Tag: 2022 Big Ten Football

5 takeaways from the Iowa Hawkeyes’ abysmal opener against South Dakota State

Iowa topped South Dakota State, 7-3. Here’s the five biggest takeaways from the Hawkeyes’ season-opening triumph.

I honestly don’t even feel like writing about this game, or giving this team any attention right now. All credit to South Dakota State. They are not a pushover despite their FCS status and they played hard on defense. They were overmatched on offense, which was always going to be a likelihood with the talent on Iowa’s defense, but they surely were right there to stop Iowa’s offense.

Was that South Dakota State playing out of their minds, or Iowa just being a complete disaster? You can make your own judgement, but I know what my choice is.

I don’t care that they are a good FCS opponent, this Iowa team went into the season with aspirations of making it back to the Big Ten Championship game! That’s how you start out the season at home?! It was an embarrassment, it was a disgrace, and a disservice to every fan that sat through that mess in Kinnick Stadium Saturday. Ferentz and his staff need to figure it out, or this is going to be a long, long season.

That said off the top, let’s look at five of the biggest takeaways for the Hawkeyes versus South Dakota State.

5 takeaways from Penn State and Purdue’s barnburner of a season opener

Penn State and Purdue kicked off the Big Ten’s week one slate with an absolute classic primetime game. Here are the big takeaways.

Who said Big Ten Football was boring?! Thursday night, primetime week one with the entire college football world tuning in, or at least flipping the channels between this and the insane Backyard Brawl. Penn State and Purdue delivered a classic game. I feel bad for anyone who turned this off after halftime, because everything went off the rails after the 30-minute feeling out process.

This was a high-scoring 35-31 affair that had everything. With a few star-making performances, a back-and-forth fourth quarter, and a comeback moment from an unlikely candidate, this week one classic is a great way to kick off the week for the Big Ten. Here are the big takeaways.

5 Offensive keys for the Iowa Hawkeyes against South Dakota State

Here’s five keys for the Iowa Hawkeyes on offense to get the season off to a strong start in week one against South Dakota State.

Week One is the perfect time to work out the kinks, earning some needed chemistry and playing time. While No. 2 Ohio State is playing a national contender in No. 5 Notre Dame to kick off their season, Iowa is also facing a national championship contender, albeit a very different one.

The Hawkeyes will host the South Dakota State Jackrabbits at Kinnick Stadium to kick off their season. It certainly isn’t the toughest week one slate, they didn’t elect to schedule a top 25 team like No. 12 Oregon or a returning College Football Playoff team in No. 22 Cincinnati, but SDSU is certainly not a pushover. They aimed for a bit more of an ambitious FCS opponent than say Wisconsin taking on Illinois State, a team that didn’t even muster five wins in 2021.

Expectations are high for the Hawkeyes, fresh off of their Big Ten Championship game campaign. The first team left on the outside looking in of the USA TODAY Sports AFCA coaches poll, Iowa certainly has a chip on its shoulder entering the season. After an offseason of incessant talking points, none of that matters anymore. The season is here, time to put up or shut up. Here are five keys for the Iowa offense against South Dakota State.

‘We’ll let that play out’: Iowa Hawkeyes are comfortable, but undecided on specialists

As the kickoff to the 2022 season nears, Iowa is still figuring out what the final field goal and kickoff assignments will look like.

As the Iowa Hawkeyes get set to play host to South Dakota State from inside Kinnick Stadium on Saturday at 11 a.m. on FS1, one important phase of football isn’t completely ironed out.

That’s the all-important third phase for the Hawkeyes. In the field goal kicking department, Iowa is accustomed to boasting some of the nation’s best in recent years. Last season, Caleb Shudak connected on 24-of-28 field goal tries. That 85.7% field goals made number ranked 13th nationally.

In Iowa’s depth chart reveal ahead of the season opener against the Jackrabbits, sophomore Aaron Blom appeared atop the place-kicking depth chart. The Oskaloosa, Iowa, native was just in front of freshman Drew Stevens from North Augusta, S.C.

According to Iowa head football coach Kirk Ferentz, though, there’s no true resolution just yet.

“We’ll let that play out, and it may play out for a week or two or a couple weeks, you never know. Unlike this spring, I think we’re doing better certainly in the fall. I’m more encouraged. It’s gone back and forth a little bit, and I don’t think it’s a bad thing quite frankly. But both guys have really improved a lot since last April, and they both have worked hard, have a good attitude, and I think they’re both very capable,” Ferentz said.

Asked which kicker fans would see first, Ferentz said your guess is as good as his.

“I don’t know. I’ll tell you on Saturday. I don’t know right now,” Ferentz said.

If it’s that close of a race for the field goal kicking and kickoff duties, then can fans expect to see both versus SDSU?

“Not necessarily as field goal kickers, but one may kickoff, one may kick field goals, and then we’ll see where it all goes. Right now, there’s no clear plan. We’re waiting to see how the week plays out and how they do,” Ferentz said.

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5 takeaways from Northwestern’s ‘upset’ over Nebraska

Surprise, surprise. Nebraska lost another close game. With both Nebraska and Northwestern on Iowa’s schedule, here are the main takeaways.

The Big Ten officially kicked off its season in week zero in Ireland (any teams from there looking to join?) with an absolute barnburner. Northwestern pulled off the “upset” over Nebraska, Scott Frost’s men shockingly losing yet another close contest.

This game was everything great about Big Ten football. It had everything: surprisingly good quarterback play, Northwestern pounding the rock to the win, and Scott Frost losing another close game due to coaching ineptitude. What else could you want?

Despite being a week zero play between two teams that Iowa will see much later in the season, it did have intrigue for Hawkeye fans. Of course, Nebraska is a team many, for some reason, predicted to be a breakout contender in 2022.

If so, their season-ending clash could have massive playoff implications. Northwestern was projected to have another bad season this year, but showed some things that could possibly give Iowa some trouble coming off of a massive matchup with Ohio State. With the curtain closed in Ireland, here are the key points to take away from Northwestern’s victory.

ESPN names Iowa Hawkeyes an ‘under-the-radar gem’ for 2022

With the 2022 college football season just days away, ESPN has ranked all 131 teams in tiers. The Hawkeyes are an “under-the-radar” gem.

As I type this, we are under 72 hours until the 2022 college football season kicks off. It feels like it has been an eternity since the Iowa Hawkeyes last played and the final stretch has come to a painfully slow crawl.

What kind of preseason would it be without one more rankings of the Hawkeyes before things get underway? This time, it isn’t a top 25 list, but rather a tiered ranking system of all 131 FBS teams via ESPN.

The Hawkeyes find themselves among ESPN’s tier of “under-the-radar gems,” alongside a mix of mainstays in college football and a few that have recently arrived on the scene.

This tier was a combined 63-18 last year. Cincinnati made the playoff. Pitt went to a New Year’s Six bowl. Iowa was ranked as high as No. 2. Arkansas, BYU and Ole Miss spent time in the top 10, too. And yet, none are getting much respect as real playoff contenders this year. True, each team lost some important players, but they all return their fair share of talent, too. So while teams like USC, Miami and Texas spent the offseason more popular than an inanimate carbon rod, it’s about time the teams in this tier earned some respect, too. – Hale, ESPN

This tier seems to fit Iowa perfectly. They won the Big Ten West last season and spent time very highly ranked, yet seem to be forgotten about and underrated by most of the country. That is where Iowa wants to be, though.

The other teams joining the Hawkeyes here are the Arkansas Razorbacks, BYU Cougars, Cincinnati Bearcats, Ole Miss Rebels, and Pittsburgh Panthers. Talk about a talented group.

Arkansas seems to have turned a corner under head coach Sam Pittman. Cincinnati broke down the door for Group of 5 teams to make the College Football Playoff. Lane Kiffin has Ole Miss on the come up. Pittsburgh won the ACC. This group of teams is loaded.

Any of these teams is capable of rattling off a serious run of wins and making some noise. I can’t tell you which team it will be, but one of these teams won’t be “under-the-radar” for very long this season.

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Brian Ferentz updates Iowa’s quarterback competition, details the start of 2022 camp

Hawkeyes offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz spoke at Iowa Media Days and discussed the start of camp and the state of his quarterbacks.

Iowa offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Brian Ferentz met with the media to discuss the start of the Hawkeyes’ 2022 fall camp, the state of Iowa’s quarterback play and more during Iowa Media Days.

5 Iowa Hawkeyes that could transform into Big Ten stars after the 2022 season

Chances are you know these names, but the nation doesn’t. Here’s five Iowa Hawkeyes that might be Big Ten stars following the 2022 season.

Iowa has a pair of established national stars on defense in linebacker Jack Campbell and cornerback Riley Moss.

Campbell finished the 2021 season with 143 tackles, which led the nation. As a result, the 6-foot-5, 246 pound native of Cedar Falls, Iowa, picked up second-team All-America honors from the Football Writers Association of America and Phil Steele. He was also a first-team All-Big Ten selection by the league’s media and Phil Steele.

Meanwhile, Moss nabbed first-team All-America recognition from Sporting News, was named the Tatum-Woodson Big Ten Defensive Back of the Year and picked up first-team All-Big Ten honors from the league coaches and media. That came after the 6-foot-1, 193 pound corner from Ankeny, Iowa, intercepted four passes last season.

Both Campbell and Moss have been popular preseason watch list selections and All-America choices. The latest instance was Campbell and Moss being named to the preseason Bednarik Award watch list.

While Iowa fans are familiar with the following names, here’s five Hawkeyes that could emerge as national stars in 2022 and have college football fans wondering why they weren’t on their radar heading into this season.

Big Ten bowl destinations: College Football News’ landing spots for each league member

College Football News has Iowa set to face Wake Forest in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl. Where are the rest of the Big Ten teams headed?

With the 2022 college football season right around the corner, it’s time for final preseason rankings. Phil Steele released his top 40 where the Iowa Hawkeyes check in as the nation’s preseason No. 20 team.

In all, Phil Steele had six Big Ten squads ranked within his preseason top 25. Elsewhere, Iowa was ranked No. 25 in ESPN’s way-too-early rankings and No. 32 nationally according to Athlon Sports’ most recent top 25 rankings.

Along with final preseason rankings, it’s also time to get those final batches of preseason bowl predictions out and hot off the press before the 2022 college football season commences. Naturally, there will be plenty of shuffling with these predictions week to week.

And, actually, there already has been some. College Football News’ initial bowl projection for Iowa had the Hawkeyes meeting up with Ole Miss in the TransPerfect Music City Bowl.

Now, that’s no longer the case. Who are the Hawkeyes slated to match up with and what about the rest of the Big Ten? Here’s a look at all of College Football News’ preseason Big Ten bowl projections.

It’s not the 2024 college football season yet, but, just for kicks, UCLA and USC are included below as well. All times are CST.

Iowa Hawkeyes linebacker Jack Campbell named to the 2022 Big Ten Preseason Honors List

Iowa linebacker Jack Campbell joins a list of Hawkeyes greats on the Big Ten preseason honors list.

Iowa linebacker Jack Campbell was one of 10 players named to the Big Ten Preseason Honors List. The announcement was made by the league office on Monday. Ten members were selected by a media panel, with five representatives from the East and West divisions.

Campbell was a second-team All-American by the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) and Phil Steele in 2021. In addition, he earned first-team All-Big Ten honors and was tops nationally with 143 tackles.

Campbell is on a litany of preseason watch lists ahead of the 2022 college football season. He was one of the best linebackers in the nation last year before returning for his senior season.

He is one of three Iowa linebackers on the Butkus Award watch list. He is also on the Lott IMPACT Trophy watch list. The media recently named Campbell the preseason Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, and he joined cornerback Riley Moss on both the Athlon Sports and Sporting News’ preseason first-team All-American lists.

A lot of successful Hawkeyes have been named to the same preseason honors list. They include center Tyler Linderbaum (2021), defensive end A.J. Epenesa (2019), tight end Noah Fant (2018), linebacker Josey Jewell (2017), defensive back Desmond King (2016), and offensive tackle Brandon Scherff (2014), all of whom were NFL draft picks. Linderbaum, Fant, and Scherff were all first-round NFL draft selections while Epenesa was a second-rounder.

It certainly isn’t bad company for Campbell to be mentioned in when looking at his future draft stock, especially after Senior Bowl executive director Jim Nagy recently talked up his abilities on Twitter. The 2022 season can be a special one for Jack Campbell.

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