116 3rd St SE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
Play of the Game: King’s Ransom
DOWN, DISTANCE:
Maryland faced first and 10 at Iowa's 12
SCORE/TIME
: Iowa led 24-7, 7:55 left in the game
FORMATION, PERSONNEL
: Iowa — base 4-3 defense; Maryland — two wide receivers and one tight end to the left, one wide receiver to the right, quarterback in shotgun with running back
WHAT HAPPENED
: Iowa cornerback Desmond King picked off Maryland quarterback Perry Hills at the 12-yard line and returned it 88 yards for a touchdown.
WHY IT WAS IMPORTANT:
The touchdown gave Iowa a 31-7 lead midway through the fourth quarter.
THE ANALYSIS
: King lined head-up on Maryland WR Malcolm Culmer on the outside, Iowa OLB Ben Niemann covered WR Jahrvis Davenport and Iowa MLB Josey Jewell defended tight end Avery Edwards to Hills' left side. Culmer ran a 1-yard hitch and appeared to run a screen. Davenport ran diagonally toward King, as did Edwards toward Niemann. Then as Davenport broke to the right, King undercut him. Hills threw to where Davenport was supposed to be, but King beat him there. King hauled in the pass, broke to his left and outran both running back Wes Brown and Hills to the end zone.
THE QUOTE 1
: 'I knew exactly where the ball was going. They tried to do it one time, but they didn't throw it that way, I knew they were going to come back to it. So once I saw the formation, everything just played in my hands. I just went straight to the reception area.' — King
THE QUOTE 2
: 'I was focused on two people the whole play: (Brown), the running back, and (Hills) on my right side. I saw Jordan (Lomax, Iowa safety) running with me, and I was trying to wait for him to see if he would have got him or not, but (Brown) was kind of gaining up on me a little bit because I was focused on (Hills) coming from my blind side. I focused on him and then once I saw (Hills) get a little tired, I took advantage of it and went right.' — King
THE QUOTE 3
: 'It was a screen play. Perry got the ball a little high, the receiver was on an inside screen and the receiver didn't get to the spot. (King) made a good play.' — Maryland interim coach Mike Locksley
THE QUOTE 4:
'(King has) got a great instinct for the game, and he continues to show it out there, week in and week out.' — Iowa QB C.J. Beathard
l Comments: (319) 339-3169; scott.dochterman@thegazette.com
Iowa Hawkeyes cornerback Desmond King (14) returns an interception 88 yards for a touchdown as Maryland Terrapins quarterback Perry Hills (11) attempts a tackle in vain in a Big Ten football game at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City on Saturday, Oct. 31, 2015. (Adam Wesley/The Gazette)
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