With the Iowa football team on bye this week, the Hawkeye coordinators Tim Lester, Phil Parker, and LeVar Woods each spoke with the media for about 20 minutes on Tuesday. As Iowa sits at 3-1 overall and 1-0 in Big Ten play, the three coaches took time to point out progress, address struggles, and clarify position battles.
First up to the podium was Lester, four games into his new job as Iowa’s offensive coordinator and architect of a Hawkeye team averaging 32 points per game this season – a far cry from the 21.25 per contest they averaged at the same point last year. While fans have been in awe of star running back Kaleb Johnson and the Hawkeye ground game that ranks 11th in the nation in yards per game, many of the Black and Gold faithful have been weary of the Hawkeyes’ aerial abilities.
Iowa ranks 122nd in the nation with 147.5 passing yards per game as quarterback Cade McNamara has completed 62.7 percent of his passes for 588 yards, three touchdowns, and two interceptions.
“We’re excited to continue to improve in all phases, you know, the passing game being the biggest one,” Lester told reporters. “That’s probably the hardest one, the amount of precision it takes is not easy.”
Lester attributed this lack of precision to needing more player ability during the spring. McNamara and tight end Luke Lachey were making their way back from injury, backup quarterback Brendan Sullivan was still in the transfer portal, and first-year wideout Reece Vander Zee was at senior prom, the coordinator said with a laugh.
While the Iowa offense received ample time to mold during the preseason, the most glaring deficiency is in timing. Lester explained how he wanted his scheme to be run efficiently, referencing NFL quarterback Kirk Cousins as well as the Los Angeles Rams and Green Bay Packers, whom the Hawkeyes will watch in the film room.
For Iowa, one of its issues with timing derives from route running. Lester described how in last week’s game against Minnesota, an Iowa receiver ran an out route but instead of flattening out toward the sideline, faded off too early, forcing an incompletion on what should’ve been a 10-yard gain. The same goes for another play against the Gophers, where the Hawkeyes spoiled a potential big gain.
“The quarterback saw it, progressed on time, ripped it in the hole, and there was no one to catch it because we didn’t run the right route right to gain that coverage,” Lester said. “So that’s a really huge emphasis this week because this is a week where we can hopefully bridge that gap.”
“They (the players) just to got to know we’re going to keep calling it, and we’re going to be aggressive with it. I wish I knew when it was going to click” Lester continued. “The fun part is these guys are smart. They know when their feet are right, they know when their routes are right. And the sooner they acknowledge it, then it normally tends to be fixed really quickly.”
Part of Iowa’s attempt for more aggression is throwing the ball deep, which has been few and far between thus far this season as McNamara averages 5.8 yards per attempt and has completed just four tosses of at least 20 yards. Lester said the vertical passing is still being developed but was part of the game plan against Minnesota. The Hawkeyes twice called for a long ball but checked out of the play at the line of scrimmage.
When asked how he would assess McNamara, Lester praised the quarterback for his performance in Minneapolis, calling it the best game of the season. Even though the numbers didn’t flash off the page – McNamara was 11-of-19 for 62 yards – the senior’s footwork and timing made him most effective, allowing the quarterback to shrug off two drops and help the Hawkeyes in their second-half comeback.
“Going against a defense that had really made every quarterback they’ve gone against scared, I thought he did a really good job of getting rid of the ball,” Lester said of McNamara. “There was only one decision where I would have done something different, that I wish he should have gone somewhere else, and that was on his one sack.”
Big plays vs explosive plays
Compared to last season’s numbers through four games, the Hawkeye defense is allowing fewer points and rushing yards per game but has seen an increase in passing yards conceded, spiking from 180 per game last year to 210.8 this season. Parker, Iowa’s defensive coordinator, explained this uptick as a result of explosive plays that have plagued the Hawkeyes so far this season. Parker explained any explosive play as over 25 yards. In its past three contests, Iowa has allowed an average of two of Parker’s explosive plays per game.
Parker explained that sometimes explosive plays are inevitable, arguing that if any football player, from youth to professional, claims they haven’t been beaten on a route, then they haven’t played the game long enough. Nevertheless, the coordinator and Hawkeye secondary coach added that how Iowa’s defensive backs align themselves is indicative of their performance.
“Make sure that you’re alignment is always based on your ability to make a play that you have to be at,” Parker said. “Everything is about detail. Are you deep enough on the snap of the ball? Are you reading the quarterback?”
Other times, such as when opposing running backs rattle off dashes of at least 15 yards – which happened twice against Minnesota – the blame lies with tackling technique, Parker said, adding that those plays should “never happen” against the Hawkeyes’ scheme.
“Having a good balance and be able to change directions, sink your hips, and be able to be in a good football position to make a tackle,” he said. “That’s something we’ve been working on and have to. It doesn’t have anything to do with effort.”
Iowa’s best defensive performance of the season arrived in the second half against Minnesota, where the Gophers totaled 66 yards. NBC analyst Todd Blackledge said the Hawkeyes played a lot more zone coverage during that frame, eliminating the risk of getting beat.
Parker admitted that playing more zone defense causes the opposing quarterback to struggle, but added it was still important to have a mixture throughout the game.
As for position battles, Parker said the second starting cornerback spot alongside senior Jermari Harris is still up in the air between junior TJ Hall and sophomore Deshuan Lee, who started in lieu of Hall at Minnesota.
“It’s very competitive, sometimes it’s based on the feel of the game,” Parker said. “This is really one of the first times where we don’t have a guy like Cooper (DeJean), where we know he’s a main guy. This is a little bit more difficult, as far as saying, ‘These guys are competing, they’re going well, they’re all practicing hard, these guys deserve to play too.’”
The other defensive position in question for the Hawkeyes is at strong safety, where backup Koen Entringer has seen an uptick in snaps this season, specifically against Minnesota, where he filled in midgame for starter Xavier Nwankpa.
“I think they both deserve to be out there, they’ve both been playing pretty well and competitive,” Parker said of the pair of safeties. “Matter of fact, I thought Xavier had one of his best practices today.”
Special teams stars
Iowa punter Rhys Dakin earned the Ray Guy Punter of the Week Award for his performance against Minnesota, In his first-career road college football game, Dakin averaged 46.9 yards per boot, including a career-long 55-yarder and three punts inside the 20-yard line. This was a sharp contrast to his stats against Troy, where he only landed one ball inside the 20 and allowed a return touchdown.
Special teams coordinator LeVar Woods said the score wasn’t solely Dakin’s fault, but explained that the punter’s week-to-week growth has been indicative of his season thus far.
“There’s been stuff where he’s been awful, you know bad, but there’s also been stuff that’s been really, really good,” Woods said. “There’s no question he along with his teammates were a factor in the punting game (against Minnesota) in controlling the field position and putting out his best game to date. That’s more like what we’ve seen in practice, so we strive for consistency.”
While he has flown under the radar this season, Hawkeye kicker Drew Stevens has been equally impressive, nailing all 20 of his kicks, including a 46-yard field goal try. Last year, Stevens was shaky down the stretch, missing five field goals over the Hawkeyes’ final four games of the regular season.
Woods said Stevens maintained an air of bravado in 2023, but said it was a false confidence.
“I think (Stevens) would be one of the first to tell you that,” Woods said.
This year, Woods has noticed a change in his kicker. Stevens no longer carries a feeling of confidence, but the clarity of conviction – a levelheadedness that guides him in his practice routine. For Woods, kicking shouldn’t be based on feeling, but rather rationality, comparing kicking to a pilot going through a checklist before takeoff.
“It took us a while to get him to that point,” Woods said, adding Stevens has been reading more in his spare time. “But he’s doing it and doing it well.”