Play of the Game: Beathard to Smith for 81 yards

DOWN, DISTANCE:

Iowa faced first and 15 at its 19-yard line

SCORE/TIME

: Iowa led 21-3, 10:59 left, second quarter

FORMATION, PERSONNEL

: Iowa — I-formation with two wide receivers on opposite sides, a tight end on the left, fullback, running back; North Texas — Base 4-3 with outside linebacker off the line of scrimmage outside of the tight end.

WHAT HAPPENED

: Iowa quarterback C.J. Beathard threw an 81-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Tevaun Smith.

WHY IT WAS IMPORTANT:

The touchdown strike put Iowa ahead 28-3 still early in the second quarter.

THE QUOTE 1

: 'The safety came down. we saw that coverage on film a lot and Coach (Greg) Davis made a call. He predicted that's what they'd do because they did the play before when we got called for a false start. (Smith is) a great receiver, Tevaun's our X-receiver, and I trust him to go up and make a play.' — Iowa QB C.J. Beathard

THE QUOTE 2

: 'Actually (the ball in the air) seemed a lot longer when you're running your route. You're kind of hoping that ball comes right away. There's a lot of time and it feels like it's coming real slow. It's something you've really got to adjust to in the game.' — Iowa WR Tevaun Smith

THE QUOTE 3

: '(Smith) ran a really nice route on the deep ball. They were sneaking that safety up, so we thought we might have a crack at that.' — Iowa Coach Kirk Ferentz

C. Beathard pass,to T. Smith for 81 yds for a TD - ESPN Video

THE ANALYSIS

: North Texas was expecting a run and sent all three linebackers plus free safety Kishawn McClain, who crept toward the line of scrimmage right before the snap. Iowa ran an isolation with fullback Macon Plewa meeting a linebacker in the hole, and Beathard play-faked to running back Jordan Canzeri. Smith was one-on-one with cornerback Zac Whitfield — who did not have safety help — and the wide receiver wove Whitfield and forced the cornerback to flip his hips and gained an inside release. Beathard dropped seven steps, bounced in the pocket and threw a strike to Smith, who caught the ball on the North Texas 35 (53 yards in the air). Smith easily broke free from Whitfield and ran the final 32 yards for the touchdown. It effectively ended the game's competitive phase.

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