An opposing quarterback running for his life, then hitting the turf. Another safety in Kinnick Stadium’s notoriously-loud north end zone: normally a snapshot of triumph for the Iowa football team. Yet on Saturday against Indiana, the scene was more dystopian than anything.
Immediately after hitting the ground, Hoosier quarterback Fernando Mendoza sprung back on his feet and jogged toward the waiting arms of his teammates. Meanwhile, Iowa cornerback T.J. Hall, the Hawkeye in pursuit, sat in the end zone, hands in his lap, staring toward a soon-to-be victorious visiting sideline.
A once boisterous crowd was reduced to thinning pockets of black and gold amid scores of empty seats. For the Hawkeyes, two points meant nothing in a game already decided.
Iowa’s 20-15 loss to No. 11 Indiana extended the program’s infamous losing streak against ranked teams to 11. The keys to an upset sided with the Hawkeyes until they didn’t. A team with a greater time of possession and a late interception on defense only hurt itself with missed tackles, a wide left field goal, and an untimely injury at perhaps the game’s most important position.
The fourth quarter alone marked just how volatile a potential upset can be. Four possessions. Back-to-back field goals followed by consecutive interceptions.
“Momentum is kind of weird thing in college football,” Iowa defensive back Zach Lutmer said postgame. “You think you have the momentum and the next play, they come right at you. We’ve all got to be better as a whole team.”
The momentum permanently swung in favor of the Hoosiers, who entered the afternoon as one of the top offenses in the FBS, averaging 54.75 points and 588.5 yards per game. On Saturday, they only needed 337, perhaps none more important than a 49-yard touchdown pass to Indiana wideout Elijah Sarratt. The senior evaded a tackle and scampered untouched to the end zone, putting Indiana ahead for good.
Iowa quarterback Mark Gronowski left the game with 13:11 remaining in the fourth quarter and the game tied at 10. The transfer from South Dakota State attempted a scramble on third down but was tripped up by Indiana’s Isaiah Jones. Gronowski was helped off the field with an apparent leg injury and did not return. He would finish 19-of-25 for 144 yards
Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz said the issue with the quarterback returning was his ability to decelerate. Gronowski ran on the sidelines, rode an exercise bike, and stood on the sidelines with his helmet.
“Some positive feedback, but we’ll get testing tomorrow and see where it’s at and we’ll know more,” Ferentz said.
Iowa kicker Drew Stevens finished the drive with a 54-yard field goal, with his Indiana counterpart Nico Radicic answering with a 44-yarder of his own. Auburn transfer quarterback Hank Brown’s first meaningful drive as a Hawkeye wound up traveling 36 yards and ending in an interception by Indiana’s E.J. Williams Jr. Brown would finish 5-of-13 for 48 yards.
“It’s tough but it’s football, and those are opportunities you dream of,” Brown said. “I wish I could have executed better.”
Mendoza entered Saturday with five touchdowns and three incompletions over his last two games. At Kinnick, the Cal transfer finished 13-of-23 for 233 yards, and two scores. His lone blemish occurred on the ensuing drive when he overthrew his target, the ball finding Lutmer, who returned his second collegiate pick 38 yards to the Indiana 29.
Lutmer said the Hawkeyes were in Cover 0 on the play, meaning man coverage for the defensive backs. Anticipating a route breaking toward the middle of the field, Lutmer said he was in the right place at the right time.
With a go-ahead score in their sights, the Hawkeyes only gained five yards on three plays, setting up a 42-yard try from Stevens. A silent crowd on its feet exhaled a collective groan as the senior’s offering flew left of the upright.
“It’s a play hopefully we can make,” Ferentz said of the field goal. “I don’t want to say routinely. I hate that word in football. It’s a play we can make.”
Following Sarratt’s touchdown, Iowa’s last grasp at victory slipped when Brown’s fourth-down pass missed the outstretched fingers of tight end DJ Vonnahme. The final miscue may look glaring considering the context, but Iowa’s mistakes began long before the clutch.
Two plays was all it took for Iowa to commit a turnover. The Hawkeyes’ opening drive lasted 44 seconds, with Gronowski’s first pass attempt tipped at the line of scrimmage and wobbled toward a diving Amare Ferrell, who returned the ball a yard to the Iowa 24-yard line. A short 43 seconds later, Indiana took the lead with a 14-yard strike from Mendoza to third-year wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr.
A 40-yard field goal from Drew Stevens capped a 23-yard drive that started in opposing territory thanks to a 17-yard punt return from Kaden Wetjen.
Indiana entered the afternoon allowing 205.8 yards per game to its opponents, which ranked third-best in the FBS. Such defensive prowess flashed throughout the first half, as Iowa totalled only 76 yards on its first four drives.
A fourth-down run stop from Iowa defensive back Koen Entringer set up the Hawkeyes at their own 27-yard line, one of two such stops for Entringer, who recorded a team-best 10 tackles.
The Hoosiers were 0-for-3 on fourth down and 6-of-15 on the third.
“We worked extremely hard, battled every single play,” Lutmer said. “Obviously we weren’t good enough today, they come out on top. But you can’t fault effort.”
Highlighted by a 21-yard pass to Sam Phillips, a 22-yard dash from Moulton, and fourth-down sneak from Gronowski, Iowa gained a 10-3 lead with a three-yard touchdown run from its prized transfer quarterback.
With only 22 seconds on the clock before the break, a halftime lead for the home team appeared inevitable, but not just like their opening drive, the Hoosiers scored in the blink of an eye. A 16-yard gash from running back Roman Hemby, then a 16-yard sideline grab from wideout Elijah Sarratt made more back-breaking by a roughing the passer call on the Hawkeyes.
A 46-yard field goal from Radicic deflated Kinnick’s once- boisterous confidence. Despite holding an eight-minute advantage in time of possession and limiting Indiana to 152 total yards, Iowa limped to the halftime tunnel with a 10-10 draw with the 11th-best team in the nation.
“We were playing man [coverage] and they were just better,” Lutmer said. “I guess you could say the receivers were good. We just weren’t good enough on that drive.”
In the first half, Iowa converted 4-of-8 third downs compared to Indiana’s 2-of-5 and averaged 4.4 yards per play to 6.6. Iowa finished with 284 total yards on 4.1 yards per play, collecting 17 first downs converting 6-of-16 third downs. At 3-2 on the season, any chance at a playoff berth requires running the table. Even an eight or nine-win season, the expectation for most fans, will likely necessitate beating ranked team, whether it be Penn State or Oregon at home or USC on the road.
Ferentz deadpanned Tuesday his squad needs to “score more points” to finally end its losing skid, but sincerely acknowledged Saturday his Hawkeyes have yet to define their identity.
“We’ve shown some growth,” Ferentz said. “I really believe we have a lot of room for improvement, and that’s the work we need to do going forward. When you win, everybody is happy and when you lose things get a little bit negative. The bottom line is we’ll determine what the season will be.”
Up Next
Iowa heads into the bye weekend before travelling to Madison to take on Wisconsin. The Badgers are 2-2 on the season and will play Michigan on the road next week. The Hawkeyes aim to keep the Heartland Trophy in Iowa City for the fourth year in a row but trail the all-time series, 49-47-2.