The Iowa Photo: Curtain call

When people I meet find out that part of my job is covering football games from the sidelines, they often joke that I must have a great view to watch the game. The reality is that the view from field level through a telephoto lens is often obstructed and at best can be described as like watching the game through a paper towel tube held up to a TV.

On this particular play I was on the Iowa sideline, with much of my view of the field obstructed by coaches, players, officials and the broadcast team. When Iowa running back Kaleb Johnson caught the ball he was so far downfield and so close to the sideline that I could not see him at all. This meant that I was able to look up at the video scoreboard and watch like everyone else as Johnson inexplicably turned a broken play into a long catch and run for a touchdown. By the time he appeared into my view he was already looking over his shoulder on his way to the end zone.

This photo is one of the last I took before he ran past me, scored, and blew kisses to the student section after an incredible play to help Iowa to an improbable comeback win. The play was an end note to a record-setting season, and although he had yet to declare for the draft and withdraw from Iowa’s bowl game, there was a feeling of finality to the college career of one of the most talented players I have had the opportunity to cover at Kinnick Stadium. The red blur on the right half of the frame, a result of panning past the shoulder, looks to me like the curtain closing on a stage. A fitting metaphor for a memorable final act of a player who will be remembered in Iowa City for a long time.