any other comparable iowa games in which the stats mask the result?

r_desihawk · 2026-09-27T11:43:32-0500

285:427 yards TOP 25:35 makes it look like michigan dominated but if you watched the game it was a slugfest throughout. always a one score game with lead changes. good guys fortunately won with a last winning drive.

i feel like iowa has won like this many times before but can't come up with any off the top of my head. i recall the 2017 psu game where the stats show we were dominated but that was also a very hard fought super close game in actuality with the difference that a pass with 00:00 on the clock beat us.

edit: just remembered one. nebraska game of 2024 with the kaleb TD. 334:164 yards TOP 39:21

AFM22 · 2026-09-27T11:47:03-0500

Pretty much every win from 2021-2024

52317Hawk · 2026-09-27T11:48:09-0500

I'm not going to look but think of all those wins in which the defense or special teams scored TD's. You'll likely find your answer.

Hendy Hawk · 2026-09-27T11:52:50-0500

Kirk Ball.
Win the close ones with the Blue bloods.
Make the game a brawl and finish at the end.
Never quit fighting.

SoDakHawk · 2026-09-27T12:01:54-0500

Anytime you have a kickoff return for a TD the stats are going to be skewed because you are giving the ball right back to the other offense so they have back to back possessions. Add 99 yards to the total offense totals and the numbers tighten up quite a bit.

I wonder what the stats are for total yardage including special teams yardage looks like.

TrojanHawkeye · 2026-09-27T12:05:51-0500

Hendy Hawk said:
Kirk Ball.
Win the close ones with the Blue bloods.
Make the game a brawl and finish at the end.
Never quit fighting.

You forgot, keep inferior teams in the game

Burghawk87 · 2026-09-27T12:05:57-0500

SoDakHawk said:
Anytime you have a kickoff return for a TD the stats are going to be skewed because you are giving the ball right back to the other offense so they have back to back possessions. Add 99 yards to the total offense totals and the numbers tighten up quite a bit.

I wonder what the stats are for total yardage including special teams yardage looks like.

481-435 with return yardage factored in.

DuddyB · 2026-09-27T12:15:36-0500

SoDakHawk said:
Anytime you have a kickoff return for a TD the stats are going to be skewed because you are giving the ball right back to the other offense so they have back to back possessions. Add 99 yards to the total offense totals and the numbers tighten up quite a bit.

I wonder what the stats are for total yardage including special teams yardage looks like.

Winning in the margins. By the time you add it up only 5 yards of difference, Iowa +98 in return yards, Iowa +41 penalty yards, +1 Turnovers. Thats how you beat a more talented team on the road.

HawkAlum2002 · 2026-09-27T13:02:08-0500

Didn't we have negative rushing yardage in our bowl win over Mississippi State? That's something we haven't pulled off often.

rams32 · 2026-09-27T13:14:12-0500

TOP and total yard are very overrated stats.

BroncHawk · 2026-09-27T13:19:03-0500

rams32 said:
TOP and total yard are very overrated stats.

Hello, Mr. Ferentz

HoggI74 · 2026-09-27T13:21:01-0500

Iowa and Jackson Stratton beating the Bugeaters 13-10 in '24...

Stat	NEB	IOWA
First Downs	20	5
Rush-Yds-TDs	43-144-1	26-49-0
Cmp-Att-Yd-TD-INT	22-33-190-0-0	8-15-115-1-0
Total Yards	334	164
Fumbles-Lost	5-2	1-0
Turnovers	2	0
Penalties-Yards	4-20	1-15

rams32 · 2026-09-27T13:22:44-0500

BroncHawk said:
Hello, Mr. Ferentz

They don't give any perspective in regards to field position battle, turnover margin, red zone effectiveness, explosive plays etc. which are better indicators of success.

EvilMonkeyInTheCloset · 2026-09-27T13:27:02-0500

AFM22 said:
Pretty much every win from 2021-2024

Really, almost every big "upset" win in the KF era from 2008-present followed a similar script for Iowa.

We just have typically done it in Kinnick rather than on the road.

As for 2021, the defense and special teams did carry us or keep us in position to win some of our bigger games that year, like Penn State, but I think people are forgetting that the offense was actually off to a solid start in the first half of that season a carryover from 2020 when we had one of the best scoring offenses in the B10.

It was after that Penn State game, though, for whatever reason, that the offense fell off a f***ing cliff and never recovered (during the BF era).

Doctor Hawktagonapus · 2026-09-27T13:27:15-0500

r_desihawk said:
285:427 yards TOP 25:35 makes it look like michigan dominated but if you watched the game it was a slugfest throughout. always a one score game with lead changes. good guys fortunately won with a last winning drive.

i feel like iowa has won like this many times before but can't come up with any off the top of my head. i recall the 2017 psu game where the stats show we were dominated but that was also a very hard fought super close game in actuality with the difference that a pass with 00:00 on the clock beat us.

edit: just remembered one. nebraska game of 2024 with the kaleb TD. 334:164 yards TOP 39:21

Kick return touchdowns tend to kill your TOP

EvilMonkeyInTheCloset · 2026-09-27T13:35:31-0500

HawkAlum2002 said:
Didn't we have negative rushing yardage in our bowl win over Mississippi State? That's something we haven't pulled off often.

Yup. Finished with -15 yards total rushing @eyesofhawk while Nate Stanley ended up with 214 yds passing. He had -18 yds on 4 "carries", so I'm assuming he took a few sacks.

Even though it was only back in 2018-2019, this was still back when ESPN was too lazy to compile defensive stats for college games outside of turnovers...........

eyesofhawk · 2026-09-27T14:53:08-0500

EvilMonkeyInTheCloset said:
Yup. Finished with -15 yards total rushing @eyesofhawk while Nate Stanley ended up with 214 yds passing. He had -18 yds on 4 "carries", so I'm assuming he took a few sacks.

Even though it was only back in 2018-2019, this was still back when ESPN was too lazy to compile defensive stats for college games outside of turnovers...........

Not sure why you're telling me.

I've always said that offensive production is way overrated

EvilMonkeyInTheCloset · 2026-09-27T16:45:36-0500

eyesofhawk said:
Not sure why you're telling me.

I've always said that offensive production is way overrated

No you haven't.gif

ConvenientParking · 2026-09-27T17:20:21-0500

HoggI74 said:
Iowa and Jackson Stratton beating the Bugeaters 13-10 in '24...

Stat NEB IOWA
First Downs 20 5
Rush-Yds-TDs 43-144-1 26-49-0
Cmp-Att-Yd-TD-INT 22-33-190-0-0 8-15-115-1-0
Total Yards 334 164
Fumbles-Lost 5-2 1-0
Turnovers 2 0
Penalties-Yards 4-20 1-15

That was an a baffling W. My girlfriend's family's introduction to Iowa football.

Wobmam Rulez! · 2026-09-27T19:25:36-0500

Wasn't it in 2004 when Lloyd Carr kept running that strange punt formation that allowed Iowa to hang around long enough to get the win? That was another statistical aberration game where Iowa had no business winning that game.

HawkAlum2002 · 2026-09-27T21:24:39-0500

Wobmam Rulez! said:
Wasn't it in 2004 when Lloyd Carr kept running that strange punt formation that allowed Iowa to hang around long enough to get the win? That was another statistical aberration game where Iowa had no business winning that game.

2003 when they tried rugby punting. We blocked one and then also had a punt return to inside the five. They did have about 450 yards to 300 advantage but it was more because of the short fields, we got down 20-10 and then basically kicked their *** after that. Chandler ran over that DB for a TD (or close) and knocked him out of the game. We did the bullying. 2004 we lost to them, then never lost another game that year. That one had the iconic play where Tate got his helmet ripped off and still looked downfield to pass, even though the play was ultimately blown dead.

any other comparable iowa games in which the stats mask the result?

All-Conference

Heisman

All-Conference

All-Conference

Senior

All-Conference

All-Conference

All-Conference

All-Conference

Junior

All-Conference

All-American

Junior

Heisman

Senior

Heisman

All-Conference

Heisman

Sophomore

All-American

All-Conference