Breaking: Fake punt covered, Iowa wins

LINCOLN, Neb. -- You know the old saying about "fooling."

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Football has an amendment that goes, "Fool me three times, fire the special teams coordinator."

There was no third fooling.

Down 17-10 with about five minutes left in the third quarter, Nebraska tried a fake punt. It was fourth-and-three from the Cornhuskers 32. Punter Sam Foltz took the snap and broke to the right. Iowa was in its base 4-3 defense. Three Huskers with offensive lineman and defensive linemen numbers tried to block defensive end Drew Ott and linebackers Christian Kirksey and James Morris.

Kirksey closed on Foltz and tackled him for an 8-yard loss. Next play, Iowa quarterback Jake Rudock drilled wide receiver Kevonte Martin-Manley for a score and, the Hawkeyes (8-4, 5-3 Big Ten) maintained a relatively comfortable margin en route to a 38-17 victory, their first at Nebraska since 1943.

"I've heard about that, I remember those plays," coach Kirk Ferentz said, interrupting a question about fake punts, obviously knowing what was coming. "Thanks for bringing them up. I love reading about them, too."

Every season comes with a certain kind of nuttiness, good and/or bad. Fake punts were certainly part of the tapestry of 2013. Iowa was stung twice. The first was in the season opener, when Northern Illinois fought off its toughest challenge of the season with the help of a fake that went for 42 yards and led to a field goal in a 30-27 win at Kinnick Stadium. Then, Oct. 5 at Kinnick, Michigan State punter Mike Sadler gained 25 yards that also led to a field goal in MSU's 26-14 victory.

But this was a season of righting wrongs. The Hawkeyes turned around a 4-8 from 2012 to an 8-4 in 2013. They righted that big wrong and then they cleaned up the fake punt thing, which had victimized them four consecutive times (Eastern Illinois 2010, Wisconsin 2010, NIU and Michigan State this season).

"We were playing every play, whether it was a pass, run or, in that case, a fake," Ferentz said. "We were playing every play, that's what it was."

Nebraska coach Bo Pelini, who received a vote of confidence Saturday after sideline and postgame meltdowns Friday, said the Huskers (8-4, 5-3) missed a block.

"We thought it was there," Pelini said. "We liked the look they were in and we whiffed on the block, the most important block. We took a chance and it didn't work. It's my fault."

Iowa called a timeout leading up to the play. Ferentz wanted replay officials to have a long look at the previous play, when linebacker Anthony Hitchens put a hit on quarterback Ron Kellogg III. The ball came out and there was question on whether or not it was a fumble.

Iowa special teams coordinator Chris White measured this one. Iowa stayed in "punt safe" coming out of the timeout.

One interesting clue is right there in the Huskers media guide, where Foltz's profile reads "Redshirt freshman Sam Foltz is a versatile performer who is in position to make an impact for Nebraska in 2013. The Grand Island native has the ability to add depth in one of the nation's most talented receiving corps, but his more prominent role will likely come on special teams."

So, receiver?

"He used to be a receiver," Kirksey said. "He had some speed to him, so we had to be alert to the fake. As soon as I saw him roll out, I took off running to save contain."

Ott was all over it, too.

"That's my job on punt safe and it felt pretty good doing my responsibility," Ott said.

As long as the Hawkeyes were righting wrongs, Martin-Manley got in on the act. With six minutes left in the third quarter, Rudock lofted a perfect pass that Martin-Manley let slip through his fingers for what would've been a 13-yard TD. The drive ended with Mike Meyer making a 31-yard field goal to give Iowa a 17-10 lead. The 24-yard TD he gathered in was the tougher catch.

A little sweet redemption that the junior receiver, who finished the regular season as Iowa's leading receiver (39 catches, 384 yards).

"You're right, the one I caught was tougher," Martin-Manley said with a laugh. "I thought, I've got to get this one, no matter what. The sun was in my eyes, I had to reach out for but I had to get it. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I didn't."

Martin-Manley made the catch. Iowa covered the fake punt. The wrongs were righted and 4-8 was turned into 8-4.