2006 Iowa Hawkeyes

2006 Iowa Hawkeyes Season, Game Recaps, Scores and Reviews

Dec. 30
Alamo Bowl
Texas 26 ... Iowa 24
Texas overcame a rough start and held on by running off most of the final few minutes once the momentum had shifted. Iowa came out on fire going 77 yards in nine plays finishing with a one-yard Albert Young run and getting a 63-yard catch-and-run for a score from Andy Brodell for an early 14-0 lead. Texas slowed down the bleeding with a 27-yard Ryan Bailey field goal, but needed a big break as Iowa appeared to go up 21-3 on a pass to Scott Chandler that was called back on a questionable penalty. Iowa didn't score, and Texas took advantage going 80 yards in 13 plays finishing with a 20-yard scoring pass to Limas Sweed in the final minute of the first half. The Longhorns finally took the lead midway through the third quarter on a 72-yard touchdown catch from Jamaal Charles, but Iowa came back to retake the lead on a 23-yard Brodell catch. Texas answered on its next drive finishing a long drive with a two-yard Selvin Young touchdown run. Iowa pulled within two on a 38-yard field goal with 6:20 to play, but couldn't get back in scoring range.
Player of the game ... Texas QB Colt McCoy completed 26 of 40 passes for 308 yards and two touchdowns
Stat Leaders: Texas - Passing: Colt McCoy, 26-40, 308 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Jamaal Charles, 4-26. Receiving: Jermichael Finley, 8-46
Iowa - Passing: Drew Tate, 15-25, 274 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Albert Young, 13-64, 1 TD  Receiving: Andy Brodell, 6-159, 2 TD
Notes & Thoughts ... Texas might have beaten Iowa, but the win shouldn't mask some major problems in the coaching and with how the team performed. Despite all its talent, the running game never got going finishing with a mere 70 yards, while the secondary full of top NFL prospects gave up too many big plays. Iowa might have been pumped up, but Texas should've won in a walk on speed and athleticism alone. ... As this game proved, Colt McCoy was the most valuable player in the Big 12. It's a completely different Longhorn team with him at close to 100%. ... Where did Andy Brodell come from? The Iowa receiver blew past the Texas secondary like it wasn't even there. It's a shame Drew Tate wasn't healthy all season long. He showed how good he could be when he's right. ... Even in a loss, this was a good showing for the Big Ten. Texas was a national title caliber team that almost got beat by an also-ran.

2006 Schedule CFN Prediction: 11-1 2006 Record: 6-7 Preview 2006 predicted wins
9/2	Montana  W 41-7
9/9	at Syrac. W 20-13 2OT
9/16	Iowa State W 27-17
9/23	at Illinois W 24-7
9/30	Ohio State L 38-17
10/7	Purdue W 47-17
10/14	at Indiana L 31-28
10/21	at Michigan L 20-6
10/28	Northern Illinois W 24-14
11/4	Northwestern L 21-7
11/11	Wisconsin L 24-21
11/18	at Minnesota L 34-24
12/30	Alamo Bowl Texas L 26-24

2005 Schedule CFN Prediction: 9-2 2005 Record: 7-5 Preview 2005 predicted wins
9/3	Ball State W 56-0
9/10	at Iowa State L 23-3
9/17	Northern Iowa W 45-21
9/24	at Ohio State L 31-6
10/1	Illinois W 35-7
10/8	at Purdue W 34-17
10/15	Indiana W 38-21
10/22	Michigan L 23-20 OT
11/5	at Northwestern L 28-27
11/12	at Wisconsin W 20-10
11/19	Minnesota W 52-28
1/2	Outback Bowl Florida L 31-24

Nov. 18
Minnesota 34 ... Iowa 24
Minnesota broke open a tight game with a eight-yard touchdown catch from Matt Spaeth and a 25-yard Amir Pinnix scoring run. Pinnix started off the scoring with a ten-yard dash, and the passing game came through with a  64-yard bomb to Ernie Wheelwright to give the Gophers the lead for good. Iowa's Drew Tate threw for 354 yards with a 50-yard touchdown pass to Andy Brodell and a three-yard pass to Scott Chandler, but he threw three interceptions and was benched for a period. The Hawkeyes outgained the Gophers 546 yards to 459, but five turnovers did them in.
Player of the game ... Minnesota RB Amir Pinnix ran for 119 yards and two touchdowns on 23 carries and had a pair of catches for 10 yards.
Stat Leaders: Iowa - Passing: Drew Tate, 26-36, 354 yds, 2 TDs, 3 INTs
Rushing: Albert Young, 25-133, 1 TD Receiving: Andy Brodell, 7-159, 1 TD
Minnesota - Passing: Bryan Cupito, 18-30, 267 yds, 2 TDs, 1 INT
Rushing: Amir Pinnix, 23-119, 2 TDs  Receiving: Logan Payne, 7-64
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Ugh. A three game losing streak and losses in five of the final six games isn't the way Iowa pictured this season going. Missed plays and dropped passes were the problem against Wisconsin last week, while turnovers were the problem against Minnesota. Drew Tate suffered the ultimate indignity of getting benched for a period, but he came back with his best drive of the game. 2-6 in Big Ten play isn't going to sit well this off-season no matter how the bowl game goes.

Nov. 11
Wisconsin 24 ... Iowa 21
Wisconsin's Tyler Donovan filled in for an injured John Stocco and threw a thee-yard touchdown pass to Travis Beckum and a 42-yard jump ball for a touchdown to Luke Swan for a 17-14 first half lead, but it was a 97-yard drive in the fourth quarter culminating in a one-yard P.J. Hill scoring run to get the points needed to put it away. Iowa had its chances pulling within three on a 24-yard Trey Stross touchdown catch, but two late drives stalled on dropped passes on fourth down. Drew Tate threw three touchdowns passes including two short scoring throws in the second quarter.
Player of the game ... Wisconsin QB Tyler Donovan completed 17 of 24 passes for 228 yards and two touchdowns
Stat Leaders: Iowa - Passing: Drew Tate, 10-31, 170 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Damien Sims, 7-53. Receiving: Andy Brodell, 2-18
Wisconsin - Passing: Tyler Donovan, 17-24, 228 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: P.J. Hill, 28-77, 1 TD. Receiving: Travis Beckum, 8-70, 1 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... The loss to Wisconsin summed up the season. There were a few moments when Iowa looked like Iowa with big plays, good execution, and nice stretches on both sides of the ball, but there breakdowns on defense in key spots and worst of all, drops on fourth downs late that would've kept drives alive. With four losses in the last five games and a 2-5 Big Ten record, this was not the season the Hawkeyes were planning for, and things could get a whole lot worse if there isn't a sharp performance at Minnesota next week. Drew Tate started to play like Drew Tate against Wisconsin, and now he has to finish up by being even better.

Nov. 4
Northwestern 21 ... Iowa 7
Northwestern forced three turnovers with a big day from the defense and a balanced performance from the offense getting a five-yard Tyrell Sutton touchdown run in the first quarter, a seven-yard scoring catch from Eric Peterman in the second, and a 34-yard Terrell Jordan touchdown run late in the fourth to put it away. Iowa never got on track and had problems getting a big play only scoring on a three-yard Damian Sims run in the third quarter.
Player of the game ... Northwestern RB Tyrell Sutton ran 28 times for 168 yards and a touchdown and caught five passes for 35 yards
Stat Leaders: Iowa - Passing: Drew Tate, 18-27, 147 yds, 2 INT
Rushing: Albert Young, 18-72.  Receiving: Dominique Douglas, 7-77
Northwestern - Passing: C.J. Bacher, 19-29, 218 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Tyrell Sutton, 28-168, 1 TD. Receiving: Ross Lane, 5-52
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Disastrous. Absolutely disastrous. Iowa has no business losing at home to lowly Northwestern as part of a four-game Big Ten losing streak. There were too many mistakes, too many defensive breakdowns, and not any big plays down the field as the Wildcat defense let Drew Tate complete the short passes and then came up with the pop. Now that any hope of going to a New Year's Day game is gone, it's all about finishing strong needing to rebound in a hurry to beat Wisconsin and turn things around. A nine-win season is still possible.

Oct. 28
Iowa 24 ... Northern Illinois 14
Redshirt freshman Jake Christensen stepped in with Drew Tate out and threw two touchdown passes to go along with a seven-yard Albert Young scoring run to get by NIU. Down 17-0 going into the fourth quarter, the Huskies wend on two long scoring drives with Garrett Wolfe pounding it in from a yard out and getting a 25-yard touchdown catch from Britt Davis, but the Hawkeyes went on an 80-yard drive of its own to answered with a ten-yard Scott Chandler scoring catch. NIU's two final drives ended in turnovers.
Player of the game ... Iowa RB Albert Young ran 25 times for 124 yards and a touchdown and caught three passes for 23 yards.
Stat Leaders: Iowa - Passing: Jake Christensen, 19-30, 256 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Albert Young, 25-124, 1 TD.  Receiving: Scott Chandler, 5-63, 1 TD
Northern Illinois - Passing: Phil Horvath, 15-30, 123 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Garrett Wolfe, 22-66, 1 TD. Receiving: Brandon Davis, 4-17
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Iowa didn't quite come up with an explosive, complete performance against Northern Illinois, but it showed it could win without Drew Tate at the helm and got Jake Christensen, the future of the program, some critical work. The linebackers did a great job of keeping Garrett Wolfe in check, and now they'll need to keep up the pressure against Northwestern's struggling spread offense. Now that bowl eligibility is there, it's time to make a big push for a New Year's Day spot over the last three weeks.

Oct. 21
Michigan 20 ... Iowa 6
Michigan's defense held Iowa to 41 rushing yards and two third quarter Kyle Schlicher field goals while the offense got two Mike Hart touchdown runs and two Garrett Rivas field goals. Shawn Crable and LaMarr Woodley combined for five sacks as part of the consistent pressure on Iowa QB Drew Tate. The Hawkeye defense kept Michigan's offense in check only allowing 291 yards of total offense and forced an interception.
Player of the game ... Michigan's Shawn Crable and LaMarr Woodley combined for six tackles, five sacks, and two forced fumbles.
Stat Leaders: Iowa - Passing: Drew Tate, 21-36, 197 yds
Rushing: Damian Sims, 7-22. Receiving: Dominique Douglas, 6-63
Michigan - Passing: Chad Henne, 23-33, 203 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Mike Hart, 31-126, 2 TD. Receiving: Adrian Arrington, 8-79
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Iowa has proven to be merely average over the last few weeks failing to make the next step up in overall play, but the real problem has been Drew Tate. The senior hasn't been able to use his experience and talent to carry the team and make everyone around him better as one of the year's bigger disappointments. While he hasn't been bad, he hasn't taken his game to another level, and couldn't come up with any key plays to make the loss to Michigan more of a battle. Granted, he was under a heavy pass rush and didn't get much help from the running game, but a quarterback of his caliber needs to be one of the best players on the field, and he wasn't.

Oct. 14
Indiana 31 ... Iowa 28
Indiana stunned Iowa with three Kellen Lewis touchdown passes to James Hardy with a 20-yard strike to finish off the scoring midway through the fourth quarter. Iowa had chances including a late drive getting to the Indiana 41, but got stopped on a Will Meyers interception allowing the offense to run out the clock. Damian Sims ran for two one-yard scoring runs for the Hawkeyes and got up 21-7 in the first half on a 25-yard Herb Grigsby touchdown run, but the defense couldn't hold as the Hoosiers went on a 24-7 run over the final 34 minutes starting with a two-yard Lewis scoring run..
Player of the game ... Indiana WR James Hardy caught eight passes for 104 yards and three touchdowns.
Stat Leaders: Indiana - Passing: Kellen Lewis, 19-25, 255 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: Demetrius McCray, 13-84. Receiving: James Hardy, 8-104, 3 TD
Iowa - Passing: Drew Tate, 23-40, 292 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Damian Sims, 22-94, 2 TD. Receiving:
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Inexcusable. Did Iowa lack focus against Indiana with the big game against Michigan coming up? Injuries have been an issue, but the defense should've been far stronger against a Hoosier offense that found a way to make every big play, and a defense that somehow held up despite getting run on and thrown over all game long. There's no reason the Hawkeyes should only score seven points over the final 39 minutes of the game against a defense this soft. If Iowa can't handle the Hoosier D, what's it going to do against Michigan?

Oct. 7
Iowa 47 ... Purdue 17
Iowa ripped off 539 yards of total offense with all phases of the attack working in the easy win. Damien Sims, who filled in for an injured Albert Young, ran for two touchdowns and Drew Tate threw two touchdown passes, while the defense held the Boilermaker offense down early and finished off the scoring with a 98-yard interception return for a score form Adam Shada. Purdue got an 18-yard Greg Orton touchdown catch and a 16-yard Jaycen Taylor touchdown run in the second half, but most of the yards and big plays came in the second half when the game was out of reach.
Player of the game ... Iowa safety Miguel Merrick made 14 tackles and broke up a pass.
Stat Leaders: Iowa - Passing: Drew Tate, 17-23, 253 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Damian Sims, 20-155, 2 TD. Receiving: Dominique Douglas, 4-90
Purdue - Passing: Curtis Painter, 22-46, 249 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Kory Sheets, 14-73. Receiving: Dorien Bryant, 6-96
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Iowa got over the Ohio State loss in a big hurry with a hot start against Purdue to end any thoughts of this being a letdown week. Drew Tate was efficient and effective and Damian Sims was fantastic in place of Albert Young. Purdue's offense has been fantastic, but it didn't get rolling until the second half. As long as Tate plays like he did against the Boilermakers and as long as the defense can keep getting off to solid starts, Iowa has a shot to run the table. This win will look better and better as the year goes on.

Sept. 30
Ohio State 38 ... Iowa 17
Ohio State took the raucous Iowa crowd out of the game early with a 12-yard touchdown catch from Anthony Gonzalez 2:24 into the game, and stayed ahead the rest of the way. Troy Smith threw four touchdown passes and Gonzalez scored again on a brilliant, weaving 30-yard touchdown catch. Iowa got a four-yard touchdown catch from Andy Brodell and a 15-yard touchdown run from Albert Young, but the Buckeyes always stayed one step ahead turning a Marcus Freeman interception of Drew Tate into a 12-yard touchdown pass to Brian Robiskie.
Player of the game ... Ohio State QB Troy Smith completed 16 of 25 passes for 186 yards and four touchdowns  and ran seven times for 20 yards
Stat Leaders: Iowa - Passing: Drew Tate, 19-41, 249 yds, 1 TD, 3 INT
Rushing: Albert Young, 11-48, 1 TD. Receiving: Scott Chandler, 6-87
Ohio State - Passing: Troy Smith, 16-25, 186 yds, 4 TD
Rushing: Antonio Pittman, 25-117, 1 TD. Receiving: Ted Ginn, 7-69
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Iowa needed a perfect performance from its veteran leader, Drew Tate, to get by Ohio State, but he wasn't sharp. Was he pressing too much, or did he simply have problems with the Ohio State defense? A little of both. The Hawkeyes appeared to abandon the run a little too early putting the game in Tate's hands. It sort of worked since there were chances in the second half to make a big comeback, but time after time the Buckeyes came through. There's no shame in losing to the number one team in the country, but now the key will be to get the focus back in a hurry and now blow a winnable home game against Purdue. The secondary had better be far tighter next week.

Sept. 23
Iowa 24 ... Illinois 7
Iowa exploded for 21 points in just over four minutes late in the second half with a one-yard Damian Sims touchdown run, and a six-yard scoring dash from Albert Means, and a 35-yard scoring pass to Tony Moeaki. The Hawkeye offense sputtered a bit in the second half, but got up 24-0 on a 45-yard Kyle Schlicher field goal. Juice Williams threw a 31-yard touchdown pass to Jacob Willis midway through the fourth.
Player of the game ... Iowa RB Albert Young ran 14 times for 57 yards and a touchdown and caught six passes for 40 yards.
Stat Leaders: Iowa - Passing: Drew Tate, 17-27, 190 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Albert Young, 14-57, 1 TD. Receiving: Albert Young, 6-40
Illinois - Passing: Juice Williams, 9-32, 161 yds, 1 TD, 3 INT
Rushing: Pierre Thomas, 11-50. Receiving: Jacob Willis, 3-78, 1 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Iowa went through the motions against Illinois and won with ease, but there has to be some concern over how many yards the D allowed to an anemic offense. Granted, Iowa came up with four interceptions, but the third down defense wasn't all that tight and there wasn't nearly enough offense in the second half. The Hawkeyes might be 4-0, but they're not playing nearly well enough to beat Ohio State next week. Maybe the team is waiting to turn it on? As long as Drew Tate is efficient, Iowa has a shot.

Sept. 16
Iowa 27 ... Iowa State 17
Iowa bounced back from a 14-3 deficit with three Drew Tate touchdown passes including a 19-yard play to Tony Moeaki and a two-yard loft to Tom Busch as part of a 17-0 second half run. Iowa State's offense was solid early with Bret Meyer throwing an eight-yard scoring pass to Todd Blythe and running for a nine-yard score, but the Hawkeyes put the clamps down in the second half only allowing a 32-yard Bret Culbertson field goal.
Player of the game ... Iowa QB Drew Tate completed 26 of 38 passes for 274 yards and three touchdowns with an interception
Stat Leaders: Iowa - Passing: Drew Tate, 26-38, 274 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Albert Young, 18-57. Receiving: Dominique Douglas, 6-88
Iowa State - Passing: Bret Meyer, 15-31, 152 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Stevie Hicks, 15-74, 1 TD Receiving: Todd Blythe, 4-45, 1 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... What a difference Drew Tate makes. Tate is the attitude for the offense and the obvious leader making all the big plays when the team needs them the most. Iowa State looked great early and appeared on its way to yet another win in the rivalry, but Tate spread the ball around well, made a few big throws, and came up with the plays his counterpart, Bret Meyer, didn't. It would've been nice if Albert Young and the running game did a bit more. it will at Illinois next week.

Sept. 9
Iowa 20 ... Syracuse 13 2OT
Iowa stopped Syracuse seven times from the two-yard line to preserve an overtime win. Without QB Drew Tate, who didn't play with an abdominal injury, the Iowa offense sputtered all game long with Jason Manson throwing four interceptions and only one touchdown pass to Scott Chandler. The game went into overtime tied at ten after Pat Shadle nailed a 41-yard field goal as time ran out following a pass interference call. After a dropped pass in the end zone led to a Shadle 19-yard field goal, Iowa's Kyle Schlicher answered with a 26-yard strike. Albert Young scored from one yard out on Iowa's second OT possession, and it looked like the Orange would have no problems tying it up after a pass interference call got it down to the two, and another pass interference penalty gave SU four more downs. SU's Tony Fiammetta was stuffed on first and second down, and Perry Patterson was stuffed on a quarterback sneak on third down. After a timeout, SU tried a tricky running play that went nowhere with Pat Chiara getting stuffed by Iowa's Ken Iwebema.
Player of the game ... The entire Iowa defensive line for the seven stops from inside the two to hold on in overtime for the win.
Stat Leaders: Syracuse - Passing: Perry Patterson, 19-32, 186 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Curtis Brinkley, 11-53. Receiving: Taj Smith, 5-61
Iowa - Passing: Jason Manson, 14-28, 178 yds, 1 TD, 4 INT
Rushing: Albert Young, 14-58, 1 TD. Receiving: Scott Chandler, 6-65
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Does Drew Tate really mean that much to Iowa? Apparently so. Jason Manson simply didn't appear to be ready to handle the work against Syracuse, but he still walked out with a win thanks to a goal line stand for the ages. Iowa fans will be talking about the final sequence as long they play football in Iowa City; it was simply that impressive. To beat Iowa State next week, Tate has to be healthy, or else Manson has to stop turning the ball over. Albert Young won't get any room to move if defenses can continue to load up against the run.

Sept. 2
Iowa 41 ... Montana 7
Iowa outrushed Montana 166 yards to ten with Albert Young leading the way with a five-yard touchdown dash along with a five-yard scoring catch. Drew Tate threw short three touchdown passes and Austin Signor connected on field goals from 41 and 35 yards out. Montana only managed a seven-yard Eric Allen touchdown grab early in the third quarter.
Player of the game ... Iowa RB Albert Young ran 19 times for 93 yards and a touchdown and led the Hawkeyes with 55 yards and a touchdown on four catches.
Stat Leaders: Montana - Passing: Josh Swogger, 16-28, 123 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Greg Coleman, 12-13. Receiving: Eric Allen, 6-63, 1 TD
Iowa - Passing: Drew Tate, 15-28, 223 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: Albert Young, 19-93, 1 TD. Receiving: Albert Young, 4-55, 1 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Iowa might not have been as explosive against Montana as it usually is in opening games against Inferior teams, but it was a good game to get the new receivers involved and the new starting linebackers were solid against the run. Outside of an Albert Young fumble that led to the lone Montana score, this was a nearly flawless performance considering so many key new starters needed to get their feet wet in the opening game of the year.

2006 Iowa Preview

Iowa Preview | Offense | Defense | Depth Chart | Further Analysis

Some day, Iowa will have all the pieces put together on day one and then it'll really be time for the rest of the Big Ten to worry.

Every year, some preseason publication declares that it's the year Kirk Ferentz's team will finally win an outright Big Ten title and become the type of superpower that causes other teams to tremble. Ohio State gets the blood boiling. The Michigan game always gets circled on the calendar. Penn State, even during the down days, was a big date that got everyone fired up. Iowa, even after four straight January bowl appearances, just barely gets the blood pressure up.

And why is that?

Maybe it's because the team is always out of the national title hunt before the the leaves change colors.

It hasn't been just that Iowa always loses at least one early game to tumble out of the title race, it's that national fans can cross off the Hawkeyes after crushing losses like the 23-3 gaffe to Iowa State last year and the 44-7 blasting by Arizona State in 2004. Worse yet, Iowa has lost it's last three Big Ten openers. On the plus side, Ferentz and his staff has the team humming as the season goes on.

While it's always important to get off to a hot start, it's more important to be good in November, and that's where Iowa has succeeded going 9-2 over the last four ears in the most crucial of months. This year's team has just enough holes to fill that it might continue to follow the pattern and have a few problems early on before rocking and rolling late.

The offense will have few problems moving the ball with Drew Tate back to lead the attack for a third straight season and tailback Albert Young a burgeoning superstar running behind a talented, veteran line. The hole? The receiving corps. It's very fast and should be great by the end of the year, but it'll need time to develop.

The defense has the same issues. The defensive line that was a concern last season will be one of the Big Ten's best this year, but the linebacking corps won't be nearly as good and will need a few games to get rolling. The safeties are excellent, but the corners are green. All the problems on both sides of the ball aren't that big a deal and will all be fine; it's just going to take a few games. By that time, Iowa could be out of the hunt yet again.

So Iowa isn't going to win the national title. Would another January bowl game be so bad? With this schedule, it might be because ...

The Schedule: It's almost all that any Big Ten team could reasonably ask for. It's light enough for Iowa to get that time to jell playing Montana, at Syracuse, Iowa State, and at Illinois before dealing with Ohio State in Iowa City. The Hawkeyes catch a huge break not having to play Penn State, and not facing Michigan State this season isn't a bad thing. If you believe that the battle for the Floyd of Rosedale trophy at Minnesota will be like an Iowa home game, then the only road game on the slate to worry about is at Michigan. Win that, and get by the Buckeyes at home, and an unbeaten season is very likely.

Best Offensive Player: Senior QB Drew Tate. One of the Big Ten's toughest quarterbacks, Tate is also starting to grow into one of the smartest with improved accuracy and decision-making abilities. He might not always be the prettiest quarterback, but he always seems to find a way to get the job done.

Best Defensive Player: Junior DE Ken Iwebema. He turned into a flash of a pass rusher last year and should be even more dangerous this season with the rest of the front four good enough to take the heat off. Fine, so offenses will gameplan to stop Iwebema. That means Bryan Mattison will make plays at the other end, or quick tackles Matt Kroul and Mitch King will fly up the middle.

Key player to a successful season: Senior WR Calvin Davis. Herb Grigsby should be a reliable target on one side, and Scott Chandler will lead a strong group of tight ends, but it's Davis who has to shine at split end and become the consistent deep threat who opens things up for the rest of the offense.

The season will be a success if ... Iowa wins 11 games and comes up with at least a share of the Big Ten title. The Hawkeyes will be favored in every conference game but two (at Michigan and home against Ohio State). If this really is a Big Ten championship-caliber team, it splits the the two nasty games and beats everyone else.

Key game: Sept. 30 vs. Ohio State. It'll take an upset for Iowa to lose at home to Purdue, Northwestern or Wisconsin and on the road against Illinois, Indiana and Minnesota. A win in Kinnick Stadium over the Buckeyes would likely mean it's a one game season (October 21st at Michigan) for the title.

2005 Fun Stats: 
- First quarter scoring: Iowa 119 - Opponents 37
- Field goals in eight Big Ten games: Iowa 14 of 17 - Opponents 4 of 9
- Time of possession: Opponents 32:27 - Iowa 27:33

The Last Time Iowa…
…played in a bowl game…2005 (Outback Bowl vs. Florida)
…missed a bowl game…2000
…pitched a shutout…2005 (Ball State)
…was shutout…2000 (Illinois)
…scored 50 points…2005 (Minnesota)
…went undefeated…1922
…won a conference title…2004 (share, Big Ten)
…had a 3,000-yard passer…1988 (Chuck Hartlieb)
…had a 1,000-yard rusher…2005 (Albert Young)
…had a 1,000-yard receiver…2000 (Kevin Kasper)
…had a first-round draft choice…2006 (LB Chad Greenway)