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Game Preview: B1G Championship Game vs. MichiganGame Preview: B1G Championship Game vs. Michigan
Football

Game Preview: B1G Championship Game vs. Michigan

OPPONENT Iowa vs. Michigan
DATE Saturday, Dec. 2
LOCATION Indianapolis, Ind. | Lucas Oil Stadium (70,000)
KICKOFF 7:15 p.m. (CT)
TELEVISION FOX
RADIO Hawkeye Radio Network
  • The Hawkeyes clinched the outright Big Ten West Division title with its 13-10 victory at Nebraska in the regular season finale. Iowa will play No. 3 Michigan in the Big Ten Championship Game on Dec. 3 in Indianapolis for the second time in three years.
  • This is Iowa’s third straight year playing a No. 2 ranked opponent (Ohio State, 2022; Michigan, 2021). This is the program’s seventh game against a top 10 team since 2021 (2-4 record).
  • Iowa has won three Big Ten West Division crowns under head coach Kirk Ferentz (2015, 2021, 2023).
  • The Hawkeyes finished the regular season with a 10-2 overall and 7-2 in Big Ten play. It is the seventh time Iowa has notched its 10th victory during the regular season (five times under Ferentz) and the 11th 10-win season in program history (eight under Ferentz).
  • Sweet November. Iowa has won 18 of its last 19 games in the month of November, dating back to 2019.
  • Woody, Amos & Kirk… Ferentz’s has 196 career wins as a member of the Big Ten Conference, the third-most all-time, trailing only Woody Hayes (205) and Amos Alonzo Stagg (1999). Iowa’s win over Illinois moved Ferentz past Michigan’s Bo Schembechler.
  • Iowa defensive coordinator Phil Parker is a finalist for the Broyles Award for the first time in his career. The honor goes to the nation’s top assistant coach.
  • MM for 3… K Marshall Meeder, a transfer from Central Michigan, kicked a game-winning 38-yard field goal to lift Iowa past Nebraska in Lincoln. It was Meeder’s first career game and first career kick as a Hawkeye. He is the third player since 2018 to kick a game-winning field goal against the Huskers (Miguel Recinos, 2018; Keith Duncan, 2019).
  • RB Leshon Williams recorded his third 100-yard game of the season, rushing for 111 yards on 16 attempts at Nebraska. He had a 53-yard rush in the second quarter and a 22-yarder on Iowa’s final possession to set up the game-winning field goal.
  • P Tory Taylor broke the single season punting yardage record for a third consecutive season. He has 79 punts for a record 3,766 yards in 2023.
  • CLUTCH… The Hawkeyes are 5-1 in 2023 in games decided by seven points or less.
4

Iowa’s defense ranks fourth nationally, giving up 12.2 points per game. The Hawkeyes have allowed three touchdowns over their last 24 quarters, five touchdowns over the past 32 periods and 13 total touchdowns in 2023.

1981

The 12.2 scoring average would be the best for the Iowa program since 1981 (11.7 points).

5

The Hawkeyes finished the regular season with a 7-2 Big Ten record. It is the fifth time the Hawkeyes have won at least seven league contests under Ferentz

232

LB Jay Higgins and LB Nick Jackson have combined for 232 tackles this season -- the highest by a Power 5 tandem in the nation.

3-0

The Hawkeyes are 3-0 this season when not committing a turnover.

71-2

Since the start of the 2015 season, Iowa is 71-2 when leading by eight points at any point in a game.

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B1G WEST DIVISION CHAMPIONS

  • The Hawkeyes clinched an outright Big Ten West Division title and a trip to Indianapolis for the Big Ten Championship Game with a 15-13 victory over Illinois on Nov. 18 in Kinnick Stadium. It is the third Big Ten West Division crown in program history and its second in three seasons (2015, 2021, 2023).

10 & COUNTING

  • The Hawkeyes notched their 10th victory in the 13-10 walk-off road win at Nebraska on Nov. 24. It is the seventh time the Hawkeyes have recorded their 10th victory during the regular season, including five under head coach Kirk Ferentz.
  • It is the 11th time in program history that the team has reached the 10-win mark (1985, 1987, 1991, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2009, 2015, 2019, 2021, 2023).
  • The Hawkeyes finished the regular season with a 7-2 Big Ten record. It is the fifth time the Hawkeyes have won at least seven league contests under Ferentz (2002, 2004, 2015, 2021, 2023).

HAWKEYES IN THE BIG TEN CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

  • Iowa is 0-2 in Big Ten Championship Game history.
  • Michigan State used a 22-play, 84-yard scoring drive in the fourth quarter — a drive that spanned 9:04 — to score the game-winning touchdown with 27 seconds left to down Iowa, 16-13, in 2015. The Spartan win spoiled Iowa’s undefeated season.
  • Michigan led 14-3 in the first quarter and scored 21 points in the second half to down the Hawkeyes 42-3 in the 2021 Big Ten Championship Game. Iowa QB Cade McNamara and TE Erick All were members of that Wolverines’ team.

SERIES HISTORY

  • Michigan holds a 44-15-4 advantage in the series that began with a 28-5 Iowa win in 1900. The first meeting between the two teams was played in Detroit and the second in Chicago.
  • The Wolverines have won the last three meetings, including a 27-14 victory last season in Kinnick Stadium.
  • It is the second meeting in the Big Ten Championship Game. The Wolverines won, 42-3, in 2021 in Indianapolis.

SERIES RESULTS

11/10/1900 W 28-5 (A)
11/28/1901 L 0-50 (A)
11/8/1902 L 0-107 (A)
11/3/1923 L 3-9 (H)
11/1/1924 W 9-2 (A)
11/22/1928 L 7-10 (
11/23/1929 T 0-0 (A)
11/11/1933 L 6-10 (A)
10/23/1937 L 6-7 (H)
10/14/1939 L 7-27 (A)
10/4/1941 L 0-6 (A)
11/28/1942 L 14-28 (#9) (A
10/5/1946 L 7-14 (A)
10/20/1951 L 0-21 (H)
10/10/1953 L 13-14 (#5) (A)
10/9/1954 L 13-14 (#11) (A)
10/29/1955 L 21-33 (#3) (A)
11/3/1956 L 14-17 (#17) (H)
11/2/1957 T 21-21 (#12) (A)
11/1/1958 W 37-14 (A)
11/18/1961 L 14-23 (A)
11/17/1962 W 28-14 (H)
11/16/1963 T 21-21 (A)
11/14/1964 L 20-34 (#6) (H)
11/15/1969 L 6-51 (#14) (H)
11/14/1970 L 0-55 (#5) (A)
11/6/1971 L 7-63 (#3) (A)
11/11/1972 L 0-31 (#4) (H)
9/15/1973 L 7-31 (#5) (H)
9/14/1974 L 7-24 (#6) (A)
10/29/1977 L 6-23 (#6) (A)
11/4/1978 L 0-34 (#8) (H)
10/17/1981 W 9-7 (#5) (A)
10/16/1982 L 7-29 (H)
10/22/1983 L 13-16 (#10) (A)
10/20/1984 W 26-0 (H)
10/19/1985 W 12-10 (#2) (H)
10/18/1986 L 17-20 (#4) (A)
10/17/1987 L 10-37 (A)
10/15/1988 T 17-17 (#15) (H)
10/21/1989 L 12-26 (#5) (H)
10/20/1990 W 24-23 (#10) (A)
10/5/1991 L 24-43 (#7) (H)
10/3/1992 L 28-52 (#4) (A)
10/2/1993 L 7-24(#8) (A)
10/1/1994 L 14-29 (#7) (H)
10/18/1997 L 24-28 (#5) (A)
10/03/1998 L 9-12 (#25) (H)
10/27/2001 L 26-32 (#8) (H)
10/26/2002 W 34-9 (#8) (A)
10/4/2003 W 30-27(#9) (H)
9/25/2004 L 17-30 (#18) (A)
10/22/2005 L 20-23 (OT) (H)
10/21/2006 L 6-20 (#2) (A)
10/10/2009 W 30-28 (H)
10/16/2010 W 38-28 (A)
11/5/2011 W 24-16 (#13) (H)
11/17/2012 L 17-42 (#23) (A)
11/23/2013 W 24-21 (H)
11/12/2016 W 14-13 (#2) (H)
10/5/2019 L 3-10 (#19) (A)
12/4/2021 L 3-42 (#2) (N) (Indianapolis)
10/1/2022 L 14-27 (#4) (H)

UNLIKELY HEROES
UNLIKELY HEROES
  • The Hawkeyes had two unlikely heroes — DL Ethan Hurkett and K Marshall Meeder — who were instrumental in propelling Iowa to a Heroes Game victory over Nebraska in Lincoln.
  • Hurkett picked a good time to record his first career interception — on Nebraska’s final offensive series — as he dropped into zone coverage, intercepted QB Chubba Purdy and returned it 16 yards to the Husker 37 to set up Iowa’s game-winning field goal. The Cedar Rapids, Iowa, native led the team with a career-high nine tackles and 1.5 TFL in the game.
  • Meeder, who transferred to Iowa from Central Michigan and joined the team two weeks prior to the start of the season, will go down in Hawkeye lore after drilling a game-winning 38-yard field goal as time expired. It was Meeder’s first career game as a Hawkeye and his first attempt of the season.
  • It was Iowa’s second game-winning field goal this season as Drew Stevens made a game-winner in Week 9 in the road win at Northwestern.

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