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| Iowa starting RB 29 LeShun Daniels, a junior. |
Our Pick: Hawkeyes 29, Cylcones 24
The game should be won in the trenches, on both sides of the football. Over the last five seasons, Iowa's offensive and defensive line has been very inconsistent, at times.
The Hawkeyes (1-0) opened 2015 with strong line play on both sides, in a 31-14 win over Illinois State, the runner-up in the 2014 FCS championship game. The Hawkeyes open 2015 with a new quarterback, a new running back and a new number one receiver.
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| The 2014 Iowa State Cyclones (2-10 overall) celebrating the 20-17 win at Kinnick, by taking home the Cy-Hawk Trophy for the third time in four seasons. |
The Cyclones are lead by a three-year starter at quarterback, as well as four upper classmen at wide receiver. The running back position is lead by three underclassmen though.
In the last four games, the Cy-Hawk Trophy has been decided by six points or less. The last dominating win, was Iowa in 2010, in Iowa City, by the score of 35-7.
Last year, Iowa took a 14-3 lead into halftime, at Kinnick Stadium. But, it was all Iowa State in the second half.
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| Iowa State senior QB 12 Sam B Richardson, in last year's 20-17 win over Iowa. The Hawkeyes senior DE 34 Nate Meier and his teammates need to put more pressure on Richardson, after playing contain, in the '14 game. |
Iowa State came back fueled on the three TD reception performance of wide receiver Quenton Brundrage, as well as on the arm of quarterback Sam B. Richardson. Both seniors are now in 2015. The figure big in today's showdown for the Cyclones.
Iowa won the game in 2013, 27-21, after recovering the Cyclones onside kick with 2:25 left. The Hawkeyes took home the trophy in the game, last played in Ames.
In the last six years, Iowa State has 19 turnovers that have resulted in 51 of Iowa's 161 points.
Penalties hurt Iowa in the 2014 loss. Iowa State had four sacks on Iowa last year. The Hawkeyes failed to get one sack on Richardson. The defensive game strategy was one of containment, rather than pressure. It resulted in a 20-17 win by the Cyclones.
In the 2013 win, Iowa forced turnovers and were not shutout getting to the quarterback, but ISU still lead in the QB sack department. Iowa needs to do a better job protecting the quarterback.
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| The Iowa players will honor former S #9 Tyler Sash, after Tuesday's death. Sash was at Iowa (2007-10). |
It has been a bitter sweet week for the Hawkeye Football program, with news on Tuesday, that former Iowa safety Tyler Sash had passed away. The former Iowa safety played in three Cy-Hawk games. Iowa won all three games:
- 2008 - Iowa won 17-5 in Iowa City
- 2009 - Iowa won 35-3 in Ames
- 2010 - Iowa won 35-7 in Iowa City
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| Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz is 7-9 as a head coach in the Cy-Hawk Games. |
In the last two games, Iowa has opened with leads of 27-7 and 14-3, only to have Iowa State roll back and win one of two over the Hawkeyes. Iowa's starting QB, RB and WR all are new in roles in the Cy-Hawk Game. The TE position is a little of a question mark for each team, as well.
There is typically no easy sledding in the Cy-Hawk Games typically, since Ferentz became the head coach at Iowa. Paul Rhoads is 3-3 in the Cy-Hawk Series, as head coach.
- Iowa has an edge in the rushing game on offense
- Iowa State has an expected edge in the passing game on offense
- Special teams is an area where no one team would seem to have a edge
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| Iowa State opened 2015, with a new 3-4 front 7, with NG Demond Tucker. |
Iowa State has hit the junior colleges, since the 2013 season to strengthen the defensive side of the football. Coach Rhoads has brought in ten JUCO transfers in, filling out the two-deeps for the Cylcones.
Iowa State will use quickness more than Iowa in the trenches. The leader up front is JUCO transfer 97 Demond Tucker (6-0 296 Jr.) at nose tackle. The Cyclones front 7 isn't big and tall, so look for quickness to be a key element, as Iowa works to establish the running and short passing game.
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| Senior RB 33 Jordan Canzeri has prior Cy-Hawk Game experience and is coming off one of his better games in '15. |
RB Canzeri had 118 all-purpose yards (28 rushing, 90 receiving). His 90 receiving yards are a career best. Canzeri ranked second on the team with 752 all-purpose yards in 2014, including 494 yards rushing, 123 yards receiving, and 135 yards in kickoff returns. His 51-yard reception on the final drive of the first half was a career long.
SERIES EXPERIENCE
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| Iowa junior QB 16 C.J. Beathard will make first start today in the Cy-Hawk Game in Ames. He is 2-0 as a starter. |
Junior QB C.J. Beathard is making his first Cy-Hawk Series appearance. Former Iowa QB Jake Rudock took every snap at quarterback against the Cyclones in 2013 and 2014. Junior RB LeShun Daniels did not appear against the Cyclones in 2013 or 2014. The Hawkeyes combined for 104 rushes and 347 rushing yards in those games.
Ten active Hawkeyes, five on offense and five on defense, have previously started games against Iowa State. C Austin Blythe is making his fourth start against the Cyclones. RG Jordan Walsh, DE Drew Ott, and DB Desmond King are making their third starts in the series. Other Hawkeyes with starting experience in the Cy-Hawk Series include DE Nate Meier, DB Greg Mabin, FS Jordan Lomax, WR Jacob Hillyer, LG Sean Welsh, and TE George Kittle.
FIRST TIME STARTERS
Seven Hawkeyes made their first career start in Iowa's season opener: RB LeShun Daniels, Jr., LT Boone Myers, DT Nathan Bazata, DT Jaleel Johnson, LB Cole Fisher, LB Ben Niemann, and SS Miles Taylor.
Seven Hawkeyes made their first career start in Iowa's season opener: RB LeShun Daniels, Jr., LT Boone Myers, DT Nathan Bazata, DT Jaleel Johnson, LB Cole Fisher, LB Ben Niemann, and SS Miles Taylor.
It will be an interest game on Saturday. The only winning season by Iowa State, in the six seasons Rhoads has been head coach was in 2009, when Iowa beat ISU 35-3, but the Cyclones finished the season 7-6. Rhoads needs more than a 4-3 record over Iowa. Of course, 7-9 for Ferentz has many asking questions in Iowa City, as well.
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| Iowa DE Drew Ott 95 tackling Illinois State QB Jake Kolbe in the season opener, as he enters his final Cy-Hawk game as a senior. He didn't play as a freshman, since he was trying to redshirt, but didn't in B1G play. |
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| Iowa State LT 67 Jake Campos moves from RT last year to LT for the 2015 Cy-Hawk Game. He will face Iowa's top pass rusher and most experienced defensive lineman. |
It will be an interesting day for each coaching staff, as the chess match begins ...
Top Match Up on the Field?
It will also be an interesting game on the field, as the most interesting match up will likely be Iowa's senior DE 95 Drew Ott (6-4 272) against Iowa State's sophomore left tackle 67 Jake Campos (6-8 297).
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| Iowa has a mix of youth and experience heading into the 2015 Cy-Hawk Game in Ames. One player to watch is junior DT 67 Jaleel Johnson, who had four tackles in the season opener against Illinois State. He had his first sack during Iowa's bowl game against Tennessee and may be primed for a breakout game. |
Iowa needs to get some pressure in the Iowa State backfield, unlike last year's game.
Iowa finished the opening season game with five sacks, all in the opening half. DE Drew Ott had two sacks. Freshman DE Parker Hesse, senior DE Nate Meier, and sophomore LB Ben Niemann each had one. It was the first career sack for Hesse and Niemann.
This game lately has gone down to the wire and it shouldn't surprise as it should this year.
Turnovers, special teams, penalties and coaching adjustments will be key areas to watch, as the Cy-Hawk Game kicks off at Jack Trice. This should be a good game.
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