Iowa football ran out of magic at Kinnick Stadium Saturday, falling to No. 4 Michigan in blowout fashion. Before their 27-14 loss to the Wolverines, the Hawkeyes were 5-1 in their last six matchups against top five teams at home.

Michigan took the wind out of Iowa’s sails on its first drive of the day. After the Hawkeyes won the contest’s coin toss and deferred its choice to the second half, the Wolverines elected to receive.

Once Michigan got the ball, it put together an 11-play, 75-yard touchdown drive that ate nearly seven minutes of game clock. The Wolverines ran the ball seven times on the drive, amassing 51 rushing yards.

Two first-half field goals from senior Jake Moody put the Wolverines up, 13-0, at halftime. Michigan gained 236 yards in the first half.

Iowa’s defense, which was ranked sixth in the country before Saturday’s contest, was allowing just over 236 yards per game in its first four matchups.

The Hawkeyes’ run defense was rated sixth in the nation prior to its matchup with the Wolverines, relinquishing 73 yards on the ground per contest. Michigan gained 131 rush yards in the first half.

“Yeah, we knew they were coming with a good run game,” Iowa linebacker Jay Higgins said postgame. “So, it’s on the backers to get down and hammer some gaps to free up some D-linemen. Michigan, they do a really good job a double teaming that D-line. So, if we can get up there and free some guys, start getting some knock-back, that’s what we were trying to do.”

Iowa started the third quarter with the ball but went three-and-out, quickly giving Michigan possession. The Wolverines made the Hawkeyes pay for their mistake, manufacturing a 10-play, 67-yard touchdown drive that shaved nearly six minutes off the clock.

The Hawkeyes briefly threatened the Wolverines in the fourth quarter, scoring a touchdown on a seven-play, 44-yard drive.

“I thought that was the best we’ve looked this season,” senior wide receiver Nico Ragaini said of the Hawkeyes’ fourth-quarter performance on offense. “So, as the season goes on, good teams continue to get better. We’re 3-2 right now, but the season’s not over and our goals are still there. So, we just gotta push forward and continue to grow every single day.”

On their ensuing drive, the Wolverines went three-and-out, giving the Hawkeyes the ball back at the Iowa 17-yard line.

From there, the Hawkeyes drove the ball to the Michigan 28-yard line. Iowa ultimately turned the ball over on downs after failing to convert a fourth-and-2. The Hawkeyes would’ve been down by six had they scored.

“It was cover zero,” Iowa quarterback Spencer Petras said. “We ran a sprint play that we liked. I think that certainly was a throw there. I think I kind of pulled up just feeling the contain guy. Especially in that situation, the thing I can’t do is do that. I have to wear that one, and I didn’t. I pulled up, location was low. I didn’t give [tight end Sam LaPorta] a chance. It sucks, but I gotta do better.”

Iowa and Michigan each added a touchdown in the last three minutes of the game.

The Hawkeyes and Wolverines finished the game with 281 and 327 yards, respectively. Iowa quarterback Spencer Petras went 21-of-31 for 246 yards and a touchdown.

“As crazy as it may sound, from where I stood, I thought our guys played hard and I saw some growth in our football team,” Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz said. “Time will tell. We’ll go from there. We’ll look at the tape tomorrow. We’ll go back and lick our wounds a little bit, hopefully learn and grow. We’ll move forward on Monday, and that’s our plan right now.”

Big picture 

With the loss, Iowa drops to 3-2 overall and 1-1 this season. The Hawkeyes are now tied with Illinois, Purdue, and Minnesota in the Big Ten West standings.

Northwestern has yet to play its Week 5 game against Penn State. The Wildcats are currently the only unbeaten team in the Big Ten West.

Up next

The Hawkeyes will travel to Champaign for a meeting with Illinois at Memorial Stadium next Saturday. The Fighting Illini currently sit at 4-1 overall and 1-1 in Big Ten play.

Illinois will come into the game fresh off a blowout win over Wisconsin. The Illini beat the Badgers, 34-10, in Madison Saturday.

“Obviously, as a competitor, losing a game is going to be tough,” Higgins said. “But what we need to do is learn from this … Obviously, coach Ferentz’s best teams always get better throughout the season. If we don’t get better from this week to next week, we’re not going to be a good team. So, we’re making sure we continue to move along, understand it’s a long season. Nothing is out of the picture from losing this game.”

Illinois currently ranks fourth in the nation in total defense. Junior running back Chase Brown led the nation in rushing through the first four weeks of the season with 604 yards on 95 carries.

Kickoff of next week’s Iowa and Illinois game is slated for 6:30 p.m.