Iowa Football Opponent Preview: Albany Great Danes

The wait is finally over. College football will soon be back at Kinnick Stadium.

The Hawkeyes will take the field on Saturday for their season opener against the FCS Albany Great Danes, with head coach Kirk Ferentz vying for his 205th win at Iowa, which would tie him with Woody Hayes for the second-most wins all-time at a Big Ten school. This will be the first meeting between Iowa and Albany, while the Hawkeyes are 5-0 all-time against the Coastal Athletic Conference, including a 46-3 win over Maine back in 2008. Iowa went on to finish that season with a 9-4 overall record, capped off by a win over South Carolina in the Outback Bowl.

As for the Great Danes, they are coming off of a 4-8 season that included three losses to ranked FCS teams. Among those losses was a 41-13 defeat against fourth-ranked Idaho at the Kibbie Dome. They started the season 3-3, but a five-game losing streak followed, while they closed the regular season with a 41-34 win over Hampton. Albany was picked to finish 12th in the preseason Coastal Athletic Conference coaches poll and are under the direction of first-year head coach Jared Ambrose who takes over the job after spending the past three seasons as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.

Albany has an 0-4 all-time record against Power 4 opponents, with a combined score of 213-55, including a 49-14 loss to West Virginia last season. The Great Danes have lost eight consecutive games against FBS opponents, last defeating an FBS team in 2016, when they took down Buffalo out of the MAC.

Great Danes Offense

2024 Numbers: 19.6 PPG, 108.7 RUSH, 226.0 PASS, 334.7 TOTAL

It was far from a productive offensive season for the Great Danes last season, as they ranked 104th out of 123 FCS teams in scoring offense, averaging just 19.6 points per game. They were held to 20 points or less in eight games and scored 30+ points just twice.

The quarterback position is more than a question mark, as three transfers are fighting for the job after projected starter Van Weber suffered an injury in the spring. Former three-star recruit and Buffalo transfer Jack Shields has the most experience, making two starts at Old Dominion during the ’23 season, completing 25 of 47 passes for 353 yards and two touchdowns. Also battling for the starting job is former Georgia Tech/El Camino CC transfer Aidan Semo and former three-star Marshall transfer Colin Parachek.

Albany did not have much success rushing the ball last season, ranking 105th in rush yards per game (108.7) and 107th in yards per attempt (3.37). They do return three of their top four rushers, however, including starter Jojo Uga who rushed for 422 yards and six touchdowns on 100 carries last season (4.2 ypc). Former ODU transfer Alex Jreige came on strong late in the year totaling 172 yards on 34 carries (5.05 ypc) over the final two games, including a season-high 110 yards in the season finale against Hampton.

The wide receiver position saw plenty of turnover from last season, as the Great Danes lose five of their top six pass catchers. Receiver Caden Burti was #5 last season, tallying 24 catches for 271 yards and three touchdowns, while tight end Carter Moses was #7, with 16 catches for 126 yards and one touchdown. They did bring in NAIA All-American Jasiah Barron from Wayland Baptist after he caught 71 passes for 1,042 yards and eight touchdowns last season for the Pioneers. Also joining from the portal is former three-star Kylen Austin from Liberty who was a receiver and a kick returner for the Flames.

Up front on the offensive line will be a major concern for the Great Danes going up against one of the Big Ten’s best defensive lines. They lost four of five starters on the line and return just 16.4% of snaps from last season, with nearly all of them coming from their lone returning starter Austin Mosier who started at left guard.

Great Danes Defense

2024 Numbers: 28.3 PPG, 161.0 RUSH, 192.5 PASS, 353.5 TOTAL

After fielding a top 20 defense during the ’23 season, Albany made a steep drop to 77th last season, giving up 28.3 points per game, which was just over a touchdown more than they gave up the season prior (20.0). They gave up 30+ points in six games and held opponents below 20 points just twice, but do return eight of their top 13 tacklers this season.

Up front on the defensive line, the Great Danes lose their top three in terms of snaps played. Their top returners, Ibrahim Sanogo and Balansama Kamara, both play defensive end, combining for 46 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss and 3.0 sacks last season. They added some transfer help, bringing in Bowie State end Shawan Lewis (45 tkls, 12 tfl, 7.5 sks) and Arkansas-Pine Bluff tackle Abdul Osholake (22 tkls, 5.0 tfls, 1 INT).

At linebacker, starter Ron Holmes leads all returning players with 88 tackles and 8.0 tackles for loss, while he led the team with 744 snaps played last season. Although Holmes is back, Dontae Lunan was their top defensive player and he departs after totaling 131 tackles a year ago. The other name to know at linebacker is Troy Berschwinger. He played in just eight games last season, but tallied 22 tackles over just 119 snaps played.

The strength of the Albany defense is the secondary. They ranked 32nd in pass yards allowed per game (192.5) and return six of their top eight in terms of snaps played this season. Safeties Thomas Joe-Kamara and Denzel Patrick are both back after finishing #3 and #4 in tackles last season. Joe-Kamara is a preseason All-CAA selection after totaling 50 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss and one interception last season, while Patrick finished with 54 tackles. At corner, Cam Stodghill (49 tkls, 2.5 tfls) is back, while they brought in Davidson corner Amare Hill (34 tkls, 5 PBU, 3 INT) from the portal.

Special Teams

Punter Owen Lawson: 52 punts, 42.12 AVG, 18 in20, 16 of 50+

Kicker James Bozek: 1/2 FG, LNG 31, 50 kickoffs, 42.0% touchback rate

Returner Kylen Austin (Liberty): 15 returns, 308 yds, 20.5 AVG, LNG 35

Final Thought

Since the Hawkeyes lost to North Dakota State in 2016, they are 13-0 against non-P4 opponents, with an average margin of victory of 23.2 points per game. There have been a few struggling games against inferior opponents over the years, but for the last decade, Kirk Ferentz and Co. have handled business in these games. This FCS matchup is much different than taking on a ranked Illinois State team last season and the Hawkeyes handled them by 40 points. While I do think the 37.5-point spread might be a bit ambitious, if the Iowa defense holds Albany to 7 points or less, I could see them covering with a 42-3 type final score.