Tuesdays with Torbee

Kirk Ferentz found himself the victim of a classic “KF Special” on Homecoming Saturday in Kinnick Stadium.

Typically, it’s Iowa that grinds away on offense, hits hard on defense, then pounces on its opponent’s fourth-quarter mistakes to sneak off with an inexplicable win.

Last Saturday, however, the gritty Indiana Hoosiers turned the tables on Iowa, taking advantage of an impotent late-game Hawkeye offense and a shanked medium-distance field goal by the usually reliable Drew Stevens, capped by a lightning-strike touchdown pass to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

Ironically, it was two uncharacteristically aggressive coaching decisions that backfired on Kirk Ferentz and staff. With the game tied at 13 and the clock rapidly approaching the two-minute timeout, Tim Lester called for a screen pass from backup quarterback Hank Brown on third and about five rather than run. Brown, facing a heavy rush with two starting offensive linemen banged up, hurried the throw and it fell harmlessly to the ground. Stevens then missed the field goal, setting the Hoosiers up for the ultimate winning drive.

It wasn’t a drive as much as a blitzkrieg. The second aggressive call — this time an all-out blitz from defensive coordinator Phil Parker — left the Iowa secondary in man-to-man coverage, and speedy receiver Elijah Sarratt blazed past Iowa cornerback Deshaun Lee into the end zone on a beautiful slant from quarterback Fernando Mendoza.

Neither call was bad — had the plays been executed as drawn up, Iowa likely wins the game. But it’s easy to imagine a more conservative Iowa gaining a few yards closer on its penultimate drive, Stevens knocking in the go-ahead field goal, and Parker having the flexibility to call a more traditional bend-but-don’t-break defensive series, leading to an Iowa win.

So it goes.

It’s easy to dwell on the negative after a disappointing loss, but a lot looked good for Iowa last Saturday.

First of all, the Kinnick crowd brought its “A” game, keeping a steady cacophony of noise up for 60 minutes, fueling the Hawkeye players’ energy and keeping the Hoosiers uncomfortable.

While it allowed too many rushing yards, the Iowa defense did a yeoman’s job slowing down the potent Hoosiers, holding their explosive attack to 13 points through 58 minutes of game time. On the other side of the ball, before hobbling off with an apparent knee injury in the fourth quarter, Iowa quarterback Mark Gronowski looked his best of the season. While he did little in the run game, his passes were mostly crisp, on target, and produced solid gains. The going was tough for the Iowa rushing attack, but a now-healthy Kamari Moulton managed 75 hard-fought yards. Yes — for the most part, Iowa looked like a functional Big Ten offense, which is definitely something to build on.

Sadly, the chances of a special season — competing for a Big Ten title, hitting 10 or more wins, making the College Football Playoff — are effectively over barring a miracle undefeated run. However, a good season, with seven or eight wins, a decent bowl, and a few more rivalry victories, is still in play.

It won’t be easy, but this team feels like one that could keep evolving and improving as the season goes on, barring major injuries. How quickly Gronowski returns will also be key to continuing strides on offense.

If Indiana is the real deal — and by the eye test, they seem to be — then Iowa went toe-to-toe with a legitimate Top 10 team and had a coin flip’s chance of winning. If that game were played 10 times, I think Iowa wins five and the Hoosiers win five.

Despite the loss, I actually feel better about the home dates against Penn State and Oregon than I did previously. That game, too, was a heavyweight fight with one team claiming a hard-fought late victory. I think Iowa can ugly up both those contests at home, as it did against IU, and hopefully be in position to notch a much-needed Top 10 win.

There is plenty of grumbling about the now 11-game losing streak to ranked teams. That said, this year’s losses — 20-15 to Indiana and 16-13 to Iowa State — look a lot better than last year’s 35-7 shellacking by Ohio State and the two Big Ten title game blowouts. Iowa doesn’t do moral victories, though, so that’s cold comfort.

To ease fan frustration, the Hawkeyes need to heal up over the bye week, go up to Madison in two weeks and stuff the reeling Badgers in a metaphorical trash can, then pull a massive home upset against either the Nittany Lions or Ducks. Likely? Probably not. Possible? Positively!

The big concern remains the lack of “star power” or truly dynamic players on either side of the ball. The overall roster feels more capable, and the floor is higher, but where is the next Kaleb Johnson, Jay Higgins, or Cooper DeJean? The two best players on the field last Saturday were the aforementioned Saratoga and Hoosier running back Roman Henry. Big-time playmakers making late plays won the game for Indiana.

Iowa desperately needs playmakers to emerge to have a chance in its looming tough matchups. Here’s hoping the development program is busy developing some future stars.

Follow me on BlueSky @torybrecht.bsky.social, Substack Notes, and look for the revamped 12 Saturdays podcast on all platforms.