Game Notes: Iowa vs. North Texas

Sept. 21, 2015

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Game Notes in PDF Format

THIS WEEK
The University of Iowa football team hosts North Texas on Saturday at 2:32 p.m. (CT) at Kinnick Stadium. Tickets are available at the UI Athletics Ticket Office .

THE RECORDS
Iowa is 3-0, with wins over Illinois State (31-14), at Iowa State (31-17) and Pittsburgh (27-24). The Hawkeyes were 7-6 last season, earning a trip to the 2015 TaxSlayer Bowl. Iowa was 4-4 in Big Ten play and 3-2 in nonconference games last season. North Texas is 0-2 after a 31-13 loss at SMU and a 38-24 home loss to Rice. The Mean Green posted a 4-8 record in 2014, including a 2-6 mark in Conference USA West. North Texas was 9-4 in 2013.

THE SERIES
This is the first football game between the two schools.

COACHING RECORDS
Kirk Ferentz is in his 20th year as a college head coach and his 17th year as Iowa’s head coach. His career record is 130-106 and he is 118-85 at Iowa. He is the 12th Big Ten Conference coach to win 100 games.

Dan McCarney is in his 17th season as a college head coach and his fifth season at North Texas. McCarney holds a record of 22-29 with the Mean Green and his career mark is 78-114. McCarney is an Iowa City native, an Iowa graduate (1975) and was an offensive lineman for the Hawkeyes (1971-74). He was an Iowa assistant coach (1977-89) and the head coach at Iowa State (1995-2006, 56-85 record).

IOWA/NORTH TEXAS NOTES
• Iowa leads the Big Ten allowing just 51 yards rushing per game. North Texas averages 143.5 rushing yards per game, the 11th most in Conference USA.
• Iowa is one of only four teams not to allow a rushing touchdown. North Texas has only two rushing touchdowns in two games.
• Former Iowa head coach Hayden Fry compiled a 40-23-3 record from 1973-78 at North Texas.
• North Texas head coach Dan McCarney and North Texas quarterback Andrew McNulty are Iowa City, Iowa, natives. McNulty was North Texas’ leading passer in 2014.
• North Texas head coach Dan McCarney is the second Iowa City native in the last three seasons to coach in Kinnick Stadium (Terry Allen, Missouri State, 2013). McCarney, a Hawkeye assistant from 1977-89, will make his seventh appearance on the opposing sideline at Kinnick. He was 3-3 as a visitor as Iowa State’s head coach.

IOWA VS. CONFERENCE USA
Iowa is 4-1 all-time against members of Conference USA. The Hawkeyes defeated UTEP, 69-7, in 1986, and are 3-1 all-time against Tulsa. The last meeting was a 54-16 Iowa win in 1997.

McCARNEY ONE OF 5 UI GRADS LEADING FBS PROGRAMS
The University of Iowa has produced more active FBS head coaches than any other school. Bret Bielema (Arkansas), Bob Diaco (UCONN), Dan McCarney (North Texas), Bob Stoops (Oklahoma), and Mark Stoops (Kentucky) all earned undergraduate degrees from the University of Iowa. Bielema, Diaco, Bob Stoops, and Mark Stoops played for former UI head coach Hayden Fry. McCarney played on teams coached by Frank Lauterbur and Bob Commings. All five head coaches served as assistants under Fry. McCarney played on the offensive line from 1972-74. He was named team captain his senior season, and eventually joined Fry’s staff in 1977. He was an assistant coach at Iowa from 1977-89. Bielema played on the defensive line from 1989-92. He was team captain his senior season, played in the 1991 Rose Bowl, and served as an assistant coach on the Iowa staff from 1993-2001. Diaco played linebacker from 1992-95 and was a graduate assistant on the staff from 1996-97. The Hawkeyes advanced to the Alamo Bowl in 1996 and the Sun Bowl in 1997. Bob Stoops was a defensive back from 1979-82. He was named team MVP in 1982, and played in the 1982 Rose Bowl and 1982 Peach Bowl. He served on the Iowa staff from 1983-87. Mark Stoops was a defensive back from 1987-89. He played in the 1987 Holiday Bowl and 1988 Peach Bowl, and served as a graduate assistant coach from 1989-91.

FERENTZ CLOSING IN ON ALVAREZ
Head coach Kirk Ferentz has 118 wins as a member of the Big Ten Conference, one shy of tying Barry Alvarez (119) for ninth in conference history. Alvarez won 119 games in parts of 18 seasons at Wisconsin. Ferentz has 68 Big Ten wins, the 10th most in conference history. He trails John Cooper (Ohio State) by two wins for ninth all-time. Only eight coaches rank in the top 10 in both categories: overall wins as a member of the Big Ten, and conference wins. The others include Woody Hayes (OSU), Amos Alonzo Stagg (CHI), Bo Schembechler (MICH), Hayden Fry (IOWA), Robert Zuppke (ILL), Lloyd Carr (MICH), and Alvarez (WIS). Ferentz also has six bowl wins as a member of the Big Ten, tying Fry and Carr for No. 2 all-time. Only Alvarez has more (9).

COACH TO CURE MD CELEBRATES EIGHTH SEASON
For the eighth year in a row, football coaches nationwide will band together for the Coach to Cure MD program, which will be held during games on Saturday, Sept. 26. The annual effort has raised more than $1.25 million to battle Duchenne muscular dystrophy. On Saturday, September 26, American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) members will wear a Coach to Cure MD logo patch on the sidelines. College football fans will be asked to donate to research projects supported by Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy (PPMD), the largest nonprofit organization in the U.S. to focus solely on Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The Coach to Cure MD patches will also be worn on non-Saturday games the same weekend, and teams who do not play will wear the patches during other games throughout the season. Additionally, more than 60 teams will recognize a local Duchenne family on the field before or during the game. Football fans can donate to Duchenne muscular dystrophy research by either going on-line to CoachtoCureMD.org or by texting the word CURE to 90999 (a $5 donation will automatically be added to your next phone bill). Last year, more than 10,000 college coaches at more than 600 institutions participated in Coach to Cure MD events. The seven-year fundraising total (2008-14) is now over $1.25 million.

THIS WEEK IN COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Sept. 25, 1954
No. 12 Iowa def. No. 7 Michigan State, 14-10
Iowa City, Iowa
College Football Hall of Fame coach Forest Evashevski and Iowa controlled the first half during Hall of Fame coach Duffy Daugherty’s Michigan State debut, and the Hawkeyes went into the break ahead, 7-0. Daugherty had all the right things to say to his players at halftime, and they came out and scored on Leroy Bolden’s touchdown run and a Gerry Planutis field goal. Hawkeye halfback Eldean Matheson fielded a punt from Don Kauth, and he raced 53 yards to the Spartans’ three-yard line. On fourth-and-one at the goal line, Iowa quarterback Jerry Reichow plunged into the end zone behind a line featuring Hall of Fame guard Calvin Jones, giving his team the win. The Hawkeyes finished the season 5-4 and the Spartans finished 3-6.

THE KICK
Marshall Koehn kicked a 57-yard field goal as time expired to defeat Pitt, 27-24, on Sept. 19. The game-winning field goal was the second longest in school history and tied the Kinnick Stadium record (Arizona’s Lee Pistor in 1977).

After Pitt tied the game, 24-24, with 0:52 left in the fourth quarter, Iowa DB Desmond King picked up a squib kick at the 3-yard line and returned it 27 yards to the Iowa 30. QB C.J. Beathard picked up two rushing first downs to move the ball into Pitt territory, and after a pair of sideline routes to WR Tevaun Smith fell incomplete, Beathard scrambled for eight yards to the Pitt 39-yard line. Iowa then used its final timeout to stop the clock with two seconds left.

On fourth-and-2, Pitt called a timeout to freeze Koehn. Koehn let a kick sail anyway, but it landed far short of the goal post. On the ensuing attempt, Dillon Kidd placed a snap from Tyler Kluver on the Pitt 47-yard line, and Koehn split the uprights, giving Iowa its first walk-off field goal since 1986 (Holiday Bowl).

KOEHN EARNS BIG TEN HONOR
K Marshall Koehn was named Big Ten Conference Special Teams Player of the Week for his performance in Iowa’s 27-24 win over Pittsburgh Saturday night. The Big Ten honor is the first for Koehn (6-foot, 200-pounds), a senior from Solon, Iowa (Solon HS). He is the second Hawkeye to earn a weekly conference honor this season (QB C.J. Beathard vs. Iowa State). He is the first Iowa kicker to earn the special teams award since Mike Meyer was recognized following a 19-16 double overtime win at Michigan State in 2012. Koehn delivered the winning margin against Pittsburgh as he booted a 57-yard field goal as time expired. The kick tied the Kinnick Stadium record for longest field goal (Lee Pistor, Arizona, 1977) and ranks as the second longest in Iowa history (58 yards, Tim Douglas at Illinois, 1998). With a 52-yard kick in the 24-20 win at Pittsburgh in 2014, Koehn now has two of the nine longest field goals in Iowa history. It was the first walk-off field goal for Iowa football since Rob Houghtlin connected from 41 yards to win the 1986 Holiday Bowl.

THE DRIVE
Iowa put together a 99-yard scoring drive on its second possession of the season. It was the Hawkeyes’ first 99-yard touchdown drive since 2002. Iowa passed six times and rushed six times while converting five first downs on the drive. QB C.J. Beathard was 4-of-6 passing for 63 yards. He also carried once for two yards. RB LeShun Daniels, Jr., carried four times for 18 yards, and RB Jordan Canzeri took his first carry of the season five yards into the end zone. Canzeri also had a 21-yard reception. Iowa has put together four drives covering nine or more plays and 80 or more yards four times this season tying for the most in the country through three games (Texas A&M, Bowling Green, and Florida State).

THE FOURTH QUARTER
QB C.J. Beathard and the Hawkeyes’ rush defense have dominated the fourth quarter in 2015. Iowa’s rush defense, the top rush defense in the conference, has yielded four yards rushing in the fourth quarter this season.

Beathard is 14-of-17 passing for 206 yards and one touchdown. He has also rushed six times for 35 yards and one touchdown in the fourth quarter this season. He has engineered game-winning drives in the fourth quarter in each of the last two weeks. He was 4-of-4 for 46 yards and a touchdown against Iowa State, and he rushed for 27 yards on three carries to set up K Marshall Koehn‘s 57-yard game winning field goal against Pitt.

In his last four games, including the 2015 TaxSlayer Bowl, Beathard’s fourth quarter numbers include 21-of-24 passing for 301 yards and three touchdowns, and eight carries for 73 yards and one touchdown.

FORE!
The Hawkeyes are trying to improve to 4-0 for the first time since 2009, and the fourth time under Kirk Ferentz. Iowa finished 11-2 the last time it started the season 4-0. The 2009 Hawkeyes won their first nine games, finished 11-2 overall, and won the 2010 FedEx Orange Bowl. The 2006 Hawkeyes started 4-0 and participated in the Alamo Bowl. The 2003 Hawkeyes started 4-0 and went on to finish 10-3 with a win over Florida at the 2004 Outback Bowl. Iowa is 3-0 for the sixth time since 2001.

RUSH DEFENSE… NO TOUCHDOWNS FOR YOU
Iowa is the only Big Ten school, and one of four schools nationally, to not allow a rushing touchdown (Boston College, Utah, Navy). The Hawkeyes yield an average of 51.0 rushing yards per game, best in the Big Ten and fifth nationally. Iowa has limited opponents to 1.87 yards per carry (82 attempts, 153 yards), the best in the conference and No. 6 in the country.

2-FOR-2 AGAINST POWER 5
Iowa has two wins against Power 5 schools: Iowa State, 31-17, and Pitt, 27-24. The Hawkeyes are one of only five schools with two wins against teams from a Power 5 conference. The other include Northwestern, Georgia, LSU, and Toledo.

FLIRTING WITH 100
Junior QB C.J. Beathard gained 111 yards but lost 34 yards rushing against Iowa State on Sept. 12. His net gain of 77 yards threatened his career-high of 82 set at the 2015 TaxSlayer Bowl. The last Iowa quarterback to rush for 100 yards in a single game was Butch Caldwell, who ran for 109 yards on 12 attempts against Michigan State on Nov. 24, 1973 in Iowa City.

FIRST TIME STARTERS
The Hawkeyes have used nine first time starters. RB LeShun Daniels, Jr., LT Boone Myers, DT Nathan Bazata, DT Jaleel Johnson, LB Cole Fisher, LB Ben Niemann, and SS Miles Taylor all started the season opener. TE Jameer Outsey made his first career start against Iowa State, and DE Parker Hesse started for the first time in the win over Pitt.

REMOVE THE REDSHIRT
Three true freshmen played in the 2015 season opener: OL James Daniels, WR Jerminic Smith, and WR Adrian Falconer. Daniels is the first true freshman to play offensive line since Bryan Bulaga in 2007. Daniels joined the Iowa program last spring and participated in spring practice.

BAPTISM BY FIRE
Iowa starting tackles LT Boone Myers and RT Ike Boettger entered 2015 with one combined career start (Boettger started as a second tight end against Wisconsin in 2014). The sophomores replace a pair of NFL lineman — 2014 Outland Trophy winner LT Brandon Scherff (Washington Redskins) and RT Andrew Donnal (St. Louis Rams). Myers joined the program as a walk-on and was put on scholarship prior to the 2014 season. He saw action in four games last season. Boettger joined the team as a tight end but was moved to offensive line in 2013. He saw action in seven games as a redshirt freshman in 2014.

FIND THE NFL-ER
Since 1999, Kirk Ferentz‘s first year as UI head coach, the Hawkeyes have had a future NFL player start on the offensive line in every season. In each of the last eight years, an eventual NFL first-round draft pick started on the offensive line. Brandon Scherff, selected by the Washington Redskins fifth overall in 2015, was Iowa’s left tackle from 2012-14. Riley Reiff, selected 23rd overall by the Detroit Lions in 2012, started at left tackle from 2010-11. Bryan Bulaga, selected 23rd overall by the Green Bay Packers in 2010, started at left guard in 2007 before moving to left tackle in 2008-09. From 2005-06, Baltimore Ravens All-Pro Marshal Yanda shared time at tackle and guard for the Hawkeyes. Mike Elgin, a seventh round selection of New England, was Iowa’s starting center in 2004. Pete McMahon, drafted by Oakland in 2005, was Iowa’s right guard in 2003. Oakland’s first round pick in 2004, Robert Gallery, was Iowa’s left tackle from 2001-03. Eric Steinbach (Cincinnati) started at guard for Iowa from 2000-02, and Bruce Nelson (Carolina) was a four-year starter from 1999-02. Both players were second round draft picks in 2003.

PAULSENS ARE A FAMILIAR FACE
Freshmen Landan and Levi Paulsen are the sixth set of twins to play football at the University of Iowa. The offensive linemen from Woodbury High School in Northwest Iowa join the company of Leo and Lloyd Jensvold (1929-30), Harold and Herbert Shoener (1946-47), Kent and Kevin Ellis (1977-80), Aaron and Evan Kooiker (1992), and Shane and Shaun Prater (2008). The Paulsens are one of three sets of brothers on Iowa’s 2015 roster, joining DB Kevin Ward and OL Ryan Ward, and OL James Daniels and RB LeShun Daniels.

FERENTZ SECOND IN LONGEVITY
Kirk Ferentz is in his 17th season as Iowa’s head football coach and ranks second in longevity among FBS head coaches. Ferentz is first among Big Ten coaches and nationally ranks behind Virginia Tech’s Frank Beamer (28). Ferentz is tied for second with Bob Stoops of Oklahoma.

58 AND COUNTING
The Hawkeyes have played 59 consecutive games without a missed or blocked PAT, the longest streak of any school in the nation. Iowa has converted on 179 consecutive PATs during the streak.

HAWKEYE HISTORY
Iowa has played 1,196 games since beginning football in 1889. Iowa’s overall record is 616-541-39 (.530). That includes a 388-213-16 (.641) record in home games, a 228-328-23 (.413) record in games away from Iowa City, a 306-366-25 (.457) mark in Big Ten games and a 271-177-15 (.600) record in Kinnick Stadium.

HOME GROWN HAWKEYES
Iowa’s roster of 114 players includes 49 players from Iowa. The roster includes 14 players from Illinois; nine from Texas; seven from Maryland; six from Missouri, five from Ohio; four from Michigan; three from Florida, Nebraska, and New Jersey; two from South Dakota, Wisconsin, and Canada; one from Alabama, Minnesota, New York, Oklahoma, and Tennessee.

IOWA WILL RECEIVE
Iowa received the opening kickoff in all three games this season. In 17 seasons as Iowa’s head coach, Kirk Ferentz and the Hawkeyes received the opening kickoff in 165-of-203 games (98-67). Iowa has started the game on defense in 38-of-203 games under Ferentz (20-18).

IOWA AMONG TOP 25 IN WINS, 2002-15
Iowa has posted 107 wins since the start of the 2002 season, tied for the 21st highest total in Division I football. The list includes the following: Boise State (150); Ohio State (145); Oklahoma (140); USC (137); LSU (136); Georgia (131); Alabama (129); TCU (129); Oregon (128); Texas (127); Florida State (127); Virginia Tech (125); Wisconsin (124); Florida (120); Auburn (119); West Virginia (116); Utah (115); Virginia (112); Nebraska (111); Miami, FL (108); Iowa (107); Texas Tech (107); Michigan (104).

Kirk Ferentz RADIO SHOW
Iowa Coach Kirk Ferentz is featured on “Hawk Talk with Kirk Ferentz” each week. The 90-minute radio call-in show is hosted by Gary Dolphin, the play-by-play voice of the Iowa Hawkeyes. The show airs each Wednesday evening at 6:30 p.m. from Carlos O’Kelly’s in Iowa City.

PURCHASE TICKETS
Tickets remain for all five Iowa home games. Tickets can be ordered online at hawkeyesports.com, by calling 1-800-IAHAWKS, or in person at the UI athletics ticket office located in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

ALL ABOARD TO KINNICK STADIUM!
The Hawkeye Express, the passenger train that transports fans from Coralville to Kinnick Stadium, is once again available for fans traveling to Kinnick Stadium on Iowa Football game days. The Hawkeye Express enters its 12th season. Adults can ride the train for $12, round trip, while children (12-and-under) ride for free. Tickets can be purchased in advance at the UI Ticket Office or on game day at the Hawkeye Express depot located near the boarding ramp. Media credentials are accepted as well. Free parking is located in lots near the Comfort Suites and Coral Ridge Mall. Fans can begin boarding the train three hours prior to 11 a.m. kickoffs, and four hours prior to the start of afternoon and night games. Return trips begin at the start of the fourth period and run 90 minutes after the game. The Hawkeye Express is owned by the Iowa Northern Railway Company and operates on the Iowa Interstate Railroad.

BEATHARD EARNS NATIONAL MANNING AWARD
Junior quarterback C.J. Beathard was selected as the Manning Award Quarterback of the Week following his play in Iowa’s 31-17 win at Iowa State. He earned the honor over seven other Manning Award Stars of the Week in the Allstate Sugar Bowl’s Facebook contest. In his third career start, the Franklin, Tennessee, native completed 15-of-25 passes for 215 yards and three touchdowns as the Hawkeyes scored 21 unanswered points in the second half to earn the road victory. His 25-yard touchdown pass to junior WR Riley McCarron in the fourth quarter gave the Hawkeyes the lead with 2:14 left in the game. Beathard also carried the ball a career high 10 times for 77 yards, showcasing his athleticism on runs of 44 and 57 yards in the first half. He was also named the Big Ten Conference Co-Offensive Player of the Week. Beathard earned the award over Washington State’s Luke Falk, who completed 47-of-66 passes for 478 yards and four touchdowns in a 37-34 win at Rutgers. Third in the voting was Paxton Lynch from Memphis, who led the Tigers to a 55-23 win at Kansas to snap a 19-game losing streak against power-five teams. Each week during the regular season, eight quarterbacks are recognized as Manning Quarterbacks of the Week. Sixty-two players from 58 different schools were honored during the 2014 season.

BEATHARD EARNS WEEKLY HONOR
Junior quarterback C.J. Beathard was named co-Offensive Player of the Week by the Big Ten after leading Iowa to a 31-17 win at Iowa State on Sept. 15. He completed 15-of-25 attempts for 215 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. He also rushed 10 times for 77 yards, including runs of 44 and 57 yards. His scoring strikes covered three, 14, and 25 yards, with the 25-yard score giving Iowa the lead with 2:14 remaining in the fourth quarter. The Big Ten weekly honor was the first for Beathard. He is the first Hawkeyes to win the offensive honor since former WR Marvin McNutt, Jr., following a win over Indiana in 2011.

OFFENSIVE LINE EARNS RECOGNITION
Iowa’s offensive line earned a “Game Ball” from the Joe Moore Award for its play in Iowa’s 31-17 win at Iowa State last Saturday. The Joe Moore Foundation for Teamwork honors the most notable performances each week by offensive line units. At Iowa State, Iowa’s offense rushed for 260 yards, averaging 5.8 yards per rushing attempt. Iowa controlled the fourth quarter with 10:55 in possession time, scoring two touchdowns in the final 2:14 to earn the road win. Iowa’s starting offensive line includes center Austin Blythe, tackles Boone Myers and Ike Boettger, and guards Sean Welsh and Jordan Walsh. Blythe and Walsh are seniors, while Myers, Boettger and Welsh are sophomores. The Joe Moore Award is named after Joe Moore, widely regarded as one of the best offensive line coaches in college football history, and is the only major college football award to honor a unit.