Saturday, October 31, 2015

Iowa (8-0) @ Indiana (4-4) will be televised next Saturday at 2:30 p.m. on ESPN

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As of games played through October 31st.

Iowa City, IA -- All 14 Big Ten programs will kickoff and play in Week 10 of the 2015 College Football season, on November 7th. Big Ten results in Week 9 from Big Ten Network.

Early Power Ratings of 14 Big Ten teams, after October 31st games ...
  1. Ohio State 
  2. Michigan State 
  3. Iowa 
  4. Michigan 
  5. Wisconsin 
  6. Northwestern 
  7. Penn State 
  8. Rutgers 
  9. Indiana 
  10. Maryland 
  11. Minnesota 
  12. Illinois 
  13. Purdue 
  14. Nebraska
November 7th Big Ten games:
  • Penn State @ Northwestern - 11 a.m. on ESPNU
  • Illinois @ Purdue - 11 a.m. on BTN
  • Iowa @ Indiana - 2:30 p.m. on ESPN
  • Wisconsin @ Maryland - 2:30 p.m. on BTN
  • Rutgers @ Michigan - 2:30 p.m. on BTN
  • Michigan State @ Nebraska - 7 p.m. on ESPN
  • Minnesota @ Ohio State - 7 p.m. on ABC
The 120th season of Big Ten Football.

Iowa programs go 3-0 on Halloween, as Iowa, UNI and ISU all win ...

#10 Iowa defeats Maryland 31-15 to move to 8-0 on the season ... Happy Halloween!


Iowa celebrates a Halloween victory at Kinnick on Saturday, as PGA
golfer Zach Johnson enjoys his day, as the Hawkeyes' honorary captain.

Kirk Ferentz said, after the
Northwestern win; it was
okay to dare to dream in
2015, as Iowa remains
undefeated on the season.
Iowa City, IA -- The #10 Iowa Hawkeyes (8-0, 4-0) defeated Maryland (2-6, 0-4) 31-15 Saturday at Kinnick Stadium in front of a national audience on ABC and ESPN2 to remain on the path for a College Football Playoff bid, which will be played two months from tonight ... dare to dream Hawkeyes. Like honorary captain Zach Johnson, Iowa continues to play efficient in all three phases of the game to remain undefeated in 2015.

"If you look at all of our players, typically they play better their second, third, fourth years as players for us, and I think it's just a real -- what it tells you is he works hard and he's really paying attention to the little things that older players understand and appreciate, and again, I'll take it back to Zach Johnson when I talk about Zach. Zach is not an overpowering golfer. He's the first guy to tell you that, but boy, he really appreciates the fundamentals, the little details, so the way he approaches his craft and his sport, we can draw so much from that. Somebody threw an article on my desk yesterday saying he tended to be boring. Boring is okay. He's got the Jug, and that's okay," Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz shared after the win over Maryland.

Iowa junior TE #46 George Kittle with a one-handed catch in the first half
of the 31-15 win over Maryland. It was a very physical game at Kinnick.

The Hawkeyes are 8-0 for the first time since 2009, the second time under Kirk Ferentz, and the second time in school history. Iowa started 9-0 in 2009, its best start in school history. Unlike 2002 and 2004, Iowa's two previous Big Ten titles under Ferentz, the Hawkeyes are on track to finish at a very high level in 2015. 

Each of Iowa's three running backs scored touchdowns in the first half, as Iowa
took a 21-0 lead at halftime. Here is sophomore RB #25 Akrum Wadley near
the goal line against the Michigan defense.
Iowa is 4-0 in the Big Ten for the third time under Kirk Ferentz. Iowa opened 4-0 in the Big Ten in 2009 (they opened 5-0) and went undefeated in conference play in 2002 (Iowa finished 8-0). The Hawkeyes can't afford to take anytime off, as there are four B1G games ahead moving into November play.

Kirk Ferentz is in his 17th season at Iowa. He entered the season with a lot of
outside noise, over the disappointments last year. The Hawkeyes have improved
in all three phases of the game: offense, defense and special teams to open 8-0.
Iowa was plus-three in turnovers today and is plus-10 on the season. Iowa has 19 takeaways this season, and turned them into 71 points. Last year, the Hawkeyes were a minus 6 in takeaways.

Iowa senior DE #34 Nate Meier is having a career year. He was injured on the
final defensive series of the game, which will be a development to watch
next week, with Iowa hitting the road @ Indiana next Saturday in Bloomington.
The Hawkeyes had three interceptions today, two by Maryland natives (Taylor, Lomax). Iowa also had a fumble recovery (Taylor), as well. The biggest interception was a pick six, on a 88 yard interception return for a touchdown by junior CB Desmond King, who is among the leaders nationally in interceptions.

Iowa found the ground game and passing game difficult going in the second
half, after running up 240 yards in the first half, including this run by sophomore
RB #25 Akum Wadley, who made his first start of the season vs. Maryland.
Iowa ran 27 plays in Maryland territory in the first half, while Maryland ran just one play in Iowa territory. Iowa had 240 total yards in the first half and 53 in the second half. Maryland had 68 total yards in the first half and 173 yards in the second half.

Iowa redshirt freshman LB #31 Aaron Mends made a huge play on special
teams in the first half against Maryland with the block punt, which setup
a Hawkeye rushing touchdown.
Iowa held Maryland to 74 yards passing, the lowest total by an opponent since holding Purdue to 72 passing yards in 2014. The 74 passing yards allowed rank eighth under head coach Kirk Ferentz.

Iowa junior QB #16 C.J. Beathard found the running challenging at times
against Maryland. He is banged up and will not be 100% in November.
Junior QB C.J. Beathard is 9-0 as Iowa’s starting quarterback, a record that includes a 4-0 mark on the road, a 5-0 mark at home, and a 5-0 mark in the Big Ten. Numbers include 143-of-247 passing for 1,843 yards, 10 touchdowns, and four interceptions, and 209 yards rushing with three rushing touchdowns. He is the first quarterback in school history to win his first eight career starts.

Iowa junior RB #29 LeShun Daniels Jr. returned from an ankle injury and broke
off an early explosive play in the first half against Maryland. 
Junior RB LeShun Daniels’ 1-yard touchdown rush in the first quarter was his first of the season, and second of his career. Daniels had 60 yards rushing today. Entering the game, he had 47 yards rushing yards combined from Week 3-7. He did not play in Week 6 or Week 7.

Former Maryland prep and sophomore Iowa SS #19 Miles Taylor had his biggest
game of his career, in the win over his home state program.
Iowa sophomore SS Miles Taylor recorded his first career interception and first career fumble recovery. The fumble recovery was turned into an Iowa touchdown. The interception was fumbled back to Maryland. Taylor recorded a career-best eight tackles. He also recovered his first career fumble.

SS Miles Taylor had a team-high and career-best eight tackles. DL Nathan Bazata (4) and DL Parker Hesse (6) matched their career highs in tackles.

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Maryland junior QB #11 Perry Hills was smiling here on the sidelines in
Iowa City, but Iowa forced a fumble and three interceptions on him.

CB Desmond King’s 88-yard interception return for touchdown ties for the seventh longest interception return for touchdown in school history (Bo Bower, 2015 vs. North Texas).

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Iowa junior CB #14 Desmond King is a leader in interceptions in 2015.
CB Desmond King’s fourth quarter interception was his seventh interception of the season. He is the first Hawkeye since Kerry Burt in 1987 to have seven interceptions in a single season. King has 10 career interceptions, tying for 10th all-time.

Iowa senior WR #4 Tevaun Smith looked healthy again, after
making his return @ Northwestern in Game 7. Smith made
his first catches of the B1G season with 2 catches for 35 yards.
Iowa senior PK Marshall Koehn scored seven points today, including four PATs and one field goal (49). Koehn has 136 career points, 19th all-time.

Iowa senior WR #17 Jacob Hillyer played hard for the Hawks on an important
catch ahead of the end of the first half against Maryland.
Kirk Ferentz has 122 wins as a member of the Big Ten Conference, eighth all-time. Ferentz has 72 Big Ten wins, tying Duffy Daugherty (Michigan State) for eighth all-time.

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Iowa moves to 8-0 and remains alive in the hunt for a Big Ten title and
the College Football Playoff hunt in 2015.
Iowa won the toss and received the opening kick. Iowa received the opening kickoff in seven of eight games this season (Wisconsin), and has outscored its opponents 43-13 in the first quarter. In 17 seasons as Iowa’s head coach, Kirk Ferentz and the Hawkeyes received the opening kickoff in 169-of-208 games (102-67). Iowa has started the game on defense in 39-of-208 games under Ferentz (21-18).

Instant replay was not used today. The Hawkeyes play @ Indiana (4-4, 0-4 B1G East), who are coming off a bye week, on Saturday, Nov. 7th. Kickoff time has not been announced, due to television.

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Maryland falls to 0-4 in the Big Ten, after falling in Iowa City to the Hawks.
Maryland will host Wisconsin (7-2, 4-1 B1G West) next Saturday for its annual Homecoming game. Kickoff is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. The Badgers beat Rutgers 48-10 fueled by the return of RB Corey Clement, who scored three touchdowns on Saturday.

Trick or Treat: Iowa is 8-0 after 31-15 win over Maryland ... CFP is two months off on 12/31/15

Image result for hawkeye footballIowa City, IA -- The #10 Iowa Hawkeyes (8-0, 4-0 B1G West) may being putting a scare into the College Football Playoff picture, after a 31-15 win over Maryland (2-6, 0-4 B1G East) to remain undefeated and in the hunt for the Big Ten Championship, which could lead to a remarkable date in the College Football Playoff. College Football is two months away from New Years Eve and the semi-final games.

Photo published for Humbled Zach Johnson serves as Iowa's honorary captain
Two happy Hawkeye fans, as Iowa AD Gary Barta enjoys a chat with PGA
golfer Zach Johnson, who enjoyed the role of honorary captain for today's game.
With the victory over Maryland, Iowa junior QB C.J. Beathard moves to 9-0 as a Hawkeye starter, after replacing departed QB Jake Rudock in the starting lineup in 2015. Beathard is 4-0 at home, 5-0 on the road, as the Hawkeyes hit the road @ Indiana (4-4, 0-4 B1G East) next Saturday, in Bloomington. The Hoosiers enjoyed a bye week today, ahead of the B1G game with Iowa.
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PGA golfer and Iowan Zach Johnson enjoyed serving as honorary captain, as
the Hawkeyes took care of business on the Kinnick Stadium field with a 31-15
win over Maryland to move to 8-0 on the season.
Iowa Kirk Ferentz commented after the game, how a sports commentator compared the 2015 Iowa Football team to the play of Zach Johnson on the PGA. Iowa has never hit the heights of Augusta or The Open Championship, but in two months, four programs will kickoff on New Year's Eve, in this year's College Football Playoff. At 8-0, the Iowa Hawkeyes are on a path, if they can win out in Big Ten play, with four more regular season games. If Iowa wins out and wins the Big Ten Championship, they may hit the heights of Zach Johnson on the gridiron.

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Zach is back, British Open champion Zach Johnson is Iowa's honorary captain today for the Hawkeyes


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Iowa vs. Maryland at 2:30 p.m. on ABC/ESPN 2 from Kinnick Stadium.
Iowan Zach Johnson,
2015  The Open Champion.
Iowa City, IA -- Iowa native Zach Johnson, the British Open champion who is ranked 10th in the 2015 World Golf Rankings, will serve as honorary captain Saturday as the #10 Iowa Hawkeyes host Maryland at Kinnick Stadium (2:36 p.m., ABC/ESPN2). Johnson enjoyed an outstanding year on the PGA Tour, claiming the second major of his career with his British Open title at St. Andrews.

Johnson entered the final round of the 144th Open Championship trailing three players by three strokes, but stormed back with a final-round, 6-under 66 to win in a four-hole aggregate playoff. Johnson improved his playoff record to 4-1 and in the process became the 14th player to win the Masters Tournament and Open Championship in a career. He is the sixth player to win majors at Augusta and St. Andrews, joining Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, Seve Ballesteros, Nick Faldo, and Sam Snead.

Iowa enters Game 8 of the 2015 College Football season with a 7-0 record, seeking to go 8-0 for only the second time in program history. The Hawkeyes rolled off a 9-0 start, under coach Kirk Ferentz in 2009.

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This is the first meeting ever in the Iowa-Maryland series in Iowa City.
Maryland defeated Iowa 38-31 in College Park last year.
On Friday night, Johnson addressed the Iowa team at the Stew and LeNore Hansen Football Performance Center on the University of Iowa campus.
"There is something special about this team and it's simple: they are a team. Every part of it is equal and you can see it. Whether somebody goes down with an injury or there is a substitution, they are the epitome of a team. In my world, that's what I rely on -- I rely on my coaches; they each have common goal in mind, but they each have their own role, just like this football team. If they do their job, at the end, success will happen," Zach Johnson said to the Iowa team.
Johnson grew up right up the road in Cedar Rapids. He was not the number one player for his own high school, Regis, or his college, Drake.

Johnson, who was born in Iowa City and raised in Cedar Rapids, is honorary captain for Saturday's game against Maryland (2-5 overall, 0-3 Big Ten). He turned professional in 1998 at the age of 22, winning the Masters Tournament in Augusta, Georgia, on April 7, 2007, and the Open Championship at St. Andrews, Scotland, on July 20, 2015.

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2015 British Open champion Zach Johnson with Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz
on Friday night, addressing the Hawkeyes, as this week's honorary captain.
"It is really simple, they are a team," talking about the 2015 edition of the Iowa Hawkeyes, as Johnson talked about his Iowa roots, and his love as an Iowan, on Friday night.

"It doesn't matter where I go on the PGA Tour, whether I'm playing golf or at a function on or off the golf course, there is always somebody from Iowa," Johnson said. "They usually give me a `Go Hawks!' It brings me back home and I love it. I am a proud Iowan. It doesn't matter if I'm in Korea, or at the British Open, or down the street in Moline, it's everywhere. It is a beautiful thing."


Maryland junior QB #11 Perry Hills
running for yardage @ #1 Ohio State.
Maryland comes into Iowa City on a four game losing streak, with losses @ West Virginia (45-6), Michigan (28-0), @ Ohio State (49-28) and Penn State (31-30). The Hawkeyes are facing a Maryland offense that will play read option, with former prep wrestler, junior QB Perry Hills leading the unit.

The Hawkeyes have rolled to seven straight wins and are coming off a bye week, ahead of today's Halloween showdown at Kinnick Stadium. The wins wins over Illinois State (31-14), @ Iowa State (31-17), Pittsburgh (27-24), North Texas (62-16), @ Wisconsin (10-6), Illinois (29-20), and @ Northwestern (40-10).

Iowa is tied for the Big Ten lead with nine interceptions. The Hawkeyes returned two interceptions for touchdowns in Week 4 against North Texas. Sophomore MLB Josey Jewell recorded the first interception of his career, returning it 34 yards for a touchdown. Sophomore WLB Bo Bower returned an interception 88 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter. It is the seventh longest interception return in school history. Iowa has at least one interception return for a touchdown in each of the last eight seasons, and 13 of the last 15 seasons.

Iowa junior CB #14 Desmond King is the chief ball hawk for the Iowa defense.
Iowa junior CB Desmond King leads the Big Ten in interceptions and is tied for #2 in the nation, with six interceptions on the season. King has multiple interceptions in two games, with two thefts in wins over Pittsburgh and Wisconsin. King has recorded 22 solo tackles and nine assists, with one tackle for loss. He leads the Hawkeyes with seven pass break-ups. Iowa ranks third in the nation in rushing defense (74.1), 10th in scoring defense (15.3), 12th in total defense (294.3), and 20th in pass efficiency defense (107.75).

Our Pick: Iowa Hawkeyes 31, Maryland Terrapins 14
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Iowa Hawkeyes are seeking some respect nationally, after a surprising 7-0 start.

Defense wins championships ... Iowa faces Maryland coming off bye week!

The Iowa Hawkeyes have a 3-0 record in the B1G West, with a one game lead on the Wisconsin Badgers. The Hawkeyes are seeking their first division title, since the Big Ten broke into divisions during the 2011 season. 

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This was missing in their first game ever, last year, @ Maryland. The Hawkeyes
seek some payback, after losing 38-31 in College Park in 2014.


Happy Halloween in the Big Ten ... no Buckeyes, Spartans, Hoosiers or Wildcats!


The Big Ten Conference is enjoying the 120th season of College Football, as three programs enter the day among the undefeated among Power 5 teams. Two of the three programs are idle, with a bye week, as the #10 Iowa Hawkeyes (7-0) seek to go 8-0 for the second time in program history.



  • #1 Ohio State (8-0, 4-0 B1G West) - bye week, before home date with Minnesota
  • #6 Michigan State (8-0. 4-0 B1G West) - bye week, before road date @ Nebraska 
The Hawkeyes seek to remain undefeated ahead of the first College Football Playoff
Ratings on Tuesday. Clearly, Ohio State and Michigan State are safely going to open
undefeated. Can Iowa make it three for the Big Ten?
  • Maryland (0-3 B1G East) at #10 Iowa (3-0 B1G West) 2:30 pm on ESPN2 / ABC / espn3 
Iowa is trying to improve to 8-0 for just the second time in school history. The Hawkeyes were 7-0 in 1985, 1922, and 1921, and opened the season 9-0 in 2009, its best start in school history. Maryland owns a 1-0 lead in the series and makes first trip to Iowa City,  after winning the inaugural game 38-31 last year in College Park. Our Pick: Iowa 31, Maryland 14 ...

Illinois @ Penn State, pregame warm ups in Happy Valley.
  • Illinois (4-3, 1-2 B1G West) at Penn State (6-2, 3-1 B1G East) 11:00 am on ESPN2 
Last year, the Fighting Illini won a 16-14 game over the Nittany Lions in Champaign. Now, Illinois has to travel to Happy Valley to face a Penn State team, bowl eligible, but down two in the East race, after a 38-10 loss at Ohio State. Penn State has never lost back to back games in this series. Interim coach Bill Cubit has the Fighting Illini playing hard. While second year coach James Franklin has the Nittany Lions are bowl eligible, it is smooth in State College on offense right now.


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Purdue junior SS #3 Leroy Clark needs to lead the defense, as the
Boilermakers cannot afford the Huskers running the game up into the 30-40
range for the third straight season against Hazell's Black & Gold.
  • Nebraska (1-3 B1G West) at Purdue (0-3 B1G West) 11:00 am on ESPNU
The Boilermakers are on a nine game losing streak in the Big Ten and have not beat a FBS program, since last year's 38-27 win @ Illinois in Week 2 of conference play. The Cornhuskers are struggling to finish close games, with all five losses under first year head coach Mike Riley, by a combined 13 points. The Cornhuskers will give former walk-on Ryker Fyfe his first start at quarterback, with Tommy Armstrong out with an injury. Can Darrell Hazell pull things out, in year 3, after back to back blowout losses at the hands of the Huskers? The Huskers could hit the cellar, with a loss at Purdue.

Michael Deiter vs. Illinois
The Badgers are known for the running game and play in the offensive line.
This year, they have had to lean on pass blocking and using the pass in Paul
Chryst's first season at the helm. Pictured is redshirt freshman RG Michael Deiter.
  •  Rutgers (1-3 B1G East) at Wisconsin (6-2, 3-1 B1G West) 11:00 am on BTN
The Badgers like last season, lost the B1G opener, this year 10-6 at home to Iowa. The Badgers have taken care of business winning three straight and host Rutgers, before hitting the road again at Maryland, as Wisconsin has back to back games against division crossover games. The Scarlet Knights will be without their top offensive play-maker, so the margin of error is rather narrow for the visitor.

http://www.mgoblue.com/sports/m-footbl/sched/mich-m-footbl-central.html
The Battle for the Little Brown Jug in the Big Ten.

  • #15 Michigan (5-2, 2-1 B1G East) at Minnesota (4-3, 1-2 B1G West) 6:00 pm on ESPN / espn3 
The Wolverines have won every game @ Minnesota, since 1977, but the Golden Gophers took care of business last year in Ann Arbor, as well as back in 1986, in Jim Harbaugh's final game in the series, as a player. It has been an emotion week for the Golden Gophers, when it was announced coach Jerry Kill was retiring immediately, due to health reasons. Kill's long-term defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys steps into the interim role again, this time permanently for the 2015 season. Last year, Michigan QB Jake Rudock struggled as the Golden Gophers rolled his former Hawkeye team. It is the Battle for the Little Brown Jug, with both teams coming off a bye week.

  • Northwestern (6-2, 2-2 B1G West) - The Wildcats fell @ Michigan and vs. Iowa, but have won back to back B1G games before their bye week. They will host back to back games against Penn State and Purdue in November, before closing out B1G @ Wisconsin and vs. Illinois in Soldier Field.
  • Indiana (4-4, 0-4 B1G East) - After four straight wins in the non-conference, the Hoosier have fallen in four B1G games. They enjoy a bye week, ahead of hosting Iowa to kickoff the final four weeks of B1G play in November.

Friday, October 30, 2015

Game Day Saturday: Iowa vs. Maryland at Kinnick Stadium



Iowa City, IA -- The #10 Iowa Hawkeyes (7-0, 3-0 B1G West) return to action on Halloween, with a 2:30 p.m. kickoff at Kinnick Stadium against the Maryland Terrapins (2-5, 0-3 B1G East). It is the first meeting ever in Iowa City, after last year's 38-31 Maryland win, in the inaugural game. This year's Iowa-Maryland game will be televised on ABC/ESPN2.
Mike Locksley
Maryland iHC Mike Locksley.

The Hawkeyes will face the second of three games against interim head coaches at home, in Big Ten play this season. This will be Maryland's second game lead by interim coach Mike Locksley, who has faced Iowa in the past, when he was an assistant coach under Ron Zook at Florida and at Illinois.

Locksley has been the Maryland offensive coordinator since 2011. He served as the head coach at New Mexico from 2009-11. He was an assistant coach at Florida when the Hawkeyes defeated the Gators in the
2004 Outback Bowl.





On playing Iowa:

The key to slowing Iowa's offense is eliminating the run. Iowa has had three
different running backs gain over 100 yards in 2015. The most recent one
was sophomore RB #25 Akrum Wadley, who ran for 204 yards and four
touchdowns in the 40-10 win @ Northwestern, ahead of Iowa's bye week.
Their coach does a good job of keeping those guys very sound. When you look at them, they haven’t changed very much in their identity on offense or defense or special teams. They’ve always been really sound. They try not to do a lot in terms of tricking you or masking it. They line up and play good hard-nosed, clean football in all three phases. They play with great effort and when you look at them this year, the thing that jumps out to me is the balance they have. Traditionally when you face an Iowa team, you have to stop the run first and foremost, which we’ll have to do. Their balance is what gives them advantages and they’re playing really well right now," Maryland's Mike Locksley said during his press conference this week ahead of the Iowa game.

Iowa junior QB #16 C.J. Beathard became the #1 QB after the Iowa bowl game.
It lead to Iowa's two year starter Jake Rudock to graduate and transfer to
Michigan. Iowa's overall game has elevated in all three phases in 2015.
It starts with their execution. I know last year they had the quarterback situation where they were going back and forth between the two quarterbacks and the development of their team from one year to the next is hard to compare. I think what they’re doing now as a team is they’re executing at a very high level in all three phases, and their quarterback is playing well and protecting the football, and on the defensive side of the ball, they are stopping the runs,” said Locksley about Iowa.

Iowa's Kirk Ferentz on the upcoming game with Maryland

Iowa will need to play strong in pass protection, as Maryland's top defensive
lineman sacks the Penn State's QB in last Saturday's 20-19 game.
"Now our next challenge is to get ready for Maryland. And it's interesting, it's another team that we're playing that has new leadership. They played with a lot of enthusiasm, a lot of energy the other day, played really well, and it was a really good ballgame to a very good Penn State team. They lost by one point to a team that's 6 and 2 having a good season," Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said during his news conference ahead of this week's game with Maryland.

Maryland junior DE #7 Yannick Ngakoue is the Terrapins leader with
sacks and tackles for loss. The line of scrimmage will be a key for either team
as the Hawkeyes-Terrapins kickoff at Kinnick Stadium on Saturday.
"Maryland is a team that beat us last year. They've got a lot of good players from last year returning. They do have a new quarterback. He's playing really well; a dangerous runner. They've got a lot of backs that can run and good skill players, veteran guys up front defensively. They've got some good players up there too, and the guy up front, No. 7, the defensive end, really active, really hard player to block and contain. And they got one of the better DBs veteran in the back end, but one of the better DBs that we're going to see this season," Ferentz shared about the Terrapins.

Iowa plays in Kinnick Stadium which was named after 1939 Heisman Trophy winner
Big Ten punt return yards record with 233 yards against Richmond in the 2015 season opener
for Maryland. Likely is a starting CB, who scored a pick 6 against Iowa last year.
"Same thing in the kicking game. They've got both their punter and kicker back. Both of them have done good jobs, and then we really feel like Likely is as good of a returner as there is in the country, not only in our conference but in the country. He's very dangerous, both in the punt and kick return game. So we've got a lot of challenges on our hands that way," Ferentz said about Maryland's special teams.

Maryland has moved to junior QB #11 Perry Hills, who can be highly effective
in the read option, as he scrambles for yardage against Penn State.
Last year, C.J. Brown hurt Iowa will his feet in the 38-31 Maryland win.
"They're coming off a bye week a week ago (Maryland), so to me I'm guessing they just look at this whole thing like a new season. Played an excellent football game last Saturday. As I mentioned, a one-point loss to a very good Penn State football team. So we expect their best certainly coming in this Saturday. Again, they beat us last year, so I'm sure they'll be confident coming in, and really, what it gets down to is we have to have a great week of preparation. We're off to a good start, but we need to really finish it up here this week and make sure we're ready to go at kickoff time," Ferentz went on to say, in describing the Hawkeyes upcoming opponent.

The line of scrimmage was a key element in Maryland's 38-31 win over
Iowa in 2014. It will be a key element again in 2015, as Maryland comes
to Iowa City for the first time in the series.
In the inaugural game last season in College Park, MD, the Terrapins took advantage of three Hawkeye turnovers that resulted in ten points. Iowa opened with a 14-0 run, but the Terrapins outscored the Hawkeyes 38-7 to take a 38-21 lead on the Hawkeyes, with under five minutes remaining. The Hawkeyes scored ten more points, in the 38-31 Terrapin win.

Kirk Ferentz is in his 20th year as a college head coach and his 17th year as Iowa’s
head coach. His career record is 134-106 and he is 122-85 at Iowa. He is tied for eighth
in the Big Ten Conference in coaching wins. Pictured last year @ Maryland.
Iowa won three of the first four B1G games last season, with the loss at Maryland. Maryland won two of the first four B1G games. Both programs are clearly on different paths so far, with Iowa 3-0 and Maryland 0-3 to kickoff the 2015 Big Ten season. Iowa is coming off a bye week. Last year, Maryland enjoyed a bye week, ahead of the game with the Hawkeyes.

On Iowa’s transformation from last season:

Iowa's defense has really stepped up in 2015, coming off a rough 7-6 record
last season, including the disappointing inaugural loss at Maryland.
A lot of their schemes and formations are the same but they have different personnel so it is a little different from last year,” Maryland junior wide receiver Amba Etta-Tawo said about Iowa.

Maryland junior WR #84 Amba Etta-Tawo against Iowa in last year's game.
Iowa's senior FS #27 Jordan Lomax and junior CB #13 Greg Mabin tackling.

On Iowa’s defense:

Iowa senior FS #27 Jordan Lomax is one of six Maryland preps on the
Hawkeyes roster in 2015. Sophomore SS Miles Taylor is also from MD.
They have a great defense. They are not going to give up many points. I think they average 15 points per game. We just have to find every opportunity we can. We cannot make many mistakes like we did on Saturday. If we have good field position we have to push the ball into the end zone. We have to limit our turnovers. We feel with our offense we are capable of putting up points,” Maryland junior left tackle Michael Dunn said about the Iowa defense.

TALE OF THE TAPE
MD CATEGORY IOWA
25.1 Scoring Offense 32.9
34.1 Scoring Defense 15.3
186.7 Rushing Offense 214.4
172.4 Passing Offense 206.7
359.1 Total Offense 421.1
175.6 Rushing Defense 74.1
268.6 Passing Defense 220.1
444.1 Total Defense 294.3

Iowa junior CB and RS Desmond King is a key performer on Saturday.
The Washington Post previews the Iowa-Maryland game - link

The Questions facing Maryland ...

Maryland senior RB #45 Brandon Ross against the Buckeyes in Columbus.
Ohio State won 49-28. The Terrapins have a 1-2 punch at RB again.
  • Can Perry Hills cut down on the turnovers?
  • Can Maryland establish the run?
  • Will Maryland’s defense bounce back? 
The Terrapins are set to face their third ranked opponent in their last four games as they take on the 10th-ranked Hawkeyes Saturday. Including Iowa, the collective record of the four Big Ten teams Maryland has faced is 26-4.

The health of Iowa QB #16 C.J. Beathard will be one of the questions coming
off the bye week. Beathard has helped Iowa with his feet, as well as in the
passing game, especially ahead of Big Ten play. He is playing with a hip and groin
injury and was held out of practice much of the week ahead of the NW game.

7 GOING ON 8
Iowa is trying to improve to 8-0 for just the second time in school history. The Hawkeyes were 7-0 in 1985, 1922, and 1921, and opened the season 9-0 in 2009, its best start in school history.

POWER OF 3
Three different Hawkeyes have rushed for over 100 yards in a game this season: Jordan Canzeri (4x), and LeShun Daniels and Akrum Wadley once each. The last time the Hawkeyes had three different players rush for over 100 yards in a game in the same season was 2005: Albert Young (8x), and Shonn Greene and Damian Sims once each. The Hawkeyes also have three receivers with 100-yard receiving games: Matt VandeBerg (1), Tevaun Smith (1), and Jerminic Smith (1). It is the first time since 1995 three different Hawkeyes recorded 100-yard receiving games: Tim Dwight (2x), Demo Odems (1), Scott Slutzker (1).

Iowa senior WR #17 Jacob Hillyer scored a TD against Maryland last year.
Our pick: Iowa Hawkeyes 31, Maryland 14 - Week 1 after the bye week.
Can the Hawkeyes resume Big Ten play, with a outcome like the season opener?