Oct. 27, 2007
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- Tight end Cook: 20 Years After “The Catch” The Big Ten Network: Programming Schedule 24 Hawkeyes to Watch Check out gohawks.com The 70,535 who filled historic Kinnick Stadium for the 28th consecutive game Saturday certainly got their money’s worth. They got Iowa defense. They got a Master’s champion. They got Iowa offense. They got overtime. They got Iowa special teams. And, they got a victory…oh, what a victory. When junior defensive back Drew Gardner – another “Next Man In” for the Hawkeyes – wrapped up Michigan State’s Devin Thomas on a fourth down pass in the flat that came up seven yards short of a first down, the Iowa Hawkeyes put the finishing touch on a victory that appeared improbable at halftime, an emotional 34-27 double-overtime victory over Michigan State. Iowa entered intermission down on the scoreboard 17-3, down in total yards 253-71, but fired up after Ferentz chewed on game officials for a non-call on the Michigan State kickoff that followed the Spartans’ second touchdown, a scored triggered by a pass interference call against the UI’s Bradley Fletcher. .raisedquote {font-family:arial, helvetica; font-size:14px; font-weight:700;} .raisedquotesig {font-family:arial, helvetica; font-size:12px; font-style: italic;} “It was a complete team effort. The guys just busted their tails off.” Albert Young Ferentz’s fire ignited the Hawkeye offense. Determined to run the ball – and saying pre-game that it though it had an opportunity to run the ball, Iowa scored 17 unanswered points in the second stanza sparked by a running game that found its groove and a pair of scores by Young. The first came on Iowa’s longest run from scrimmage in 2007: A 26-yard run over right end and through a hole opened by junior Seth Olsen and sophomore Dan Doering. Seven minutes later, Young’s three-yard hurdle to paydirt completed an 8-play, 75-yard drive that knotted the score at 17-all. Young gained 179 yards on 34 carries. He moved up to fourth all-time on Iowa’s all-time rushing list with 2,927 yards, jumping over his friend and former teammate Fred Russell, who gained 2,760 yards as a Hawkeye. Young also reaffirmed his durability and productivity. He has now carried the pigskin 606 times, the third highest total in school history, and has scored 19 touchdowns, the fourth best for an Iowa runner. Iowa’s senior running back also set up Iowa’s game-winning score with his final carry, a six-yard run that set up Jevon Pugh’s one-yard dance into the endzone. It was Iowa’s second touchdown in overtime. The first was a 23-yard strike from Jake Christensen to Paul Cheney Jr. It came on a second-and-20 and after an illegal block on and wide receiver reverse. The completion was only Christensen’s fifth of the game, but it was also one touchdown pass more than Michigan State’s Brian Hoyer, who completed 25 of 42 for 308, but never found a Spartan in the endzone. The reception was also Chaney’s first of the game. Iowa’s defense allowed 468 yards, but was stout during the Hawkeyes 17-0 run in the second half and second overtime when its maligned defensive backfield harried Hover and the Spartans. One of the biggest plays was a seven-yard sack by Adrian Clayborn that pushed MSU from Iowa’s nine o the UI 16. “He’s a football player,” Ferentz said of the red-shirt freshman defensive end from St. Louis. Another turning point came early in the fourth quarter with the game tied at 17-all. Forced to punt from their own 19, Ryan Donohue nailed an 81-yard boot the, instead of giving the Spartans good field position to start the final 15 minutes, put the visitors on their own 20. Three plays later, Michigan State was faced with a fourth-and-14 on their own 16. The Hawkeyes’ 17-point second half offensive explosion was their most offensive of the season. Add the 14 points scored by Iowa in the two overtime sessions and you begin to wonder what went on in the Hawkeye lockerroom at intermission. “There wasn’t any kicking and garbage cans or speeches. It came down to us making a choice about how we were going to play,” Ferentz said about halftime. “We got slapped around during the first 30 minutes and it wasn’t much fun for anyone. But, we have great leadership – great leadership – and they took matters into their own hands. Iowa’s seniors – Young, Mike Humpal, Charles Godfrey – were difference makers. But so, too, were the future of the UI program: Clayborne, Doering, Bryan Bulaga, James Cleveland, Donohue, Daniel Murray, Jacody Coleman and others all contributed. “It was a complete team effort,” said an emotional Young. “The guys just busted their tails off.” Among the many thrilled fans of the Hawkeyes in attendance was Cedar Rapids’ native Zach Johnson, 2007 Masters champion. He undoubtedly appreciated the “chip shots” of Murray, a 43-yarder that put Iowa on the scoreboard midway during the second quarter and a 47-yard in the fourth quarter that gave the home team its first lead of the game. Iowa returns to action Saturday, Nov. 3, when the Hawkeyes square off against Northwestern in Evanston, Ill. That game will kick off shortly after 11 a.m. (Iowa time) and will be the final road contest of the 2007 regular season for Ferentz’s squad. The Hawkeyes final two games of the year – Nov. 10 against Minnesota and Nov. 17 against Western Michigan – will be played in Iowa City. A limited number of “single seat” tickets remain for the annual battle for Floyd of Rosedale with the Gophers; about 1,500 discount-priced youth tickets are available for the non-conference date with WMU. Click HERE for the Big Ten Network home page.
