Hawkeyes are No. 1 ... in close games

Who's been a more-interesting college football team to follow so far this season than Iowa?

Sure, Jameis Winston causes different kinds of excitement on and off the field at Florida State. Even though it's mathematically impossible, Baylor and Texas A&M seem to average nine points per possession.

But who gives you late-game thrills and spills on more consistently than Iowa? Nobody.

Only one of the 128 teams in FBS has played four games decided by one score (eight points or less). You know who it is. It's the Hawkeyes.

In fairness, UCLA has been in three such games and has played only three games. So the Bruins can tie Iowa Thursday night when they play at Arizona State in a battle of unbeatens.

However, Iowa could turn around Saturday and play a close game at Purdue to retake the lead, even though the Hawkeyes are two-touchdown favorites.

By the way, the teams that have played three one-score games out of four total are Hawaii, Wyoming, South Florida, Arizona and Rutgers. Four Big Ten teams have played two one-score games, three have played one, and five have played none.

This isn't a new phenomenon for the Hawkeyes. Since the start of the 2009 season, here's the rundown of Big Ten teams and one-score games:

Iowa 32, Northwestern 29, Maryland 27, Rutgers 26, Michigan State 25, Indiana 25, Wisconsin 25, Purdue 24, Michigan 24, Minnesota 23, Nebraska 23, Ohio State 20, Illinois 20, Penn State 18.

Iowa is 16-16 in those 32 games, but is 6-2 since the start of last season.

Close games are the Iowa Way, be it against Top 25 teams or Top 125 teams.

In 2004, the last time the Hawkeyes shared a Big Ten title, six of their 12 games were decided by one score.

In 2009, when Iowa went 11-2, six of its 13 games were settled by one score.

In 2012, when the Hawkeyes were 4-8, seven of their 12 games were decided by ... you guessed it. One score.

Now it's 2014, and the program has taken this to the extreme. One-score games against Northern Iowa, Ball State, Iowa State, Pittsburgh. Four-for-four.

FCS opponent, MAC opponent, In-state rival, ACC opponent on the road. It doesn't matter. It's anybody's ballgame in the fourth quarter.

The road to insanity is paved with comparing scores, but the Ball State thing looks odder with each passing week. After losing 17-13 to Iowa, the Cardinals went home and fell to FCS Indiana State, 27-20, then lost 34-23 at Toledo Saturday. So that win won't help Iowa cut any ice with the College Football Playoff selection committee.

Yes, I'm being facetious talking about the CFP and Iowa in the same sentence. But, you surely remember how Iowa State cost Iowa an unbeaten regular-season in 2002. What if that ISU loss is the lone scratch in the Hawkeyes' 2014 season and it keeps them out of ...

Sorry. I couldn't finish that sentence with a straight face.

By the way, the only other time Iowa began a football season with four games decided by one score was 1948. This is a Halley's Comet, folks. When Halley's Comet comes, how can you look away?