Hawkeyes chaotic rush package leaves a mark

MADISON, Wis. — It might not look like it, but, yes, of course, when the Hawkeyes show their third down pass rush package (something they've called 'raider') they know what they're doing.

When they stood up seven defenders on the line of scrimmage with 42 seconds left in the fourth quarter, the players knew who was doing what. It just looks like chaos.

'Yeah, we do actually have it organized,' Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said without breaking character in the postgame. 'We have rhyme and reason, most of the time. I think our guys know what they're doing there and it came up big for us when Cole came through.'

The Hawkeyes ran their 'raider' package around a half dozen times in their 10-6 victory over No. 18 Wisconsin at Camp Randall Stadium on Saturday. Defensive coordinator Phil Parker called that group for the Badgers' final two plays of the game.

On third-and-7, UW quarterback Joel Stave completed a 5-yard pass to tight end Troy Fumagalli. That set up a fourth-and-2 for everything with 42 seconds left.

After a timeout, seven Hawkeyes lined up across the line of scrimmage. Defensive ends (all three) Drew Ott, Nate Meier and Parker Hesse rushed Stave. Linebackers Ben Niemann and Josey Jewell held back.

'That's a play trying to get them off their game,' Jewell said. 'You shouldn't let them know who's coming, who's in coverage and who's blitzing. You've got to move fast, but not give up the play.'

Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst was asked in the postgame if Stave had trouble feeling the rush. Chryst said he thought Stave handled it well, but the raider seemed to affect his throws on third down. Iowa also ran it twice on UW's penultimate drive, with Niemann and linebacker Cole Fisher (the aforementioned 'Cole') sharing a sack on third down.

Also hugely affecting Stave was the fact Iowa totally unplugged the Badgers' running game, holding Wisconsin to 86 yards on 34 carries. The pressure mounted on Stave to make something happen. Iowa's defense answered with pressure.

'We got our D-ends getting to him,' cornerback Desmond King said. 'We put pressure on him, we got some sacks. We got to him and banged him up a little bit. He threw some bad balls out there.'

King said the raider is about getting more speed on the field. When Iowa called it against Wisconsin, defensive tackles Jaleel Johnson and Nathan Bazata were replaced by cornerback Maurice Fleming and Hesse. Basically, it allows Iowa to play its base defense with speedier athletes on the field.

'It's putting speed out there and getting the quarterback to move around so he feels pressure in the backfield,' King said.

On that fourth-and-2, Meier shoved left tackle Tyler Marz into Stave's follow through. Niemann nearly tipped the ball. Fisher closed on Fumagalli, who ran a quick out to the right. The ball was way too wide and landed harmlessly on Iowa's sideline.

After that, Iowa's defense broke into a chaotic celebration. This time, no one knew who was going where and they didn't seem to care.

'It's a chess match,' Meier said. 'That's what we try to do with it. It's just get after 'em.'

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