2019 Iowa Hawkeyes football team

The 2019 Iowa Hawkeyes football team represented the University of Iowa during the 2019 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Hawkeyes played their home games at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa, and competed in the West Division of the Big Ten Conference. They were led by Kirk Ferentz in his 21st season as head coach.

2019 Iowa Hawkeyes football
Holiday Bowl champion
Holiday Bowl, W 49–24 vs. USC
Conference	Big Ten Conference
	West Division
Ranking
Coaches	No. 15
AP	No. 15
2019 record	10–3 (6–3 Big Ten)
Head coach	Kirk Ferentz (21st season)
Offensive coordinator	Brian Ferentz (3rd season)
Defensive coordinator	Phil Parker (8th season)
Home stadium	Kinnick Stadium (Capacity: 69,250)
Uniform

2019 Big Ten Conference football standings
	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
East Division
No. 3 Ohio State xy$^		9	–	0					13	–	1
No. 9 Penn State		7	–	2					11	–	2
No. 18 Michigan		6	–	3					9	–	4
Indiana		5	–	4					8	–	5
Michigan State		4	–	5					7	–	6
Maryland		1	–	8					3	–	9
Rutgers		0	–	9					2	–	10
West Division
No. 11 Wisconsin xy		7	–	2					10	–	4
No. 10 Minnesota x		7	–	2					11	–	2
No. 15 Iowa		6	–	3					10	–	3
Illinois		4	–	5					6	–	7
Purdue		3	–	6					4	–	8
Nebraska		3	–	6					5	–	7
Northwestern		1	–	8					3	–	9
Championship: Ohio State 34, Wisconsin 21
^ – College Football Playoff participant $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

Iowa began the year with four straight wins, including an 18–17 road victory over rival Iowa State with College GameDay present. After losing games to three ranked opponents – at No. 19 Michigan (3–10), No. 10 Penn State (12–17), at No. 13 Wisconsin (22–24) – by a total of 14 points, the Hawkeyes knocked off another rival, unbeaten No. 8 Minnesota, 23–19, to start a four-game win streak to close the season. After long-time athletic director Bump Elliott and legendary head coach Hayden Fry died in December, Iowa capped the 2019 season with a resounding 49–24 win over No. 22 USC in the Holiday Bowl. The Hawkeyes finished with a record of 10–3 (6–3 B1G), the sixth season with 10+ wins in the Ferentz era.

Junior kicker Keith Duncan was named Big Ten Kicker of the Year and was selected as a consensus First-team All-American. Junior offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs was named Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year, and later became the 10th Iowa player of the Ferentz era taken in the first round of the NFL Draft. After leading the Big Ten in sacks his sophomore season, junior defensive end A. J. Epenesa had a career-high 11.5 sacks in 2019, and was selected in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft. Michael Ojemudia and Geno Stone became the fourth and fifth Iowa defensive backs drafted between 2017 and 2020. Nate Stanley, a three-year starter at quarterback, was also selected.

Previous season

The 2018 Hawkeyes team finished the season 9–4, 5–4 in Big Ten play to finish in a tie for second place in the West Division. They received an invitation to the Outback Bowl where they defeated Mississippi State.

Preseason

Award watch lists

Award	Player	Position	Year
Lott Trophy[1]	A. J. Epenesa	DE	JR
Maxwell Award[2]	Nate Stanley	QB	SR
Chuck Bednarik Award[3]	A. J. Epenesa	DE	JR
Davey O'Brien Award[4]	Nate Stanley	QB	SR
Doak Walker Award[5]	Mekhi Sargent	RB	JR
John Mackey Award[6]	Nate Wieting	TE	SR
Bronko Nagurski Trophy[7]	A. J. Epenesa	DE	JR
Outland Trophy[8]	Alaric Jackson	OT	JR
	Tristan Wirfs	OT	JR
Paul Hornung Award[9]	Ihmir Smith-Marsette	WR & RS	JR
Walter Camp Award[10]	Nate Stanley	QB	SR

Preseason Big Ten poll

Although the Big Ten Conference has not held an official preseason poll since 2010, Cleveland.com has polled sports journalists representing all member schools as a de facto preseason media poll since 2011. For the 2019 poll, Iowa was projected to finish in second in the West Division behind Nebraska.[11]

Media poll (West Division)
Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
1	Nebraska	198 (14)
2	Iowa	194.5 (14)
3	Wisconsin	172.5 (4)
4	Northwestern	142.5 (1)
5	Purdue	110.5
6	Minnesota	100 (1)
7	Illinois	34

Schedule

Iowa's 2019 schedule began with a non-conference home game against the Miami RedHawks of the Mid-American Conference. Iowa's Big Ten Conference opener was the second week against Rutgers. They finished off their non-conference slate with a road game against in-state rival Iowa State, a member of the Big 12 Conference, and then a home game against Middle Tennessee of Conference USA.

In Big Ten Conference play, Iowa played all members of the West Division and Rutgers, Michigan, and Penn State from the East Division.

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 31	6:30 p.m.	Miami (OH)*	No. 20	Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA	FS1	W 38–14	69,250
September 7	11:00 a.m.	Rutgers	No. 20	Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA	FS1	W 30–0	61,808
September 14	3:00 p.m.	at Iowa State*	No. 19	Jack Trice Stadium Ames, IA (Cy-Hawk Trophy / College GameDay)	FS1	W 18–17	61,500
September 28	11:00 a.m.	Middle Tennessee*	No. 14	Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA	ESPN2	W 48–3	63,706
October 5	11:00 a.m.	at No. 19 Michigan	No. 14	Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI	FOX	L 3–10	111,519
October 12	6:30 p.m.	No. 10 Penn State	No. 17	Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA	ABC	L 12–17	69,034
October 19	11:00 a.m.	Purdue	No. 23	Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA	ESPN2	W 26–20	69,250
October 26	11:00 a.m.	at Northwestern	No. 20	Ryan Field Evanston, IL	ESPN2	W 20–0	42,104
November 9	3:00 p.m.	at No. 13 Wisconsin	No. 18	Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI (Heartland Trophy)	FOX	L 22–24	78,018
November 16	3:00 p.m.	No. 8 Minnesota	No. 20	Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA (Floyd of Rosedale)	FOX	W 23–19	67,518
November 23	11:00 a.m.	Illinois	No. 17	Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA	BTN	W 19–10	58,331
November 29	1:30 p.m.	at Nebraska	No. 17	Memorial Stadium Lincoln, NE (Heroes Trophy)	BTN	W 27–24	89,039
December 27	7:00 p.m.	vs. No. 22 USC*	No. 16	SDCCU Stadium San Diego, CA (Holiday Bowl)	FS1	W 49–24	50,123
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll and CFP Rankings (after November 5) released prior to game All times are in Central time

Source:[12]

Roster

2019 Iowa Hawkeyes football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class QB 11 Connor Kapisak  Fr QB 2 Peyton Mansell So QB 8 Alex Padilla Fr QB 7 Spencer Petras  Fr QB 17 Ryan Schmidt Sr QB 4 Nate Stanley Sr RB 23 Shadrick Byrd Fr RB 1 Nolan Donald Fr RB 22 Samson Evans  Fr RB 15 Tyler Goodson Fr RB 21 Ivory Kelly-Martin Jr RB 20 Keontae Luckett Fr RB 10 Mekhi Sargent Jr RB 28 Toren Young Jr FB 45 Joe Ludwig So FB 40 Turner Pallissard  Fr FB 41 Johnny Plewa Fr FB 36 Brady Ross Sr WR 9 Jack Combs So WR 19 Max Cooper Jr WR 87 Javon Foy Fr WR 81 Desmond Hutson Fr WR 16 Charlie Jones So WR 83 Alec Kritta Fr WR 82 Calvin Lockett  Fr WR 13 Henry Marchese So WR 5 Oliver Martin So WR 89 Nico Ragaini  Fr WR 29 Jackson Ritter Fr WR 12 Brandon Smith Jr WR 6 Ihmir Smith-Marsette Jr WR 3 Tyrone Tracy  Fr TE 42 Shaun Beyer Jr TE 18 Drew Cook Sr TE 86 Noah Feldman So TE 88 Jackson Frericks Fr TE 46 Tommy Kujawa So TE 84 Sam Laporta Fr TE 48 Bryce Schulte So TE 39 Nate Wieting Sr OL 61 Cole Banwart Jr OL 63 Justin Britt Fr OL 56 Nick DeJong Fr OL 55 Luke Empen  Fr OL 69 Tyler Endres Fr OL 54 Matt Fagan  Fr OL 60 Noah Fenske Fr OL 58 Taylor Fox Fr OL 73 Cody Ince  Fr OL 77 Alaric Jackson Jr OL 75 Jeff Jenkins  Fr OL 71 Mark Kallenberger So OL 72 Coy Kirkpatrick So OL 65 Tyler Linderbaum  Fr OL 76 Ezra Miller Fr OL 68 Landan Paulsen Sr OL 66 Levi Paulsen Sr OL 79 Jack Plumb  Fr OL 64 Kyler Schott So OL 70 Kyle Sorensen  Fr OL 57 Clayton Thurm Fr OL 74 Tristan Wirfs Jr	Defense Pos. # Name Class DE 94 A. J. Epenesa Jr DE 57 Chauncey Golston Jr DE 59 Nathan Nelson  Fr DE 85 Logan Lee Fr DL 53 Spencer Daufeldt Fr DL 66 Dalles Jacobus Jr DL 93 Jake Karchinski Fr DL 95 Cedrick Lattimore Sr DL 90 Taajhir McCall Fr DL 98 Chris Reames Fr DL 91 Brady Reiff Sr DL 74 Austin Schulte Jr DL 99 Noah Shannon  Fr DL 81 Ben Subbert  Fr DL 92 John Waggoner  Fr DL 97 Zach Vanvalkenburg Jr DT 54 Daviyon Nixon So DT 50 Louie Stec Fr LB 47 Nick Anderson Sr LB 44 Seth Benson  Fr LB 31 Jack Campbell Fr LB 32 Djimon Colbert So LB 43 Dillon Doyle  Fr LB 13 Joe Evans  Fr LB 5 Jestin Jacobs Fr LB 55 Yahweh Jeudy Fr LB 52 Amani Jones Sr LB 46 Logan Klemp  Fr LB 25 Jayden McDonald  Fr LB 49 Nick Niemann Jr LB 38 Monte Pottebaum  Fr LB 36 Mitch Riggs  Fr LB 19 Mike Timm  Fr LB 35 Barrington Wade Jr LB 34 Kristian Welch Sr DB 4 Dane Belton Fr DB 20 Julius Brents So DB 29 Sebastian Castro Fr DB 15 Dallas Craddieth  Fr DB 41 Colton Dinsdale Sr DB 1 Wes Dvorak Sr DB 37 Kyler Fisher Fr DB 8 Matt Hankins Jr DB 27 Jermari Harris Fr DB 21 Thomas Hartlieb Fr DB 12 D. J. Johnson  Fr DB 28 Jack Koerner So DB 14 Daraun McKinney Fr DB 26 Kaevon Merriweather So DB 18 John Milani Sr DB 33 Riley Moss So DB 11 Michael Ojemudia Sr DB 16 Terry Roberts  Fr DB 30 Quinn Schulte Fr DB 9 Geno Stone Jr DB 17 Devonte Young Sr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K 96 Lucas Amaya Fr K 3 Keith Duncan Jr K 94 Caleb Shudak Jr P 2 Ryan Gersonde So P 7 Colten Rastetter Sr P 22 Michael Sleep-Dalton Sr LS 84 Austin Spiewak Jr LS 50 Jackson Subbert Sr LS 85 Nate Vejvoda Sr	Head coach Kirk Ferentz Coordinators/assistant coaches Brian Ferentz – Offensive Coordinator/Tight Ends Phil Parker – Defensive Coordinator/Secondary LeVar Woods – Special Teams Coordinator Kelvin Bell – Defensive Line Kelton Copeland – Wide Receivers Derrick Foster – Running Backs/Offensive Recruiting Coordinator Jay Niemann – Assistant Defensive Line/Defensive Recruiting Coordinator Ken O'Keefe – Quarterbacks Tim Polasek – Offensive Line Seth Wallace – Linebackers Chris Doyle – Strength and Conditioning Raimond Braithwaite – Assistant, Strength and Conditioning Cody Myers – Assistant, Strength and Conditioning Peter Remmes – Assistant, Strength and Conditioning Mark Weisman – Assistant, Strength and Conditioning Kohle Helle – Nutrition & Performance Analytics Paul Federici – Director, Football Operations Ben Hansen – Assistant Director, Football Operations Broderick Binns – Director, Player Development Scott Southmayd – Director, Player Personnel Max Allen – Director, Football New Media Tyler Barnes – Director, Recruiting Dylan Chmura – Graduate Assistant Miles Taylor – Graduate Assistant Keeston Terry – Graduate Assistant Shane Viilo – Graduate Assistant Martin Hopkins – Football Analyst Tyler Parker – Football Analyst Austin Showalter – Director of Football Analytics Bob Rahfeldt – Video Coordinator Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster Last update: 8/11/19

Rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
NR = Not ranked. RV = Received votes. т = Tied with team above or below. ( ) = First place votes.

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	Final
AP	20	20	19	18	14	14	17	23	20	19	18	23	19	19	18	19	15
Coaches	19	19	18	18	14	14	18	22	19	19	18	22	20	20	19	19	15
CFP	Not released										18	20	17	17	16	16	Not released

Game summaries

Miami (OH)

Miami (OH) at Iowa

1 2 3 4 Total RedHawks 0 7 0 7 14 • No. 20 Hawkeyes 3 7 14 14 38 Date: August 31 Location: Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA Game start: 6:45 PM CDT Elapsed time: 3:05 Game attendance: 69,250 Game weather: 66° F, mostly cloudy, Wind ENE 7 mph Referee: Mark Kluczynski TV announcers (FS1): Brian Custer (play-by-play), Robert Smith (analyst) Source: Box Score

Scoring summary 1 1:17 Iowa Keith Duncan 21-yard field goal Iowa 3–0 2 11:54 M-OH Jack Sorenson 11-yard pass from Brett Gabbert (Sam Sloman Kick) M-OH 7–3 8:20 Iowa Brandon Smith 9-yard pass from Nate Stanley (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 10–7 3 10:06 Iowa Oliver Martin 9-yard pass from Nate Stanley (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 17–7 6:25 Iowa Mekhi Sargent 2-yard run (Miguel Recinos kick) Iowa 24–7 4 12:53 M-OH Andrew Homer 20-yard pass from Brett Gabbert (Sam Sloman Kick) Iowa 24–14 5:56 Iowa Toren Young 2-yard run (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 31–14 3:03 Iowa Ihmir Smith-Marsette 6-yard pass from Nate Stanley (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 38–14

Iowa played its first ever season-opening night game. Typical of first games under Ferentz, Iowa started out slow. The offense wasn't clicking for a great deal of the first half, but found a rhythm in the second as Iowa put up four touchdowns. The Hawkeyes had a balanced attack with 252 yards passing and 213 rushing with several running backs.

[13][14][15]

Rutgers

Rutgers at Iowa

1 2 3 4 Total Scarlet Knights 0 0 0 0 0 • No. 20 Hawkeyes 7 13 7 3 30 Date: September 7 Location: Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA Game start: 11:05 AM CDT Elapsed time: 3:06 Game attendance: 61,808 Game weather: 72° F, Mostly sunny, Wind WSW 4mph Referee: Jeff Servinski TV announcers (FS1): Justin Kutcher (play-by-play), Petros Papadakis (analyst), Shane Vereen (analyst) Source: Box Score

Scoring summary 1 12:18 Iowa Ihmir Smith-Marsette 58-yard pass from Nate Stanley (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 7–0 2 8:13 Iowa Tyrone Tracy 7-yard pass from Nate Stanley (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 14–0 3:50 Iowa Keith Duncan 46-yard field goal Iowa 17–0 0:00 Iowa Keith Duncan 19-yard field goal Iowa 20–0 3 2:50 Iowa Ihmir Smith-Marsette 27-yard pass from Nate Stanley (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 27–0 4 11:05 Iowa Keith Duncan 43-yard field goal Iowa 30–0

Iowa went to the air early and often in their Big Ten opener. On his second touchdown pass, Nate Stanley passed Ricky Stanzi for third all-time on Iowa's career passing touchdown list. Ihmir Smith-Marsette had a career-high 113 yards receiving and two touchdowns. The Hawkeyes defense was smothering, shutting out the Scarlet Knights and forced three turnovers.

[16][17]

at Iowa State

Iowa at Iowa State
Cy-Hawk Trophy

1 2 3 4 Total • No. 19 Hawkeyes 3 3 3 9 18 Cyclones 7 0 7 3 17 Date: September 14 Location: Jack Trice Stadium Ames, IA Game start: 3:11 PM CDT Elapsed time: 5:53 Game attendance: 61,500 Game weather: 67° F, overcast, Wind S 0-5 mph Referee: Dan Capron TV announcers (FS1): Brian Custer (play-by-play), Robert Smith (analyst), Sarah Kustok (sideline) Source: Box Score

Scoring summary 1 7:37 Iowa Keith Duncan 25-yard field goal Iowa 7–0 5:44 ISU L. Pettway 51-yard pass from D. Jones (C. Assalley) ISU 7–3 2 0:00 Iowa Keith Duncan 40-yard field goal ISU 7–6 3 14:03 ISU Tarique Milton 73-yard pass from Brock Purdy (C. Assalley kick) ISU 14–6 2:15 Iowa Keith Duncan 42-yard field goal ISU 14–9 4 12:10 Iowa Nate Stanley 1-yard run (Stanley pass failed) Iowa 15–14 7:46 ISU C. Assalley 26-yard field goal ISU 17–15 4:51 Iowa Keith Duncan 39-yard field goal Iowa 18–17

ESPN's College GameDay was in Ames for the rivalry game with Lee Corso picking Iowa State to win the match-up. There were two weather delays in the first half which effectively made it a night game. It ended up being a back-and-forth contest with Iowa kicker Keith Duncan hitting four crucial field goals to keep the Hawkeyes in the game. Iowa held the Cyclones on a critical fourth down, however Iowa State still had a chance with over a minute in regulation. An Iowa state player ran into his teammate attempting to field the punt and it resulted in a muffed ball that Iowa pounced on. With the Cyclones having spent all their timeouts already, the Hawkeyes were simply able to run out the clock and the Cy-Hawk trophy remained in Iowa City for a fifth year in a row.

[18][19][20]

Middle Tennessee

Middle Tennessee at Iowa

1 2 3 4 Total Blue Raiders 0 0 3 0 3 • No. 14 Hawkeyes 17 7 10 14 48 Date: September 28 Location: Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA Game start: 11:01 CDT Elapsed time: 3:06 Game attendance: 63,706 Game weather: 61° F, Overcast, Wind NE 12 mph Referee: Ron Snodgrass TV announcers (ESPN2): Kevin Brown (play-by-play), Andre Ware (analyst) Source: Box Score

Scoring summary 1 11:01 Iowa Mekhi Sargent 4-yard run (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 7–0 4:54 Iowa Keith Duncan 49-yard field goal Iowa 10–0 0:15 Iowa Brandon Smith 18-yard pass from Nate Stanley (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 17–0 2 8:33 Iowa Brady Ross 1-yard run (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 24–0 3 10:52 Iowa Keith Duncan 42-yard field goal Iowa 27–0 5:24 MTSU Crews Holt 43-yard field goal Iowa 27–3 2:19 Iowa Ihmir Smith-Marsette 14-yard run (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 34–3 4 10:01 Iowa Brandon Smith 10-yard pass from Nate Stanley (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 41–3 0:47 Iowa Spencer Petras 1-yard run (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 48–3

The Hawkeyes put up 644 yards of total offense (tops in the Ferentz era) as the Blue Raiders were unable to stop them. Toren Young was the most outstanding of the several Iowa backs that were able to play with 131 yards rushing on the day, and Nate Stanley had 276 yards passing and two touchdown passes to Brandon Smith. Iowa dominated ball possession, with almost 12 more minutes and forced the Blue Raiders into several three-and-outs.

[21][22]

at Michigan

Iowa at Michigan

1 2 3 4 Total No. 14 Hawkeyes 0 3 0 0 3 • No. 19 Wolverines 10 0 0 0 10 Date: October 5 Location: Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI Game start: 12:05 p.m. EDT Elapsed time: 3:26 Game attendance: 111,519 Game weather: High 50s, Mostly cloudy, Wind SE 10-15 mph Referee: Mike Cannon TV announcers (FOX): Gus Johnson (play-by-play), Joel Klatt (analyst), Jenny Taft (sideline) Source: Box Score

Scoring summary 1 12:19 Mich Jake Moody 28-yard field goal Michigan 3–0 8:33 Mich Z. Charbonnet 2-yard run (Quinn Nordin kick) Michigan 10–0 2 12:18 Iowa Keith Duncan 22-yard field goal Michigan 10–3

[23][24]

Penn State

Penn State at Iowa

1 2 3 4 Total • No. 10 Nittany Lions 0 7 3 7 17 No. 17 Hawkeyes 3 3 0 6 12 Date: October 12 Location: Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA Game start: 6:44 p.m. CDT Elapsed time: 3:26 Game attendance: 69,034 Game weather: 52° F, mostly cloudy, Wind WSW 20 mph Referee: John O'Neill TV announcers (ABC): Sean McDonough (play-by-play), Todd Blackledge (analyst), Holly Rowe (sideline) Source: Box Score

Scoring summary 1 2:12 Iowa Keith Duncan 47-yard field goal Iowa 3–0 2 8:36 Penn State KJ Hamler 22-yard pass from Sean Clifford (Jake Pinegar kick) Penn State 7–3 0:20 Iowa Keith Duncan 24-yard field goal Penn State 7–6 3 2:08 Penn State Jake Pinegar 33-yard field goal Penn State 10–6 4 5:17 Penn State Noah Cain 5-yard run (Jake Pinegar kick) Penn State 17–6 2:31 Iowa Brandon Smith 33-yard pass from Nate Stanley (Stanley pass intercepted) Penn State 17–12

The Hawkeyes wore alternate gold jerseys. Iowa entered the game not having defeated Penn State since 2010.

[25][26]

Purdue

Purdue at Iowa

1 2 3 4 Total Boilermakers 0 7 0 13 20 • No. 23 Hawkeyes 6 3 7 10 26 Date: October 19 Location: Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA Game start: 11:01 am CDT Elapsed time: 3:13 Game attendance: 69,250 Game weather: 59° F, Mostly Cloudy, Wind SW 5-8 mph Referee: Jerry McGinn TV announcers (ESPN2): Beth Mowins (play-by-play), Anthony Becht (analyst), Rocky Boiman (sideline) Source: Box Score

Scoring summary 1 7:45 Iowa Keith Duncan 30-yard field goal Iowa 3–0 2:08 Iowa Keith Duncan 44-yard field goal Iowa 6–0 2 2:14 Iowa Keith Duncan 42-yard field goal Iowa 9–0 0:38 Purdue David Bell 7-yard pass from Jack Plummer (J.D. Dellinger kick) Iowa 9–7 3 7:26 Iowa Tyler Goodson 1-yard run (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 16–7 4 14:54 Iowa Keith Duncan 38-yard field goal Iowa 19–7 11:36 Purdue J.D. Dellinger 27-yard field goal Iowa 19–10 2:59 Purdue J.D. Dellinger 36-yard field goal Iowa 19–13 2:16 Iowa Mekhi Sargent 14-yard run (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 26–13 0:24 Purdue Payne Durham 1-yard pass from Jack Plummer (J.D. Dellinger kick) Iowa 26–20

Purdue refused to go away in a wild second half. Iowa had to recover two onside kick attempts in order to seal this homecoming victory. The Hawkeyes made the Boilermakers one-dimensional as almost all of their offense came through the air. This marked the 300th combined win of the Fry-Ferentz era.

[27][28][29]

at Northwestern

Iowa at Northwestern

1 2 3 4 Total • No. 20 Hawkeyes 7 3 7 3 20 Wildcats 0 0 0 0 0 Date: October 26 Location: Ryan Field Evanston, IL Game start: 11:01 am CDT Elapsed time: 2:52 Game attendance: 42,104 Game weather: 48° F, Mostly cloudy, Wind E 12 mph Referee: Larry Smith TV announcers (ESPN2): Roy Philpott, Kelly Stouffer, Lauren Sisler Source: Box Score

Scoring summary 1 8:38 Iowa Tyrone Tracy 50-yard pass from Nate Stanley (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 7–0 2 12:25 Iowa Keith Duncan 40-yard field goal Iowa 10–0 3 5:23 Iowa Mekhi Sargent 1-yard run (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 17–0 4 9:58 Iowa Keith Duncan 28-yard field goal Iowa 20–0

Iowa entered the game having lost three of the last four games at Ryan Field. The Hawkeyes were able to shut out the Wildcats for the first time since 1981 and spoil their homecoming. Iowa stopped Northwestern on several fourth down attempts to keep them off the board and did not turn the ball over. Nate Stanley also passed Drew Tate to move up to second on Iowa's career passing touchdown list with his 62nd touchdown.

[30][31]

at Wisconsin

Iowa at Wisconsin
Heartland Trophy

1 2 3 4 Total No. 18 Hawkeyes 3 3 0 16 22 • No. 16 Badgers 0 14 7 3 24 Date: November 9 Location: Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI Game start: 3:00 pm CST Elapsed time: 3:15 Game attendance: 78,018 Game weather: 42° F, Mostly sunny, Wind SW 8 mph Referee: Ron Snodgrass TV announcers (FOX): Tim Brando (play-by-play), Spencer Tillman (analyst), Coley Harvey (sideline) Source: Box Score

Scoring summary 1 7:38 Iowa Keith Duncan 24-yard field goal Iowa 3–0 2 9:44 Wis Danny Davis III 17-yard run (Collin Larsh kick) Wisconsin 7–3 6:31 Iowa Keith Duncan 40-yard field goal Wisconsin 7–6 0:14 Wis Danny Davis III 4-yard pass from Jack Coan (Collin Larsh kick) Wisconsin 14–6 3 2:16 Wis Quintez Cephus 27-yard pass from Jack Coan (Collin Larsh kick) Wisconsin 21–6 4 14:06 Iowa Nico Ragaini 3-yard pass from Nate Stanley (Keith Duncan kick) Wisconsin 21–13 9:27 Iowa Keith Duncan 39-yard field goal Wisconsin 21–16 3:29 Wis Collin Larsh 29-yard field goal Wisconsin 24–16 3:12 Iowa Tyrone Tracy 75-yard pass from Nate Stanley (Stanley run failed) Wisconsin 24–22

Wisconsin has won seven of the last eight games in this series. This was the first top 20 match-up between the universities since 2010.

[32][33]

Minnesota

Minnesota at Iowa
Floyd of Rosedale

1 2 3 4 Total No. 7 Golden Gophers 0 6 7 6 19 • No. 23 Hawkeyes 13 7 0 3 23 Date: November 16 Location: Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA Game start: 3:05 pm CST Elapsed time: 3:16 Game attendance: 67,518 Game weather: 38° F, Mostly sunny, Wind SE 10 mph Referee: Jerry McGinn TV announcers (FOX): Joe Davis, Brock Huard, Bruce Feldman Source: Box Score

Scoring summary 1 11:26 Iowa Nico Ragaini 21-yard pass from Nate Stanley (Rastetter pass failed) Iowa 6–0 0:18 Iowa Tyler Goodson 10-yard run (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 13–0 2 9:47 Minn Brock Walker 24-yard field goal Iowa 13–3 6:20 Iowa Ihmir Smith-Marsette 5-yard pass from Nate Stanley (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 20–3 0:00 Minn Brock Walker 20-yard field goal Iowa 20–6 3 11:35 Minn Tyler Johnson 28-yard pass from Tanner Morgan (Brock Walker kick) Iowa 20–13 4 7:13 Iowa Keith Duncan 27-yard field goal Iowa 23–13 3:27 Minn Rodney Smith 1-yard run (kick failed) Iowa 23–19

The unbeaten Golden Gophers entered the game with CFP aspirations. Iowa was aggressive in the first half and put up three touchdowns. Minnesota was able to drive the ball but failed to score enough and left Iowa City having not defeated the Hawkeyes at Kinnick Stadium since Kirk Ferentz's first year in 1999. The Hawkeye fans stormed the field, fairly reminiscent of a game three years prior when Iowa knocked off a 9-0 Michigan squad.

[34][35][36]

Illinois

Illinois at Iowa

1 2 3 4 Total Fighting Illini 7 0 0 3 10 • No. 17 Hawkeyes 7 6 0 6 19 Date: November 23 Location: Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA Game start: 11:01 am CST Elapsed time: 3:09 Game attendance: 58,331 Game weather: 35° F, Partly cloudy, Wind SW 6 mph Referee: Larry Smith TV announcers (BTN): Kevin Kugler, Matt Millen, Rick Pizzo Source: Box Score

Scoring summary 1 10:16 Iowa Tyler Goodson 10-yard run (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 7–0 6:26 Illinois Donny Navarro 31-yard pass from Brandon Peters (James McCourt kick) Tied 7–7 2 9:34 Iowa Keith Duncan 23-yard field goal Iowa 10–7 0:00 Iowa Keith Duncan 45-yard field goal Iowa 13–7 4 14:08 Iowa Keith Duncan 24-yard field goal Iowa 16–7 10:52 Illinois James McCourt 28-yard field goal Iowa 16–10 2:44 Iowa Keith Duncan 29-yard field goal Iowa 19–10

Iowa won its sixth straight in this series, and Illinois hasn't won at Kinnick Stadium since 1999. After a Tyler Goodson touchdown run capped the opening drive, junior kicker Keith Duncan contributed four field goals in a game for the third time this season. On his fourth made kick, Duncan established a new single-season Big Ten record with 27 made field goals. The win over the Illini marked the 96th Big Ten Conference win for head coach Kirk Ferentz, tying him with Hayden Fry.

[37][38][39][40][41]

at Nebraska

Iowa at Nebraska
Heroes Trophy

1 2 3 4 Total • No. 17 Hawkeyes 14 10 0 3 27 Cornhuskers 3 7 14 0 24 Date: November 29 Location: Memorial Stadium Lincoln, NE Game start: 1:31 pm CST Elapsed time: 3:21 Game attendance: 89,039 Game weather: 35° F, Overcast/Light rain, Wind SE 8 mph Referee: Mike Cannon TV announcers (BTN): Kevin Kugler (play-by-play), Matt Millen (analyst), Lisa Byington (sideline) Source: Box Score

Scoring summary 1 11:04 Iowa Ihmir Smith-Marsette 45-yard run (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 7–0 4:03 Neb Matt Waldoch 41-yard field goal Iowa 7–3 3:08 Iowa Tyler Goodson 55-yard run (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 14–3 2 11:37 Iowa Keith Duncan 49-yard field goal Iowa 17–3 8:54 Neb Cam Taylor-Britt 38-yard interception return (Matt Waldoch kick) Iowa 17–10 8:41 Iowa Ihmir Smith-Marsette 95-yard kick return (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 24–10 3 8:24 Neb JD Spielman 39-yard pass from Luke McCaffrey (Matt Waldoch kick) Iowa 24–17 0:32 Neb Wyatt Mazour 9-yard run (Matt Waldoch kick) Tied 24–24 4 0:01 Iowa Keith Duncan 48-yard field goal Iowa 27–24

After being named a Groza finalist earlier in the week, junior kicker Keith Duncan nailed a 48-yard field goal with one second remaining to clinch the victory (and proceeded to blow kisses towards the Nebraska bench). Junior defensive end A. J. Epenesa anchored the defense with 14 tackles, 4.5 TFL, and 2 sacks. Junior Ihmir Smith-Marsette scored two long touchdowns, and freshman Tyler Goodson ran for 116 yards and a touchdown before leaving with an injury. Epenesa earned Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week for the second time in three weeks, and Duncan was named Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week for the second straight week and third time this season. The Hawkeyes extended their winning streak in the series to five games overall, and it was Iowa's fourth consecutive road victory against the Cornhuskers.

[42][43][44]

vs. USC (Holiday Bowl)

USC vs. Iowa
Holiday Bowl

1 2 3 4 Total No. 22 Trojans 7 10 7 0 24 • No. 16 Hawkeyes 7 21 7 14 49 Date: December 27 Location: SDCCU Stadium San Diego, CA Game start: 7:07 p.m. CST Elapsed time: 3:38 Game attendance: 50,123 Game weather: 58° F, Fair, Wind SW 4 mph Referee: Jerry Magallane TV announcers (FS1): Gus Johnson (play-by-play), Joel Klatt (analyst) Jenny Taft (sideline) Source: Box Score

Scoring summary 1 8:25 Iowa Tyrone Tracy 23-yard run (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 7–0 4:37 USC Drake London 4-yard pass from Kedon Slovis (Chase McGrath kick) Tied 7–7 2 11:22 Iowa Ihmir Smith-Marsette 6-yard run (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 14–7 6:03 USC Vavae Malepeai 16-yard pass from Kedon Slovis (Chase McGrath kick) Tied 14–14 5:48 Iowa Ihmir Smith-Marsette 98-yard kick return (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 21–14 1:18 Iowa Ihmir Smith-Marsette 12-yard pass from Nate Stanley (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 28–14 0:00 USC Chase McGrath 32-yard field goal Iowa 28–17 3 13:29 USC Stephen Carr 2-yard run (Chase McGrath kick) Iowa 28–24 3:54 Iowa Tyler Goodson 1-yard run (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 35–24 4 12:52 Iowa Brandon Smith 6-yard pass from Nate Stanley (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 42–24 1:43 Iowa Nick Niemann 25-yard interception return (Keith Duncan kick) Iowa 49–24

Former head coach Hayden Fry passed away just ten days prior to the game and the Iowa helmets were without Tigerhawk decals to honor his legacy on the program. Iowa's 49 points is the most in a bowl game under Ferentz, and the Hawkeyes handed USC its worst bowl loss since the 1948 Rose Bowl. Nate Stanley joined Ricky Stanzi as the second quarterback in Iowa history to win three bowl games, and also passed Drew Tate in career passing yards. Ihmir Smith-Marsette scored three touchdowns in the second quarter – a 6-yard run, 98-yard kickoff return, and 12-yard reception – to earn the game's offensive MVP. The Hawkeyes held USC to just seven points in the second half, led by the game's defensive MVP, A. J. Epenesa.

[45][46][47][48]

Awards and honors

Individual Awards

Player	Award	Ref.
Keith Duncan	Bakken–Andersen Kicker of the Year	[49]
Tristan Wirfs	Rimington–Pace Offensive Lineman of the Year	[50]

Players drafted into the NFL

Round	Pick	Player	Position	NFL Club
1	13	Tristan Wirfs	OT	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
2	54	A. J. Epenesa	DE	Buffalo Bills
3	77	Michael Ojemudia	CB	Denver Broncos
7	219	Geno Stone	S	Baltimore Ravens
7	244	Nate Stanley	QB	Minnesota Vikings

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