Iowa’s offensive line has spent much of the season under a microscope, but the last week offered a much-needed reset. After a stretch where the run game looked stuck in place, the Hawkeyes finally put together a statement performance against Washington, piling up 263 yards on the ground and quieting some of the frustration that had built around the unit.
That wasn’t the early-season reality. Iowa managed just 93 yards against Iowa State, 58 against Michigan, and 39 against Ohio State, numbers that made it hard to ignore how inconsistent the run game had been.
The line was getting beat at the point of attack, backs were being dragged down in the backfield, and rhythm was hard to find. But Kirk Ferentz is seeing the group move in the right direction, and he’s preaching patience as the season wears on.
"The biggest thing for them last week was not to have any contact. These guys work pretty hard for six weeks, and obviously four weeks before that, so it's really ten straight weeks of them going pretty good and seen them progress each and every week.
"I know there was some concern a couple weeks ago about our run game and all that stuff, but it's going to be like everything. It's going to go up and down during the course of a season. I think you have to be careful about jumping to conclusions," Kirk Ferentz said about having patience.
Ferentz also pointed to how little game experience this group brought into the season. "Again, we're pretty young in terms of game experience as a team, and the line's the same way. We have two guys that were one-year starters, and the other guys really had no significant game experience coming in.
"The good news there is if we're doing things right, we'll improve. But who you play and the competition, what they choose to do against you all factors into that.
"Pleased with the progress so far. Again, like our whole team, I think if we're doing things right, we'll keep getting better. That's going to obviously help our cause if we'll do that," Ferentz said of the line play.
Now comes Minnesota, a team that will ask Iowa to bring physicality in the run game again. That puts even more on the offensive line, which will have to keep building on what it showed last week if the Hawkeyes want that kind of production to stick down the stretch.
In Other News...
Big Ten Rival Just Sent Kirk Ferentz A Message Iowa Fans Will Love
P.J. Fleck did something a rival coach rarely does when he talked about Kirk Ferentz this week: he went out of his way to praise him. The Minnesota coach called Ferentz one of the greatest coaches of all time, pointing to the way he has kept Iowa steady through changing eras while adapting enough to keep the program competitive year after year. For Iowa fans, hearing that from the other side of the rivalry only reinforces the long-held view that Ferentzs run in Iowa City has been something unusual in modern college football.
Fleck also had to admit what the matchup has looked like from his end, saying he has struggled against Ferentz and has gone 1-8 in the series. That kind of candid respect says plenty about the way the Iowa-Minnesota rivalry has come to define both coaches, with Ferentzs consistency still the standard Fleck is measured against. It is another reminder that even in a heated border clash, the Hawkeyes longtime coach continues to draw admiration well beyond Iowa City. [Read more 🡒]
Iowas Quarterback Battle Just Took A Turn Before Minnesota
Jeremy Hecklinski made a strong case for himself in Iowas road win over Washington, and the Hawkeyes are sticking with the momentum. After throwing for 202 yards and three touchdowns, the quarterback will get another start at Minnesota, with Kirk Ferentz confirming the decision after an injury sidelined Hank Brown. It is the latest twist in a competition that has been under a microscope as Iowa tries to settle on a direction under center.
For now, the job belongs to Hecklinski, and his performance against Washington gave the staff reason to trust him in a tougher road setting. Browns injury changes the immediate picture, but it also keeps the longer-term quarterback battle from being resolved just yet. Iowa gets a clearer look at Hecklinski again this weekend, and the way he handles it could carry real weight beyond one game. [Read more 🡒]
Former Iowa Linemen Delivered A Hawkeye Moment Fans Will Love
Before a Week 6 NFL game between the Buccaneers and Steelers, former Iowa linemen Tristan Wirfs and Yahya Black gave Hawkeye fans a familiar kind of moment, the sort built on size, laughs and the easy bond that seems to follow players out of Iowa City. The pregame exchange surfaced on social media and quickly resonated because it felt less like a staged clip and more like two former teammates or brothers-in-arms catching up in the middle of a professional weekend.
Wirfs and Black talked about how much they have grown physically and traded memories tied to Iowa traditions, a reminder of how the programs culture tends to stick with its former players long after they leave. For Iowa fans, the appeal was obvious: two successful NFL linemen, both still carrying a little of that Hawkeye identity with them, and a brief pregame conversation that turned into a feel-good snapshot of the programs reach. [Read more 🡒]