chart on Monday. Ragaini will not play on Saturday in the Hawkeyes season-opener.

“Nico is going to be at least a couple of weeks,” head coach Kirk Ferentz said Tuesday. “He’s not on the depth chart, he has no chance to play this week. That’s unfortunate because he’s really practicing well, a great guy and another one of our veteran players so it would be great to have him with us.”

Ragaini’s absence bumped sophomore Arland Bruce into a starting role. 

“It’s been a blessing to be healthy, man,” Bruce said. “It’s extremely hard to stay healthy in this sport and be able to practice every single practice.”

Sophomore Keagan Johnson, who has been a listed starter since March, also appeared as a first-stringer on the depth chart, but he missed a few weeks of camp with an injury.

Ferentz said Johnson will be available Saturday, but he may not have a full workload.

With Iowa’s receiving corps thinning out, redshirt freshman Alec Wick and sophomore Jack Johnson have been added to the two-deep depth chart. Neither have caught a pass in a Hawkeye uniform so far in their collegiate careers.

Jack Johnson and Wick got first-team reps during fall practice, and senior quarterback Spencer Petras is confident in their abilities. 

“They wouldn’t be on the field if we didn’t trust them to execute,” Petras said. “And that’s from a mental standpoint, but also a physical standpoint. I have a lot of trust in both those guys. So, we’re not going to think twice. We’re not gonna hesitate. We’re ready to play with those guys.”

Petras named starting quarterback

After an offseason quarterback competition, Petras was officially named the Hawkeyes’ starting quarterback on Tuesday.

Petras started 11 games for the Hawkeyes last season, while backup QB Alex Padilla started three.

“I think Spencer’s outperformed Alex a little bit further and gives us a better chance to be successful,” Ferentz said. “And that’s not to diminish what Alex has done. I think both guys have improved.”

Despite Michigan football’s decision to start two different quarterbacks in the first two games of the season, Ferentz said he never considered having a two-quarterback system this year.

Hawkeyes finalizing punt, kick returners

Iowa football didn’t list a kick or punt returner in its depth chart on Monday. 

After reigning Big Ten Kick Returner of the Year Charlie Jones transferred to Purdue, the Hawkeyes have been using multiple returners in practice, including Moss, Bruce, and sophomore Cooper DeJean.

Ferentz said the Hawkeyes have not finalized who will field punts and kicks on Saturday.

Moss, who was a returner in high school, said he was excited to get the chance during summer and fall camp. Moss both volunteered and was nominated to try for the position, he said. 

“I was kind of in coach Woods’ ear for a while and finally he was like ‘Hey, you want to go back there?’ and I was like, ‘Yeah, I’ve been waiting for a while.’ We’ve got me and Arland, Cooper DeJean, we’ve been getting some reps back there.”