Herd mentality: Hawks dominate up front, break through in Big Ten with 45-9 win

Somewhere in the second half, it was goat herding.

It was probably this series, the one when true freshman running back Jewel Hampton ran nine times for 63 yards and scored on a 10yard run in the third quarter. If you want to pinpoint the exact moment Saturday's game turned into goat herding, that might be it.

But make no mistake, it was goat herding, with Iowa in the role of herder and Indiana obediently playing the goat.

(Originally published 10/12/2008)

Shonn Greene gutted out 115 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries after an ankle injury on his second attempt, and Hampton, playing in his home state, took over in the second half with 114 yards and three touchdowns to spur Iowa's 45-9 victory.

The Hawkeyes (4-3, 1-2 Big Ten) snapped a three-game losing streak on the backs of their offensive line. Senior guard Seth Olsen wearily leaned up against a crimson wall at Memorial Stadium and smiled a mile wide.

Goat herding takes a lot out of you.

“That's our style of football. That's Iowa football, that's Big Ten football,” Olsen said. “You've got to pound if you want to win. We pounded it and pounded it and finally we were able to break through and score some points.” Iowa's offensive line wanted to say something. All week it heard about last season's Indiana game. You remember that one. The Hoosiers (2-4, 0-3) racked up nine sacks in a 38-20 victory at Kinnick Stadium.

Olsen claimed he read in a newspaper that one Indiana player said he was going to get five sacks against Iowa. IU's defensive line put up four sacks against Minnesota last week.

The offensive linemen heard that nine-sack stat a few times last week. O-line coach Reese Morgan mentioned it, they said. Head coach Kirk Ferentz said he brought it up only once. The nine sacks were something the five offensive linemen used to pump themselves up.

Indiana had one sack Saturday.

“That was emphasized all week. It had to be,” sophomore tackle Bryan Bulaga said. “That can kill a team. Nine sacks a game? C'mon.” Junior right tackle Kyle Calloway was switched to right tackle against the Hoosiers last season - his only game at the position last year ¿ and struggled. Saturday, he played a sparkling clean game.

“At times when guys have to play before they're ready, it's not easy, especially up front,” Ferentz said. “There's really no place to hide up there. The way we play, it's really tough to not be (found). It's part of the maturation process, but I don't want to minimize how hard those guys have worked.” This was the first time Iowa put up two 100-yard rushers since last season's opener against Northern Illinois. Greene topped 100 yards for the seventh consecutive week, an Iowa first. His 937 yards are the most for an Iowa back through seven games since Tavian Banks had 1,125 in 1997.

“I felt like there was maybe a breaking point somewhere in the second half when we were able to start driving the ball with greater ease than we did in the first half,” Olsen said. “They were still playing and still fighting. They played to the very end, so I give them credit.” That was more than Indiana Coach Bill Lynch gave to his team.

“In the second half, Iowa just totally dominated the game in every way possible,” he said. “They ran it at will. They threw it. They maintained possession. We didn't do enough with it when we got the chance.” The Hoosiers had some hope in the first half when quarterback Kellen Lewis was firing on all cylinders. The junior, who's earned a career's worth of helmet stickers against Iowa, directed an 11-play, 89-yard drive in the final two minutes of the first half to pull Indiana within 17-10 just before halftime. But somewhere during that series, Lewis, who finished 13 of 18 for 108 yards, a TD and an interception, hurt an ankle and didn't return. With backup Ben Chappell in the second half, the Hoosiers managed only 132 yards. The Hawkeyes had the ball for enough time to baste a turkey in the second half, lording a 21:26 to 8:34 advantage in time of possession.

Iowa outgained Indiana, 422 to 286. Iowa held IU to 95 yards on 29 carries.

That allowed quarterback Ricky Stanzi a stadium-sized comfort zone to shake off the turnover troubles (five the last two weeks) that killed Iowa in its first two Big Ten games. He played his best and most complete game Saturday, completing 12 of 20 for 184 yards and two TDs, a 34-yarder to Andy Brodell and a 20-yarder to Brandon Myers. Stanzi completed his first seven passes in the second half when Iowa scored on its first two possessions and took control. No turnovers, by the way.

“We put some points up on the board,” Stanzi said. “It was good to drive down the field and not be disappointed.” That's the goal, not to be disappointed. They led the league in not to be disappointed Saturday.