Hlas: Hail to the Hawkeyes

IOWA CITY — What was this thing Saturday night, this shocking, stunning, season-saving thing?

Just the most-glorious moment Iowa's football program has had in front of a national audience in eons.

The 33-yard field goal a freshman from North Carolina named Keith Duncan kicked goes directly into program history, and so does he if they were able to find him in the pile of hysterical Hawkeye happiness following his kick.

This was the exorcism of exorcisms here. A team that seemed to be in full decline was in full fighting mode for 60 minutes.

Forget what happened on the way to 12-0 last year. Iowa's 14-13 victory over previously 9-0 Michigan is the best moment the Hawkeyes have had since … who knows and who really cares? Suffice to say, it was a long time ago.

The gloom that hung over Iowa's football program over the last week and several weeks disappeared thanks to a mammoth defensive effort of their and just enough offensively against the nation's No. 1 defense.

Iowa was supposed to be Team Comatose after its brutal 41-14 loss at Penn State as it ran smack into the unbeaten Michigan Wolverines. Instead, it was Team Resurrection.

The result was the Hawkeyes' first win over an AP top-two team since its top-ranked team in midseason 1985 beat No. 2 Michigan here, 12-10. This didn't have the hype, and doesn't have the significance. But wow, did it cover Iowa with glory.

The first half alone washed away so much of the gloom that had hung over the Iowa program over the last week, and last several weeks.

Michigan Coach Jim Harbaugh was worried about this game, and rightly so as it turned out. He said the Hawkeyes would show up, and show up they did.

It was a half that basically was a stalemate, though it ended with the Wolverines ahead 10-8. But in terms of big moments, and of declarations they had come to compete, Iowa had the first-half advantage.

There were critical mistakes aplenty for Iowa, but it seemed to always brush them off. When punter Ron Coluzzi tried to turn a high snap into a first-down run, his slip-and-flip gave the Wolverines the ball in Iowa territory and seemed darkly ominous.

Michigan moved as deep as the Iowa 8, and got a gift first down to get that close because Hawkeye senior star cornerback Desmond King had a mental rock and poked Wolverine center Mason Cole in the face for a 1st-and-goal at the 10.

King had a flip of his own, a middle finger gesture for his home state's team.

The defense didn't feel maligned by King's penalty, holding the Wolverines to a 2-yard run and two incompletions, the latter because of safety Brandon Snyder breaking up a pass in the end zone. Michigan settled for a field goal and 3-0 lead.

Consecutive running-into-the-kicker penalties by Michigan against Coluzzi — seldom has a punter taken such punishment in one half — extended an Iowa drive, but a 46-yard Miguel Recinos missed.

Michigan then drove 72 yards for a touchdown and 10-0 lead, and it felt like the stampede was on. Except it wasn't. A beauty of a punt by, yes, Coluzzi, died at the Wolverines 2, and defensive tackle Jaleel Johnson tossed aside a Michigan guard and tackled running back De'Veon Smith for a safety.

That's when this game felt different, again. Ben Niemann and freshman cornerback Manny Rugamba made pass breakups for Iowa on Michigan's next drive, then Iowa went 52 yards for a touchdown on the nation's No. 1 defense. Rugama, pressed into duty because Greg Mabin was injured, was terrific.

Akrum Wadley got utilized the way teams are supposed to use backs with Wadley's skills. He had back-to-back receptions that totaled 42 yards, and deservedly had the 3-yard catch for the score that made it 10-8.

The first half's yardage and time-of-possession stats favored the Hawkeyes, victories unto themselves at the time.

Hail to the victors, and the victors weren't the juggernaut. Instead of mugging its opponent as usual, Michigan went home knowing it had been a fight. One it lost.