It turned into a perfect weekend for Iowa athletics, with the football team taking care of business in Seattle and the baseball program finishing its fall slate with a grinder at the Field of Dreams.
Start with the football side, because that result carried some real weight. After a rough 31-14 home loss to Ohio State, Iowa had a quick turnaround and answered emphatically, beating Washington 41-24 on Friday night.
The final score flattered the Huskies a bit; once Iowa settled in, the Hawkeyes controlled both lines of scrimmage and made the game look one-sided. Washington did manage a late touchdown against Iowa’s backups and third-string defense, but the main group had already done the damage.
The defense was the headliner. Iowa held Washington to -3 rushing yards, stuffed the run all night and got to both Husky quarterbacks for a combined six sacks.
On the other side, the offense found more balance than it had shown previously, piling up 262 rushing yards. Kamari Moulton led the way with a career-best 208 yards, and that ground production helped Iowa close the first part of the season at 5-1.
There was also a major development under center. With starter Hank Brown out because of a shoulder injury, backup Jeremy Hecklinski made his first collegiate start and delivered a performance that earned him one of the Manning Award Stars of the Week.
He started slowly, then caught fire, finishing his final 12 passes and throwing for 202 yards. Hecklinski also tossed three passing touchdowns, which is the most by a quarterback in his debut since Nate Stanley in 2017 and only the fourth time that has happened in the Kirk Ferentz era.
Iowa’s offense finished with 465 total yards, and Hecklinski’s poise and accuracy gave the Hawkeyes a real lift.
That outing is going to hang over the bye week discussion. Iowa’s starting quarterback situation is now something Ferentz and his staff will have to sort through before the next game, a road trip to Minnesota on Saturday, October 24.
On the baseball side, Iowa wrapped up its fall exhibition schedule with a wild one at the Field of Dreams in Dyersville, and Marion, Iowa, native Myles Davis was right in the middle of it. The Oklahoma transfer, who began his career at the State College of Florida before moving on to Oklahoma and then Iowa, powered the Hawkeyes in a 15-10, 16-inning win over Kansas.
Davis went 2-for-4 with a triple, a grand slam and a team-high six RBI. He also scored six runs.
Sawyer Stein chipped in with a strong day of his own, going 2-for-4 with two doubles and two RBI. Jaixen Frost added a 3-for-5 line with a double and two RBI.
Iowa needed plenty of arms to get through the marathon, using 12 pitchers over 16 innings and finishing with 17 strikeouts as a staff. Kyle Alivo started and struck out three in two innings, while Maddux Frese, Tate Slagle, Reid Burkle, Will Pierro and Nick Terhaar each turned in scoreless innings in the win.
That finished Iowa’s fall exhibition schedule, and the Hawkeyes won’t be back on the diamond until March 12, 2027, when they open at UCLA in Los Angeles.
In Other News...
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The slate includes road games at Minnesota, Northwestern and Illinois, along with home dates against Wisconsin, Purdue and Nebraska, and the order alone tells the story of how much can change in a hurry. Some of those opponents have been steadier than expected, some have flashed enough recent form to demand attention, and all of them give Iowa little room for error if the Hawkeyes want the second half to keep the playoff conversation alive. [Read more 🡒]
Iowas Playoff Push Is Starting To Reveal What This Team Really Has
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The picture gets even more interesting when the opponent and the stage change. Tim Lesters play-calling helped shape the road win at Michigan, while specialists Caden Buhr and Boston Everitt still found ways to matter even in the loss to Ohio State, which is the kind of detail that speaks to a team with more layers than a simple ranking suggests. With Iowa still in the hunt, the real question is not just where the Hawkeyes are headed, but which version of this team will show up when the path gets even tighter. [Read more 🡒]
Iowa Finally Looked Like The Team Hawkeyes Fans Have Wanted
For one afternoon, Iowa looked like the balanced team Hawkeyes fans have been waiting to see. The 41-24 win over Washington had everything working in sync, with the defense bringing constant heat, the offense moving with efficiency and the special teams quietly doing their part to keep control of the game.
Washington never found an answer for Iowas front, which piled up six sacks and held the Huskies to negative rushing yards. Kamari Moulton powered the ground game with a career-high 208 rushing yards, and Jeremy Hecklinski kept the passing attack efficient, giving the Hawkeyes a performance that felt less like a one-off and more like the kind of formula they have been trying to build around. [Read more 🡒]