Game Notes: Iowa vs. Purdue

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1st and 10

1: DE A.J. Epenesa leads a defense that ranks fifth in the country in scoring defense (10.2 ppg) and total defense (260.8). Those marks rank fourth in the Big Ten, respectively. The Hawkeyes have allowed just 81 first downs, fifth fewest in the country and second in the Big Ten. 
 
2: QB Nate Stanley has nine touchdown passes this season and 61 in his career, tied with Drew Tate for second all-time in program history. He trails Chuck Long (74) on the all-time list.
 
3: QB Nate Stanley has started the last 32 games at quarterback (21-11), and the Hawkeyes have averaged 28.8 points per game in those starts. That average ranks fifth in school history. Stanley is 13-5 at Kinnick Stadium, 6-5 in conference games at Kinnick.
 
4: WR Ihimir Smith-Marsette leads the team in receiving yards (386) and all-purpose yards (582). He is tied for the team lead with 24 receptions. He has 934 career receiving yards. He needs 66 yards to become the 42^nd player in program history to reach 1,000 yards receiving.
 
5: FS Jack Koerner had 13 tackles last week against Penn State, the most by a Hawkeye since Josey Jewell had 13 against Purdue in 2017.
 
6. K Keith Duncan has made 13-of-15 field goal attempts and 14-of-14 PAT attempts. The 13 field goals made tie for second in the country. He leads the team and ranks third in the Big Ten in scoring with 53 points. Duncan has connected on 7-of-8 kicks of at least 40 yards.
 
7. Iowa has allowed seven touchdowns in six games. Among Big Ten schools, only Penn State (5) and Wisconsin (4) have allowed fewer. Iowa is one of six schools to allow just two rushing touchdowns or fewer.
 
8. WR Ihmir Smith-Marsette, WR Bandon Smith, and WR Nico Ragaini share the team lead with 24 receptions apiece.
 
9: WR Smith-Marsette averages 28.9 yards on 35 career kickoff returns. The Big Ten record of average kickoff return yardage (minimum 40 returns) is 28.8, set by Stan Brown of Purdue (1968-70). He has 2,102 all-purpose yards (1,013 kick return yards). Only 19 players in school history have 2,500 or more.
 
10: Iowa holds a 59-43-5 (.567) record in 107 Homecoming games.  Iowa has won seven of its last nine Homecoming games. Iowa is 19-5 on Homecoming since 1995, and 15-4 since 2000, including winning seven in a row from 2000-06.  The Hawkeyes are 15-5 in Homecoming contests under Kirk Ferentz. 
 
      HAWKEYES ON HOMECOMING
      Iowa holds a 59-43-5 (.567) record in 107 Homecoming games.  Iowa has won seven of its last nine Homecoming games.
      Iowa is 19-5 on Homecoming since 1995, and 15-4 since 2000, including winning seven in a row from 2000-06.  The Hawkeyes are 15-5 in Homecoming contests under Kirk Ferentz. 
 
      HAWKEYE HISTORY
      Iowa has played 1,252 games since beginning football in 1889. Iowa’s overall record is 654-559-39 (.538). That includes a 408-222-16 (.645) record in home games, a 246-337-23 (.425) record in games away from Iowa City, a 330-380-25 (.467) mark in Big Ten games and a 292-187-15 (.607) record in Kinnick Stadium. Oct. 5, 2019 marked the 90^th anniversary of the first game in Kinnick Stadium, a 46-0 win over Monmouth.
      When Iowa hosts Minnesota on Nov. 16, it will mark the 130th anniversary of Iowa football. The Hawkeyes played their first football game on Nov. 16, 1889, against Grinnell.
  
     THE SERIES
     Purdue holds a 48-38-3 advantage in the series that began with a 16-0 Iowa win in 1910. Purdue has won the last two meetings. Iowa had won four straight before Purdue won, 24-15, in 2017, the last meeting in Iowa City. The Hawkeyes are 21-20-2 all-time in games played in Iowa City.
     Iowa and the Boilermakers battled to a 21-21 tie at West Lafayette in 1994. That game marks the last tie game for Iowa before the college football tie-breaker system was put in place.  
 
      STANLEY CLIMBS SCHOOL AND CONFERENCE CHARTS
      QB Nate Stanley has nine touchdown passes this season and 61 in his career, tied with Drew Tate for second all-time in program history. He trails Chuck Long (74) on the all-time list.
      Stanley has started the last 32 games at quarterback (21-11), and the Hawkeyes have averaged 28.8 points per game in those starts. That average ranks fifth in school history, and 10th nationally among active quarterbacks.
      Stanley is 13-5 at Kinnick Stadium, 6-5 in conference games at Kinnick.
      Stanley has 17 career multi-touchdown games, including three this season. He completed three touchdown passes in the season opener against Miami, Ohio, three more in Week 2 against Rutgers, and two against Middle Tennessee in Week 4. He has 10 career games with at least three passing touchdowns. Only Long has more in program history (11).
      Stanley threw 26 touchdown passes in 2018, second most in the Big Ten, one shy of tying Chuck Long (1985) for the most in single season school history, and tied for second most all-time in single season history. Stanley also threw 26 touchdown passes in 2017. Stanley’s 52 touchdown passes from 2017-18 are the most ever in school history over a two-year span. Long tossed 49 touchdown passes from 1984 (22) to 1985 (27).
      Stanley threw for a career-high 2,852 yards in 2018, the seventh-highest single-season total in school history. He ranks fifth in career passing yards (6,862) and fifth in career total offense (6,720).
      Stanley is one of 20 senior quarterbacks named to the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award Watch List. He was named to six preseason watch lists and listed on the preseason Big Ten third team by Phil Steele.
                 
     POCKET PRESSURE
     DE A.J. Epenesa leads a defense that ranks fifth in the country in scoring defense (10.2 ppg) and fifth in the country in total defense (260.8). Those marks rank fourth in the Big Ten, respectively. The Hawkeyes have allowed just 81 first downs, fifth fewest in the country and second in the Big Ten.  
     Iowa has allowed seven touchdowns in six games. Among Big Ten schools, only Penn State (5) and Wisconsin (4) have allowed fewer. Iowa is one of six schools to allow just two rushing touchdowns or fewer.
     Iowa’s defense allowed just five first downs against Rutgers in Week 2. That ties for the fewest allowed in the Kirk Ferentz era (Syracuse, 2007). Rutgers’ 125 yards of total offense ranks as the fifth lowest total in the Ferentz era.
     Epenesa leads Iowa with three sacks and eight quarterback hurries. He led the Big Ten and ranked ninth in the country with 10.5 sacks in 2018. His running mate, DE Chauncey Golston, has 16 tackles in the last two weeks, 26 on the season. His 3.5 tackles-for-loss (14 yards) leads the team.
     Epenesa is a quarterfinalist for the Lott IMPACT Trophy. He was named to four preseason All-America first teams, listed on six preseason watch lists, and is preseason Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year by CollegeFootballNews.com.
     Epenesa recorded at least one sack in nine of 13 games last season and was named first-team All-Big Ten by league media, and second-team All-Big Ten by league coaches. He ranked second in the conference and 16th nationally in forced fumbles (4), and ranked fourth in the Big Ten in tackles for loss. He totaled 37 tackles, four pass breakups, eight QB pressures, and a blocked punt in 2018. He recovered his own forced fumble and returned it 19 yards for a touchdown at Illinois.
     The Hawkeyes ranked third in the Big Ten last season with 35 sacks, the second highest single-season total in the Ferentz era (2002, 40).
 
     RETURN TO SENDER
     WR Ihmir Smith-Marsette is named on the Paul Hornung Award watch list, an honor bestowed to the most versatile player in college football.
     Smith-Marsette leads the team in receiving yards (386) and all-purpose yards (582). He is tied for the team lead with 24 receptions. He rushed for a touchdown (14 yards) in Week 4, and is tied for the team lead with four touchdowns. He set a career-high with 113 receiving yards in Week 2.
     Smith-Marsette averages 28.9 yards on 35 career kickoff returns. The Big Ten record of average kickoff return yardage (minimum 40 returns) is 28.8, set by Stan Brown of Purdue (1968-70). He has 1,013 kickoff return yards.
     Smith-Marsette has 934 career receiving yards. He needs 66 yards to become the 42^nd player in program history to reach 1,000 yards receiving. He has 2,102 all-purpose yards. Only 19 players in school history have 2,500 or more.
     In 2018, Smith-Marsette led the Big Ten and ranked No. 2 in the country, averaging 29.5 yards on 24 kickoff returns. He was named Rodgers-Dwight Return Specialist of the Year in the Big Ten Conference.  He had 23 receptions for 361 yards and three touchdowns. His 15.7 yards per catch led the Hawkeyes (minimum 20 receptions).  
 
     SARGENT LEADS RUNNING BACK BY COMMITTEE
     RB Mekhi Sargent leads the team in carries (70) and rushing yards (329). He has started the last 10 games and is named on the Doak Walker Award Preseason Watch List.
     RB Toren Young and RB Tyler Goodson rank second on the team (48) in rush attempts. Young has 313 yards, averaging 6.5 yards per carry, best on the team and seventh in the Big Ten.  He rushed for a career-high 131 yards in Week 4. It was his first career 100-yard rushing game.
     Goodson has 252 yards rushing, and 15 receptions for 92 yards. His 63 combined touches ranks second on the team to Sargent (82).  
     Young (131) and Goodson (97) rushed for career-highs Week 4 against Middle Tennessee State. The Hawkeyes rushed for 351 yards in the game, the fourth highest total in the Ferentz era.
     Juniors Ivory Kelly-Martin, Sargent, and Young shared the workload in 2018. The trio combined for 392 carries, 1,723 rushing yards and 16 rushing touchdowns (nine by Sargent, five by Young, and two by Kelly-Martin). Sargent had 40.6 percent of the carries (159-745), Young had 34.7 percent of the attempts (136-637), and Kelly-Martin has 24.7 percent of the carries (97-341).
 
    YOUNG, SARGENT SURPASS 1,000 CAREER RUSHING YARDS
    Junior running backs Toren Young and Mekhi Sargent each surpassed 1,000 career rushing yards in Iowa’s win over Middle Tennessee on Sept. 28.
    Sargent entered the game with 953 rushing yards and moved past 1,000 for his career on a 12-yard run late in the first period. He ended the contest with 91 rushing yards. His career totals include 1,074 yards on 229 attempts. He is the 48th Iowa running back to surpass 1,000 career yards and currently ranks 40th on the all-time list.
    Young entered the contest with 950 career yards and surpassed 1,000 on a 15-yard run early in the second quarter, becoming the 49th Iowa running back to surpass the century total. He led the Hawkeyes with a career-high 131 rushing yards against Middle Tennessee. Young now has 1,147 career yards on 229 attempts to rank 36th on the career list.
    Sargent moved over 1,000 career yards on career attempt 207, while Young went past 1,000 yards on career attempt 209.
 
     GRAND THEFT SECONDARY
     Iowa ranks seventh in the country and second in the Big Ten in passing defense (160.0 yards per game).
     DB Michael Ojemudia is tied for second in the Big Ten lead with two interceptions. He intercepted a pass in each of the first two weeks.  LB Djimon Colbert recorded the first interception of his career in Week 2. SS Geno Stone had one interception in Week 5.
     The Hawkeyes have four interceptions this season. Iowa led the Big Ten and tied for second in the country in 2018 with 20 interceptions. Over the last three seasons, no school has more interceptions than Iowa. The Hawkeyes have 45 interceptions since 2017, one more than Boston College has over the same period.  
     Entering this season, Iowa has at least one interception return for a touchdown in each of the last 11 seasons, and 16 of the last 18 seasons.
 
     DUNCAN GETTING HIS KICKS
     K Keith Duncan has made 13-of-15 field goal attempts and 14-of-14 PAT attempts. The 13 field goals made tie for second in the country. He leads the team and ranks third in the Big Ten in scoring with 53 points. Duncan has connected on 7-of-8 kicks of at least 40 yards. He kicked a career-long 49 yard field goal against Middle Tennessee in Week 4.
     Duncan is seeing his first action since 2016, when he made 9-11 field goal attempts and 38-39 PAT attempts (one was blocked). That year he kicked a 33-yard field goal as time expired to lift Iowa over #2 Michigan, 14-13. 
     Duncan was named Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week and Lou Groza Award Star of the Week on Sept. 16 following his performance at Iowa State. Duncan connected on a career-best four field goals at Iowa State. His final kick from 39 yards provided the margin of victory with 4:51 remaining in the fourth quarter. He also connected from 25 yards on Iowa’s first drive of the game and from 40 yards on the final play of the first half. He nailed a 42-yarder late in the third quarter. 
     The Big Ten weekly honor was the second of his career. He was previously recognized in 2016, earning the weekly honor following Iowa’s 14-13 win over Michigan. Duncan contributed two field goals in that win, including the game-winner from 33 yards on the final play of the game.  
  
     WIN, GRADUATE, DO IT RIGHT
    Ten Hawkeyes wear a decal on their helmets indicating they have received their undergraduate degrees from the University of Iowa. The graduates include Drew Cook, John Milani, Landan Paulsen, Levi Paulsen, Colton Rastetter, Brady Reiff, Brady Ross, Ryan Schmidt, Jackson Subbert, and Nate Wieting.
 
     FERENTZ MOVES UP BIG TEN CHARTS
     Head coach Kirk Ferentz’s 156 wins in all games coached as a member of the Big Ten Conference rank fifth in league history. He is one of five coaches in Big Ten Conference history to win at least 150 games as a member of the Big Ten Conference. The top five includes Woody Hayes (202), Amos Alonza Stagg (199), Bo Schembechler (194), Joe Paterno (162), and Ferentz (156).
     Ferentz has 92 Big Ten wins as Iowa’s head coach. The 92 conference wins rank sixth among the conference’s all-time winningest coaches in Big Ten games.
     Ferentz (156-103) became Iowa’s all-time winningest coach on Sept. 1, 2018. The Hawkeyes defeated Northern Illinois, 33-7. It was Ferentz’s 144th win as Iowa’s head coach, one more than his predecessor, Hayden Fry (143-89-6). Fry coached Iowa for 20 years (1979-98). Ferentz is in his 21st season in 2019.
     Both Ferentz (156, 92) and Fry (143, 96) rank in the top six in overall wins and Big Ten wins. Only Iowa and Michigan have two coaches ranked in the top 10 of both win categories (Bo Schembechler 194, 143; and Lloyd Carr 122, 81).
     Iowa is the only school in the country to have just two head football coaches since 1979.
 
     FERENTZ TOPS IN LONGEVITY
     Kirk Ferentz is in his 21st season as Iowa’s head football coach. He is the longest tenured active head coach in college football. Ferentz was named Iowa head coach on Dec. 2, 1998. Gary Patterson of TCU is No. 2 in coaching tenure. Patterson’s first year with the Horned Frogs was 2001. Among Big Ten coaches, only Pat Fitzgerald (2006) and Mark Dantonio (2007) have been at their current schools for 10 seasons or more. Iowa is the only school to have just two head football coaches since 1979.
     Defensive coordinator Phil Parker and strength and conditioning coach Chris Doyle are also in their 21st seasons on Iowa’s staff. Quarterbacks coach Ken O’Keefe was on Ferentz’s original coaching staff before he left for the NFL following the 2011 season. He returned to Iowa in 2017 to coach Iowa’s quarterbacks.
     Ferentz is the only Division I coach to coach three sons. Brian Ferentz, a former Hawkeye letterman and captain (2003-05), enters his eighth season on Iowa’s coaching staff. James Ferentz was a three-year starter on the Hawkeye offensive line and a team captain before graduating in 2013. Steven was an offensive lineman and letterwinner in 2015 and 2016.

     IN THE RANKINGS
     Iowa is ranked No. 23 in the AP poll and No. 22 in the coaches poll. Iowa has four opponents ranked in the top 25 (#6 Wisconsin, #7 Penn State, #16 Michigan, and #20 Minnesota). Those four opponents have a combined 23-1 record.
     Iowa is 0-2 against ranked teams this season, falling 10-3 at #19 Michigan on Oct. 5, and 17-12 at home to #10 Penn State. The Hawkeyes last win over a ranked opponent was against No. 18 Mississippi State, 27-22, on Jan. 1 at the 2019 Outback Bowl.
 
      HAWK TALK WITH KIRK FERENTZ
Head Coach Kirk Ferentz is featured on “Hawk Talk with Kirk Ferentz” each week during the regular season. The radio call-in show is hosted by Gary Dolphin, the play-by-play voice of the Iowa Hawkeyes.  The show airs live each Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. from VUE Rooftop at the Hilton Garden Inn in Iowa City. There is no show during the Hawkeyes remaining bye week (Wednesday, Oct. 30).
 
     REINVENTING THE STADIUM WAVE
      The University of Iowa football program received the prestigious 2017 Disney Sports Spirit Award after launching a heart-warming tradition at its home games last season that touched the lives of scores of young patients at the University’s Stead Family Children’s Hospital.
      In a tradition that started at the 2017 season opener, fans inside Kinnick Stadium and patients and families inside the UI Stead Family Children’s Hospital exchange waves at the end of the first quarter of each home game.
      The UI Stead Family Children’s Hospital opened in 2017. It is connected to the south end of the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics and overlooks Kinnick Stadium from the southeast grandstands. During Iowa football home games, patients and their families can watch the game from the top floor (Level 12), one of the highest vantage points in Iowa City.
 
      ALL ABOARD TO KINNICK STADIUM!
      The Hawkeye Express, the passenger train that transports fans from Coralville to Kinnick Stadium, is in its 16th season in 2019.
      Adults can ride the train for $15, round trip, while children (12-and-under) ride for free. All passengers must have a ticket. Tickets can be purchased in advance at the UI Ticket Office or on game day (cash only on game day) at the Hawkeye Express depot located near the boarding ramp.  The trip to Kinnick Stadium is approximately 10 minutes. 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 kickoff. 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.

Iowa football hosts Minnesota in the battle for Floyd of Rosedale on Saturday, Nov. 16.  Fans are encouraged to wear black for the Blackout game, and it is the annual military appreciation celebration. Active duty military and veterans are eligible for a military ticket discount. Click here for tickets and pre-paid parking and additional game information.