Iowa quarterback Cade McNamara didn’t mince words when describing the Hawkeyes’ locker room at halftime of their 31-14 comeback victory over Minnesota on Saturday.
“We were pissed off,” he said. “We left some stuff out there, we didn’t play at all how we wanted.”
Indeed, those harsh words were accurate of the Iowa offense in the opening two quarters against the Gophers. The Hawkeyes converted just 2-of-7 of their third downs, posted only 107 total yards, and opted to punt five times. Yet while coordinator Tim Lester’s unit looked to be going awry, the Iowa defense had reason for frustration as well.
“We all knew we could do better,” defensive tackle Yahya Black said.
After getting frequently torched by big chunk plays in its previous three games, more of the same was plaguing the Iowa secondary. Two 28-yard sideline completions, one of which came on third down. A 17-yard scamper from Minnesota running back Darius Taylor on third down.
These weren’t 60-plus yard bombs, but still backbreaking plays that kept the Hawkeye defense on the field and allowed the Gophers to post back-to-back touchdown drives to close out the first half. It would be hard to deny any feelings of deja vu from the Black and Gold faithful. Players felt it too.
“Eyes, feet, hands, we’ve got stuff to clean up,” linebacker Nick Jackson said.
Fresh out of the halftime tunnel, the Hawkeye defense looked like the one of past dominance, holding the Gophers to 66 total yards, 52 of which came in the fourth quarter when the contest was already decided. That second-half total was the lowest Iowa has allowed all season – in a conference game on the road nonetheless.
Credit the fiery passion of defensive coordinator Phil Parker, the effective communication between players, or the unwavering belief in their teammates, but the Iowa defense turned the page at the break in Minneapolis and never looked back.
Despite its struggles late in the first half, the Hawkeyes had been imposing their will on the Gophers, holding quarterback Max Brosmer and Co. to less than 30 yards or less in their first five drives. Linebacker Jay Higgins notched his third career interception to set Iowa up in field goal range.
Even in the Gophers’ scoring drives, the Hawkeyes flashed glimpses of what they were capable of defensively. On second-and-6 with less than two minutes till the break, Brosmer fired a deep pass down the middle for Minnesota’s leading receiver Daniel Jackson. The senior had space to make the catch in the end zone, but just as his hands rose to snag the pigskin, the ball was redirected to the turf, courtesy of Iowa cornerback Jermari Harris.
A fellow senior who announced in the offseason he would return to Iowa City for his last season of eligibility, Harris kept pace with Jackson the whole route, leaping and deflecting the ball with his left hand as the pair fell to the maroon turf.
“That was really, really big,” Higgins said of the play. “It was clean, no flags. Jermari has been playing great ball. I think everybody in the country has been seeing that. It’s cool knowing that you’ve got some of those reliable guys.”
“You get into a game and it’s just play after play after play,” Jackson added. “You just never take one for granted really. Every play is momentum.”
While Minnesota would still score on the drive, Harris’ play was a reminder of what the Hawkeye defenses of old had been and a foreshadowing of what was to come over the final 30 minutes of competition. The Gophers completed only five throws in the second half, with none traveling more than 15 yards.
Higgins said the defensive communication in the second half was the best it had been so far this year, adding that the unit didn’t try to “reinvent the wheel” after halftime, but rather stuck to the gameplan, only this time with better execution.
For Jackson, the Iowa defense’s second-half turnaround couldn’t have happened without coordinator Phil Parker, who had shoulder surgery during the preseason but is apparently well-recovered.
“He just gets us fired up,” Jackson said. “Anytime you have Coach Parker, it will get you fired up.”
It’s not just Parker who Jackson feeds off, but also Higgins. The pair have been roommates ever since Jackson transferred from Virginia two offseasons ago. Jackson lives upstairs while Higgins resides below, and Jackson can recall a few times when Higgins interrupted his nap by barging in and showing him film.
This bond is the sort that unites the Iowa defense, helping them not to point fingers at each other, but rather trusting in one another to step up and deliver a performance like it did in Minneapolis.
“Everybody on this defense, we believe in each other,” Jackson said. “We just know what we’re all capable of. We know the standards we hold ourselves to and we have the best defensive coordinator in the country.”