Iowa’s offense finally has reason to smile in 33-13 win over Northwestern

IOWA CITY — Iowa’s offense had been a national punch line going into Saturday’s game against Northwestern.

The ESPN2 broadcast opened in black and white because of the resemblance of Iowa and Northwestern to “stone age, Flinstonian football.”

“There’s a lot of people who are watching this game, maybe for some of the wrong reasons,” ESPN play-by-play announcer Anish Shroff said.

But Iowa’s offense, which entered play ranked dead-last in total offense, finally had a chance to be the ones smiling Saturday.

Iowa (4-4, 2-3 Big Ten) eased past a struggling Northwestern (1-7, 1-4) team with a 33-13 win at Kinnick Stadium. The win snapped the Hawkeyes’ three-game losing streak and kept bowl eligibility realistically within reach.

“It was a lot of fun out there today,” tight end Sam LaPorta said. “I was running off the field with a smile on my face, a lot of drives.”

The Hawkeyes had more total yards in the first half (252) than they averaged in both halves of the first seven games (227). They finished with 393 total yards.

After completing just 53.1 percent of his passes going into Saturday’s game, Iowa quarterback Spencer Petras completed 70 percent of his 30 passes and racked up 220 yards.

The fifth-year senior also scored on a quarterback sneak late in the first quarter — Iowa’s first offensive touchdown since Oct. 1.

Iowa’s rushing attack averaged 4.8 yards per carry. Kaleb Johnson was especially effective, putting up 93 yards while averaging 7.2 yards per carry. Wide receiver Arland Bruce IV had a 23-yard rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter.

True freshman kicker Drew Stevens gave the offense an assist with a career-high four field goals, including a 54-yarder in the second half. It was the longest of Stevens’ collegiate career and tied for the seventh-longest in school history.

“It’s always a great feeling when you PR on something,” Stevens said.

The Hawkeyes’ defense, meanwhile, took away the strength of Northwestern’s offense — its running game.

The Wildcats averaged just 0.5 yards per carry. Iowa’s pass rush sacked Northwestern quarterback Brendan Sullivan seven times, which factored into those numbers.

The seven sacks came from seven different players, including defensive lineman Deontae Craig. It was a nice birthday present for Craig, but not the biggest thing on his wish list.

“Most importantly, it was a win,” Craig said with a smile. “Take that off the list.”

Iowa held Northwestern running back Evan Hull to 32 yards on 2.9 yards per carry.

The Wildcats did not score until the third quarter, and a shanked punt by Iowa’s Tory Taylor set up Northwestern in excellent field position on that drive. The 12-yard punt was Taylor’s first attempt of the day.

“It’s a rare time when he hasn’t had much activity, so maybe that threw him off,” head coach Kirk Ferentz said. “If that did, I hope we make that a pattern.”

The only other Northwestern score came as time expired in the fourth quarter with the game already out of reach.

Petras and linebacker Jack Campbell both talked about the offense being able to “push it through” after some adversity.

“That doesn’t mean anything for next week, but today, we played well enough to win,” Petras said.

At 1-7, Northwestern will likely be the worst Big Ten opponent Iowa faces. The same Northwestern defense that allowed Iowa to score 33 points also allowed FCS-level Southern Illinois to score 31 and Wisconsin to score 42.

Saturday’s win was the first for Iowa against Northwestern at Kinnick Stadium since 2014.

The Hawkeyes will take on another pesky opponent next week as they travel to Purdue. The Boilermakers have bested Iowa in four of the last five matchups.

Comments: john.steppe@thegazette.com