Iowa’s VandeBerg delivers in the clutch

IOWA CITY - Iowa wide receiver Matt VandeBerg was a gray-shirt candidate in 2013 but somehow earned a scholarship and then playing time as a true freshman.

As a sophomore last year, VandeBerg emerged as a dependable threat, catching 14 passes for 256 yards and a score. This year, his production has soared. Among Big Ten players, VandeBerg is tied for fifth in receptions (49). He ranks 11th in yards per game (57.0) and has caught two touchdown passes.

VandeBerg was crucial against Indiana last week. In the fourth quarter he grabbed three passes from quarterback C.J. Beathard for 66 yards. All three turned into first downs. In the second quarter VandeBerg caught passes of 19 and 25 yards for first downs, but both were negated because of holding penalties.

'C.J. and I, we do have good chemistry,” VandeBerg said. 'He knows that I'm going to get to where I need to be, whether it's maybe a half-yard down the field too far or a half-yard outside the dash too far, things like that because he knows I'm going to be in that spot. It might take me a little longer to get there but as long as I'm there, he trusts me.”

With a 21-20 lead against Indiana early in the fourth quarter, No. 5 Iowa faced third and 11 at its 44. Beathard lined up in the shotgun and was flushed left. He threw a sidearm pass to VandeBerg, who shifted from the left flat and worked toward an open spot. VandeBerg caught the ball and lunged past the first-down marker for a 12-yard gain to keep the drive alive.

Three plays later, VandeBerg lined up in the right slot and ran toward safety Jonathan Crawford. VandeBerg went around Crawford without getting bumped on a seam route and hauled in Beathard's strike at the 15. VandeBerg ran to the 3-yard line before he was tackled.

'We ask the receivers to read out as they're running their route and me to read as I'm dropping back, and we read it,” Beathard said. 'We read it well. I put it there, and Matt made a great catch.”

'It was something that we saw early in the game,” VandeBerg said. 'I thought that we could exploit it. Coach called it, and we were able to see that once they rolled to a different sort of coverage, and I knew where I needed to be on the hash mark in order for C.J. to find me and he did.”

On Iowa's next drive, VandeBerg caught a 24-yard pass to set up the Hawkeyes' final touchdown.

VandeBerg twice was an elite all-state receiver at Brandon Valley (S.D.) High School. As a senior he caught 67 passes for 1,081 yards and 18 touchdowns. In his final two years he intercepted 16 passes and brought three back for scores. Still, he wasn't offered a scholarship at Iowa until late in the process. VandeBerg then became one of four true freshmen to play in 2013.

This year at Iowa State, VandeBerg caught six passes for 91 yards in the second half alone. Five of those catches went for first downs, including all four in the fourth quarter. He also recovered a fumble at the 3-yard and ran it into the end zone.

While VandeBerg's ascent from walk-on to contributor to vital receiver has turned heads outside the program, it hasn't surprised anyone who competes against him in practice. Iowa cornerback Greg Mabin frequently faces VandeBerg and saw his potential early on in their careers. Mabin laughed when asked who wins most of their match-ups, saying, 'we just go back and forth for real.”

'He's a lot more confident than he was when he first got here,” Mabin said. 'That's a credit to him, going out there making plays on the game field. It's definitely transitioned to the practice field as well.

'It doesn't surprise me because from the first time I checked him one-on-one, I knew that he was going to be able to make plays for us.”

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