Data analysis: How Iowa football has embraced rushing attack at virtually unparalleled level in 2024

IOWA CITY — Logan Jones, as expected for an offensive lineman at Iowa, is quite the fan of running the football.

“I’d much rather run the ball 60, 70 times than pass the ball,” Jones said. “That’s just the way we operate. We want to run the football, and we take a lot of pride in it.”

The run-eager Iowa offensive line has been practically in heaven during offensive coordinator Tim Lester’s first season as the Hawkeyes have embraced their rushing attack to an extent rarely seen at Iowa or elsewhere in the Big Ten.

Rushing attempts make up 64 percent of Iowa’s offensive plays this season, according to a Gazette analysis of NCAA data. That’s a higher percentage than any other Big Ten team, with the next-closest team being Michigan at 59.7 percent.

That percentage ranks first among power-conference teams and ninth among the 133 FBS teams. Three of the eight schools to run the ball more often than Iowa are the service academies — Army, Air Force and Navy.

A run-first identity certainly is not new to the Hawkeyes in Kirk Ferentz’s 26th season at the helm. The only two years when Ferentz’s teams passed more often than running were 1999 and 2000 — his first two years at Iowa.

“They’re very comfortable with their way of winning,” Maryland Coach Mike Locksley said this week ahead of Saturday’s game against the Hawkeyes.

But the extent of Iowa’s run-first identity has reached a new level in 2024. Iowa’s 64 percent rate of running the ball is at pace to be the highest in the Ferentz era. The only comparable season would be 2002, when the Hawkeyes ran the ball 63.8 percent of the time.

Last year, for example, Iowa attempted rushes on 58.3 percent of plays. That was fifth-highest in the Big Ten behind Nebraska, Rutgers, Minnesota and Michigan.

Even in 2008 — when the Hawkeyes had the benefit of star running back Shonn Greene and his record-breaking season — Iowa ran the ball on 61.7 percent of plays. Other years where Iowa ran the ball between 60 and 63 percent of the time include 2003, 2016, 2008 and 2015.

When looking at all 26 seasons of the Ferentz era, Iowa has rushed the ball about 56 percent of the time.

A confluence of factors has allowed the Lester-led Iowa offense to be so run-heavy in 2024, starting with Lester himself. He has overseen a major boost to Iowa’s offensive numbers — from 15.4 points per game in 2023 to 29.4 in 2024 — with many of the same players Brian Ferentz had at his disposal last year.

“He has a really good system,” Kirk Ferentz said of Lester. “That's obviously why we hired him.”

Iowa’s offensive line also is in a “better place than it’s been the last couple years,” Ferentz said, as evident when it was named as a semifinalist for the Joe Moore Award.

“Nobody's issues — it's just attrition, injuries,” Ferentz said this week. “It's been tough. So we're finally able to maybe play at a level where the proficiency is a little bit more like what we hope.”

Running back Kaleb Johnson, meanwhile, has shown drastic improvement in his third year as a Hawkeye. He is tied for third nationally with 132.8 rushing yards per game, and he already has the Iowa program record with 20 rushing touchdowns this year.

His 4.7 yards after contact per carry is second-best among FBS running backs with at least 100 carries, per Pro Football Focus, trailing only Boise State’s Asthon Jeanty.

“Then you've got a back who's in his third year instead of being a first-year guy who's kind of hit or miss,” Ferentz said. “He's always been a great kid. He's an outstanding young man. But the lack of consistency, inexperience, immaturity, etc., and that's the benefit of being older.”

Iowa’s dependency on its rushing attack also has been partly out of necessity. The Hawkeyes’ passing game, as Lester described it, has been “not up to par” this year. The Hawkeyes rank 117th nationally with 6.52 yards per passing attempt.

“We have a long way to go,” Lester said during Iowa’s second bye week. “It’s the hardest thing to get going. … I’m encouraged about where we’re going, but we’re nowhere near where we need to be.”

Iowa’s run-first identity could be even more pronounced in its game this week at Maryland. The Hawkeyes have a “clearly cloudy” forecast at quarterback as Cade McNamara gets back to game speed. Ferentz said Tuesday walk-on Jackson Stratton would be Iowa’s starter “if we were playing right now.”

“We’re going to run the ball,” Jones said. “That’s our identity. We’ve embraced that. So that’s what we’re going to do come Saturday.”

Comments: john.steppe@thegazette.com

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