Hlas: Bitter day could be so sweet in Kinnick

True confession: Before the Illinois State-Iowa football game of Sept. 5, I was prepared to skip postgame interviews of Iowa's players and head coach and instead listen to angry Hawkeye fans in the Kinnick Stadium parking lots.

I had a high opinion of Illinois State's team after witnessing it thrash Northern Iowa in the 2014 FCS playoffs on the way to the national-title game. I thought the Redbirds had a decent chance of extending the Hawkeyes' descent into madness.

In fairness to myself, I wouldn't have bet a nickel on Illinois State. That was partly because the vibe coming from Iowa's players and coaches at their early-August Media Day was nothing like the one outsiders had assigned to the program. Everyone on the team seemed sunny and confident, like they knew something the rest of us didn't.

It also was partly from an email I got in July from a friend who had spoken to an Iowa City car salesman. The salesman told my friend that a Hawkeye offensive coach was at his dealership this summer. While there, he talked up his team, saying it finally had the right quarterback.

The coach said the offense was united. He said he expected big things.

OK, fine, I thought at the time. But what happens once the games actually start?

Well, by halftime of that first game on an 84-degree day, 2014 might as well have been 1914. The Hawkeyes had 268 yards at halftime, Illinois State 36. Iowa led 17-0 at the half on its way to a 31-0 advantage on its way to a 31-14 win.

Redbirds running back Marshaun Coprich had 13 carries for 32 yards that day. He has averaged almost 160 yards per game since for an 8-2 team headed back to the national playoffs, a club ranked higher in the current Sagarin Ratings than Maryland, Indiana, or Iowa's foe Saturday, Purdue. A team that couldn't give the Hawkeyes a game.

Saturday, it will be considerably cooler than 84. But the feelings about Iowa football are warmer today than they have been in a long time. The Hawkeyes are a win over Purdue from clinching a share of the Big Ten West championship and a berth in the league's title game in two weeks.

On the Sunday afternoon the day after Iowa's 40-35 win over Minnesota last week, a neighbor held up all 10 of his fingers at me as I drove past him. As in 10-0.

People from two separate circles of friends told me last week they were ready to go to the Rose Bowl if that happens to be Iowa's postseason destination. Gotta go, they said. Can't miss this chance, they said.

The power of a season like this to change a region's mood is something you can't underestimate. Especially when big winning hasn't been tasted for a while, and was totally unexpected.

So Saturday we'll see if Iowa can close out its home schedule without a scratch for the first time in 11 years, match its all-time high for wins in a season, and lock up a spot in Indianapolis for the Big Ten title game.

Stiff wind? Brutal cold? Snow to fend off? Should the Hawkeyes handle the Boilermakers, everyone in Hawkeye World who dared venture to the game will feel tingly in a good way.

Days like these are few and far between around here. They materialize quickly, seemingly out of nowhere, and can vanish just as fast. So savor this one.

And be glad it is isn't a night game.