The Hawkeyes earned their second Big Ten win of the season with a 20-14 victory over Purdue on Saturday. The win was fueled by a couple of big plays from Kaleb Johnson, and tight end Erick All. The defensive line had their best game of the season, and Iowa’s two interceptions aided in the team’s fifth win of the season. The Hawkeyes had the opportunity for more points on a couple of red zone appearances, but couldn’t find the end zone. The struggles in this regard nearly cost Iowa the game. Instead, the Hawkeye defense took the field and stopped the Boilermakers to secure the victory.
Big Offensive Performances
After having missed the last three games, Johnson sprung right back into the lineup against Purdue. On his second carry of the day, he took a power rush 67 yards to the end zone for his second score of the season. Johnson had two rushes of 30-plus yards. The sophomore finished with 134 rushing yards and a touchdown. He picked up right where he left off last season against the Boilermakers. A year ago, Johnson finished that game with 200 yards on 22 carries, solidifying his role as the starter going forward.
All nearly had a career day himself. He finished the day with 97 yards on five receptions with a touchdown. He was one yard away from tying his career high, and three away from the century mark. Deacon Hill struggled in the first start of his career, throwing 3-14 for just 28 yards in the first half with several overthrows. In the second half, he calmed down and did enough to help Iowa win. Hill’s second-half performance included a 22-yard touchdown pass to All, with 82 yards total.
Iowa Defense Creates Opportunities Over Purdue
The Hawkeye defense did a good job of forcing Purdue into third-down situations. But like we knew going into this game, Purdue was going to find ways to be successful on third down. On the day, Hudson Card and his offense converted nine of 19 third downs. Purdue never went three and out, and on 14 total drives, just three lasted less than five plays. The Boilermakers were on the field for over 35 minutes of game time, but the Hawkeye defense never allowed their tempo to take over.
The Iowa defense took advantage of their opportunities and was a big part of the victory on Saturday. Cooper DeJean returned an interception to the Purdue five-yard line that set Iowa up to score. In the fourth quarter, Jay Higgins recorded his first career interception set up by great defensive line pressure on Hudson Card.
Defensive Line Performance
Entering Saturday, Iowa’s defense ranked dead last nationally with just three sacks on the season. Against Purdue, Iowa finished with six sacks and 12 tackles for loss. The group was consistently getting pressure in the backfield of Purdue. It led to three intentional grounding penalties and their best game of the season.
Five different Hawkeyes recorded a sack. Joe Evans finished with a sack and a team-high four tackles for loss. He had a big backfield tackle on a Tyrone Tracy Jr. rush early in the game. He and Tracy Jr were members of the same 2018 recruiting class at Iowa six years ago.
Red Zone Play Calling Blunder
Twice today, Iowa put their play calling miscues on display. The Hawkeyes lined up with first and goal inside the six-yard line on two separate drives. Both times, it ended up settling for three points. The first of which was set up by a DeJean interception return to the Purdue five-yard line. The offense proceeded to line up in the shotgun, muff the snap, and lose 15 yards. It gained some yards back before kicking a field goal from the nine-yard line.
Iowa’s opening drive of the third quarter went nine plays and 75 yards. It was their first well-rounded drive of the game and it got all the way to the Purdue six-yard line. It was aided by a tremendous catch by All inside the 10-yard line. On first and goal, Iowa ran a throwback screen that was nearly intercepted. Two plays later, Hill fired a slant route that was again nearly intercepted. Iowa kicked a field goal.
It’s this kind of sequence that shouldn’t be acceptable if you’re a coaching staff. Iowa has a 260-pound quarterback, and a running back in Johnson was in the midst of a 100-plus yard day on the ground. The football should be kept on the ground in the hands of Johnson, or with a quarterback sneak. The play calling going away from those two players is highly questionable. It’s just one of the many offensive problems for an Iowa football team that came into today averaging 22 points and 240 yards per game.
Iowa Escapes Purdue
The Hawkeyes’ inability to capitalize on red zone field position with touchdowns nearly cost them the football game. Late in the fourth quarter, Purdue drove 74 yards on Iowa in under two minutes to cut the game to six points. They got the ball again after Iowa’s sixth three-and-out of the day with a chance to drive the field for the win. The Hawkeye defense stopped Card and company in four plays, securing the win.
With the victory, Iowa moves to 5-1 on the season, still with everything in front of them. Through six games, we know what it’s going to look like from this team. But so far, it has worked. Phil Parker’s defense is coming up with big stops and limiting scoring drives by the opposition. The offense is doing just enough to take advantage of their opportunities, run the ball effectively, and find the tight ends. This translates to wins, regardless of how it looks.
Next week, Iowa makes the trip north to Madison to play Wisconsin. With the way the Big Ten West looks, this game could go a long way in deciding the fate of the division.
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