Game Preview: Michigan State

• Saturday’s game against Michigan State is just the second meeting between the two schools since 2017.
• The Hawkeyes will play under the lights inside Kinnick Stadium for the second straight year and for the 22nd time in program history. Iowa has won eight of its last 11 night games in Kinnick since 2015 and is 14-7 all-time in home night games.
• Saturday’s game will be a “Black Out” in Kinnick Stadium. All fans are encouraged to wear black.
• Ferentz — the dean of coaches in college football – won his 200th career game on Sept. 9 when the Hawkeyes won a 20-13 Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Series matchup at Iowa State. Ferentz, who has 201 career victories, is the 27th head coach to reach the milestone at an FBS institution and just the 99th college coach across all divisions since 1890.
• NBC Hawks! Iowa will be playing on NBC for the first time since the 1985 Rose Bowl against UCLA on Saturday against Michigan State. The program’s first television appearance all-time was on NBC in 1953 against Indiana. It will be Iowa’s 16th game on the network all-time with the Hawkeyes holding a 10-4-1 record.
• LB Jay Higgins had a career-high 18 tackles at Penn State – the most by a Hawkeye since Jack Campbell had 18 tackles against Colorado State in 2021. Higgins is leading the Big Ten and ranks fourth nationally, averaging 12.5 tackles per game.
• Iowa’s three linebackers – Higgins, Nick Jackson and Kyler Fisher – combined for 38 tackles at Penn State. Along with Higgins’ 18 stops, Jackson had a season-high 13 tackles and Fisher a career-high seven tackles. Jackson, who made his 400th career tackle in the game, ranks seventh in the Big Ten and 32nd nationally at nine tackles per game.
• The Hawkeye defense hasn’t allowed more than 400 yards in 18 consecutive games dating back to the 2021 season. The unit ranks 26th nationally in scoring, allowing 17.0 points per game.

SERIES HISTORY

• Saturday’s game is the 49th game in the all-time series that began with a 21-7 Michigan State win in 1953. That first meeting, played in Iowa City on Sept. 26, 1953, marked MSU’s first game as a member of the Big Ten Conference.
• Iowa leads the all-time series 24-22-2, including a 49-7 win in the most recent meeting in 2020. That was the most lopsided Hawkeye win in the series.
• Michigan State has won three of the last four and four of the last six meetings in the series. Iowa is 14-10-1 at home against the Spartans.
• Kirk Ferentz recorded his first Big Ten win as Iowa’s head coach when the Hawkeyes topped Michigan State (21-16) in Iowa City in 2000. The teams have played two overtime contests with Iowa winning both in double overtime (34-27 in 2007 and 19-16 in 2012).

SERIES RESULTS

9/26/1953 – L, 7-21 (#2) (H)
9/25/1954 – W, 14-10 (#7) (H)
10/10/1959 – W, 37-8 (H)
10/8/1960 – W, 27-15 (#13) (A)
11/6/1965 – L, 0-35 (#1) (H)
11/5/1966 – L, 7-56 (#2) (A)
10/25/1969 – W, 19-18 (H)
10/24/1970 – L, 0-37 (A)
10/23/1971 – L, 3-34 (A)
10/28/1972 – T, 6-6 (H)
11/24/1973 – L, 6-15 (H)
11/23/1974 – L, 21-60 (#14) (A)
11/22/1975 – L, 23-27 (H)
11/20/1976 – W, 30-17 (A)
11/19/1977 – L, 16-22 (H)
11/25/1978 – L, 7-42 (#14) (A)
11/17/1979 – W, 33-23 (H)
11/22/1980 – W, 41-0 (A)
11/21/1981 – W, 36-7 (H)
11/20/1982 – W, 24-18 (A)
11/12/1983 – W, 12-6 (A)
11/10/1984 – L, 16-17 (H)
10/5/1985 – W, 35-31 (H)
10/4/1986 – W, 24-21 (#17) (A)
10/3/1987 – L, 14-19 (H)
10/1/1988 – T, 10-10 (A)
10/7/1989 – L, 14-17 (#24) (H)
10/6/1990 – W, 12-7 (#18) (A)
10/23/1993 – L, 10-24 (#24) (A)
10/22/1994 – W, 19-14 (H)
10/7/1995 – W, 21-7 (A)
10/5/1996 – W, 37-30 (H)
10/2/1999 – L, 3-49 (#14) (A)
10/7/2000 – W, 21-16 (H)
10/13/2001 – L, 28-31 (A)
10/12/2002 – W, 44-16 (H)
9/27/2003 – L, 10-20 (A)
10/2/2004 – W, 38-16 (H)
10/27/2007 – W, 34-27 (2 OT) (H)
10/4/2008 – L, 13-16 (A)
10/24/2009 – W, 15-13 (A)
10/30/2010 – W, 37-6 (#5) (H)
11/12/2011 – L, 21-37 (#13) (H)
10/13/2012 – W, 19-16 (2 OT) (A)
10/5/2013 – L , 14-26 (H)
12/5/2015 – L, 13-16 (#5) (N)
9/30/2017 – L, 10-17 (A)
11/7/2020 – W, 49-7 (H)