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An American football player in a black uniform with the number 22 runs toward the end zone as teammates and spectators cheer.An American football player in a black uniform with the number 22 runs toward the end zone as teammates and spectators cheer.
Football

Hawkeyes Roll Past Boilermakers, 28-7

No. 15 Iowa defeated Purdue, 28-7, on Saturday night on Duke Slater Field at Kinnick Stadium.

Opens in a new window Box Score (PDF)
Box Score

IOWA CITY, Iowa – No. 15 Iowa defeated Purdue, 28-7, on Saturday night on Duke Slater Field at Kinnick Stadium.

The Hawkeyes totaled 434 yards of offense and 26 first downs while holding the Boilermakers to 303 yards and 16 first downs. Iowa rushed for 246 yards, converted 10-of-15 third-down attempts and held Purdue to a season-low seven points.

Hank Brown completed 20-of-29 pass attempts for 188 yards and one touchdown. Brown also rushed for 32 yards and a touchdown.

L.J. Phillips Jr. led Iowa's rushing attack with 123 yards on 23 carries. Xavier Williams added 55 yards and a touchdown, while Tony Diaz rushed for 25 yards and a score.

Diaz led Iowa's receiving corps with five receptions for 45 yards. Braeden Jackson added four catches for 61 yards and a touchdown, while DJ Vonnahme had four receptions for 29 yards and Reece Vander Zee hauled in three catches for 31 yards.

Defensively, Zach Lutmer led Iowa with 10 tackles and an interception. Cam Buffington added eight tackles, while Jayden Montgomery recorded seven tackles. Bryce Hawthorne registered a tackle for loss, and Kenneth Merriweather and Parker Ries each recorded a quarterback hurry as the Hawkeyes limited Purdue to 99 rushing yards. 

Caden Buhr was 4-for-4 on PAT attempts as Iowa scored touchdowns on four of its first five possessions.

QUOTING KIRK FERENTZ

"Obviously, really happy for our players, happy to get the win. Thought it was a really good performance by our guys. Certainly, there are some things to clean up, but talk about November football, it's an important time for every football team, at least in college football.

And it really just comes down to having good preparation. The players have had a great attitude in preparing. It's a little bit different than it is earlier in the season from a physical standpoint. Coaches obviously have to give the guys a great plan, and then most importantly, you got to show up and play. I think our guys have done a really good job of that. So happy for them and proud of them that way.

Offensively, started out, a couple of touchdown drives on two out of our first three possessions. Certainly good to see. They came back and got a score, and then we responded with that two-minute drive right before the halftime, and obviously Braden Jackson, he's done a great job all season long and big spark play there right before the half.

Good to come out in the second half. We haven't been on offense very much to start the second half, and took the ball and drove it. To that point, we're doing a lot better I think coming out of halftime the last couple weeks and that's something we've kind of been lukewarm on. So that's a good thing as well. But, again, just a good start to the whole deal. This is three straight weeks now I think where we're playing a little better tempo, and happy to see that.

Run game certainly a little bit better today. L.J. gave us a good boost there, and with Kamari being out, that's certainly important when you always talk about the next man up and also talk about good stories, and I think that group's doing a good job. But good to see L.J. running healthy and doing that.

Defensively, felt like we gave up a million yards at certain parts of the game, but end of the day, we gave up seven points, and if you do that, you got a chance to win. So happy about that. Great kickoff coverage by our special teams, and then it just came up short in some other areas and we'll go back to work on that. But just overall, just happy with the team. November does go quick, and we're down to 13 days now, two games, 13 days, so it's going to happen fast. And it's just about right now not getting distracted, not thinking about things we don't need to think about, and really staying focused on what's in front of us. But I told the players, enjoy this one, they earned it, do it smartly because again the time clock is running right now, but just really proud of our guys, and happy for them."

PHOTOS

HOW IT HAPPENED 

  • Purdue missed a 38-yard field goal attempt on its opening possession after the kick hit the left upright.
  • Iowa struck first with 3:19 remaining in the opening quarter. QB Hank Brown capped a 15-play, 80-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown run to give the Hawkeyes a 7-0 lead.
  • The Hawkeyes extended the advantage to 14-0 with 6:35 left in the second quarter when Tony Diaz scored on a 14-yard touchdown run to finish an eight-play, 66-yard drive.
  • Purdue got on the board late in the second quarter with a 3-yard touchdown pass, cutting the deficit to 14-7 with 1:49 remaining before halftime.
  • Iowa answered before the break, marching 83 yards in 11 plays before Brown found Braeden Jackson for a 44-yard touchdown pass on third-and-10 with five seconds remaining in the half. The score sent the Hawkeyes to the locker room with a 21-7 lead.
  • Iowa added its final touchdown on the opening drive of the second half. Xavier Williams broke free for a 48-yard touchdown run, capping a seven-play, 75-yard drive and pushing the Hawkeye lead to 28-7 with 11:07 remaining in the third quarter.
  • Zach Lutmer sealed Iowa's lone takeaway late in the third quarter, intercepting a Purdue pass  for a touchback.
  • Neither team scored over the final 15:51 as the Hawkeyes secured the 28-7 victory.

POSTGAME NOTES

  • The victory is Iowa’s ninth straight win under the lights in Kinnick, dating back to the 2022 season.
  • Iowa has won 25 of its last 30 games in the month of November dating back to 2019.
  • The Hawkeyes have now won eight or more games 17 times under head coach Kirk Ferentz.

INDIVIDUAL NOTES

  • QB Hank Brown completed 20-of-29 attempts for 188 yards and one touchdown – a 44-yarder to Braeden Jackson. He also had 10 rushes for 32 yards and one touchdown.
    • Brown had a 1-yard touchdown run in the first quarter. It was his second straight game with a rushing touchdown, third this season and fourth of his career.
    • Brown’s 44-yard touchdown pass is Iowa’s longest of the season. He now has 10 touchdown passes this season and 17 for his career.
  • RB L.J. Phillips, Jr., notched his second straight 100-yard game, finishing with 23 carries for 123 yards.
    • He is the first Hawkeye since Kaleb Johnson to go over the 100-yard mark in consecutive games.
    • It was Phillips’ second 100-yard game this season and the 11th of his career.
  • RB Xavier Williams had a 48-yard touchdown run on his first carry of the game in the third quarter, tying his career long rush. He has four rushing touchdowns this season.
  • WR Tony Diaz had a 14-yard rushing touchdown in the second quarter for his first career score on the ground.
    • Diaz has found the end zone in three straight games (two receiving, one rushing) and has four touchdowns this season.
  • RB Braeden Jackson had a career-long 44-yard touchdown reception on a screen pass late in the second quarter. It was Iowa’s longest touchdown reception this season.
    • It is his second career touchdown catch and his sixth overall touchdown this season.
    • Jackson is the first Big Ten player with 2+ rushing TDs, 2+ receiving TDs and 2+ kickoff return TDs in a season since Iowa’s Ihmir Smith-Marsette in 2019. He is the first FBS freshman to do this in a season since Oregon’s De’Anthony Thomas in 2011.
  • DB Zach Lutmer had a team-high 10 tackles and he had his first interception of the season (fifth of his career) in the third quarter.
    • This was his fourth double-digit tackle game of the season and of his career.

MISCELLANEOUS

  • Iowa’s offense had 434 yards of total offense – the unit’s fourth 400+ yard game this season.
    • The 434 yards are the 7th-most under OC Tim Lester and second-most against a Power 5 opponent.
  • Iowa’s rushing attack finished with 246 yards – the unit’s fourth game with 200+ yards this season.
    • The Hawkeyes have rushed for 200+ yards 17 times under Lester. The team is 16-1 in such contests.
  • Iowa held Purdue to a season-low seven points. The Boilermakers entered the game averaging 29.4 points per game.
  • The Hawkeyes converted 10-of-15 third downs in the game.
  • Iowa finished the game with 26 first downs – its fifth game with 20+ first downs this season.
  • The Hawkeyes marched 80 yards over 15 plays for a touchdown on its opening drive. The 15-play drive was the team’s longest drive of the season.
    • The Hawkeyes have scored a touchdown on their opening drive in consecutive games and four times this season. Iowa has scored points on its opening drive six times in 10 games. 
    • Iowa has scored opening drive TDs in back-to-back games (of the same season) for the first time since Nov. 16-23, 2019.
  • Iowa’s defense limited Purdue to 99 yards rushing, holding its fifth opponent under the 100-yard mark.
  • The defense has allowed three touchdowns over the last 16 quarters (four games).
  • Iowa finished +1 in turnover margin in the game, courtesy of a third-quarter interception. The Hawkeyes are 80-5 under DC Phil Parker when winning the turnover battle.
  • It was the first game since Oct. 29, 2022, vs. Northwestern that Iowa didn’t punt in the first half.
  • Iowa is now 23-3 since 2023 when reaching the 21-point mark first in a game.
  • Purdue won the toss and elected to receive. The Hawkeyes have played 351 games under head coach Kirk Ferentz. Iowa has opened the game on offense 259 times (168-91). The Hawkeyes have opened the game on defense 92 times (53-39).

UP NEXT

Iowa returns to action Saturday, traveling to Champaign to face Illinois at 1:30 p.m. (CT).  The game will be televised on BTN.