Hawkeyes throttle Cyclones, keep possession of Cy-Hawk Trophy
Posted on 11. Sep, 2010 by admin in Iowa Football
By Brendan Stiles
HawkeyeDrive.com
IOWA CITY, Iowa — If there is a word to best describe the No. 9 Iowa Hawkeyes, it’s “determined.”
The Hawkeye offense was determined to get off to a fast start again. The defense was determined to practice the “six seconds of hell” preached by defensive coordinator Norm Parker.
A determined Iowa squad wasn’t letting the Cy-Hawk Trophy out of its sight, and it didn’t. The Hawkeyes defeated Iowa State 35-7 on Saturday, improving to 2-0 on this young 2010 season.
This marks the third straight win in this annual series for the Hawkeyes, who have now outscored the Cyclones 87-14 in those past three meetings.
Much like Iowa’s contest last week with Eastern Illinois, the Hawkeyes scored on each of their first two drives, both of which accumulated 71 yards.
It began with a mixture of a ground attack led by sophomore running back Adam Robinson and an aerial assault led by senior quarterback Ricky Stanzi. The culmination of Iowa’s opening series of 13 plays was a 9-yard touchdown pass from Stanzi to junior wide receiver Marvin McNutt.
After the Hawkeye defense forced a three-and-out on the Cyclones’ opening possession, the offense had a blend of Stanzi’s arm and the legs of sophomore running back Jewel Hampton, making his first appearance in a game since the 2009 Outback Bowl against South Carolina.
A 16-play series that carried over into the second quarter was capped by a 2-yard touchdown run from Hampton, putting Iowa ahead 14-0.
The Hawkeyes then took a 21-0 lead when Stanzi found McNutt for a 66-yard completion, followed by a 2-yard touchdown pass to senior tight end Allen Reisner on a play-action pass the Iowa State defense bit on.
Just before halftime, Robinson burst for a 75-yard run, and was brought down at the 1-yard line. Stanzi was able to punch the ball in to give Iowa a 28-0 lead heading into the locker room.
“That was pretty much the most enjoyable first half of football I have ever been a part of,” senior offensive lineman Julian Vandervelde said. “The game plan was working, we were blocking well, the running backs were running hard.
“You got a rival opponent in Iowa State, somebody you’re looking to come out and start fast on, and really hit them in the mouth. We were able to do that.”
Stanzi finished 11-of-18 passing for 204 yards and two touchdowns.
Robinson had his second straight 100-yard rushing game, compiling 156 yards on 14 carries. Hampton, meanwhile, had 84 yards on 20 carries. Robinson got the start, but the two alternated series for the majority of the contest.
“You can’t say enough about those two,” sophomore left tackle Riley Reiff said about Robinson and Hampton. “They run the ball hard, and they both are a wrecking crew. It’s awesome to block for those guys.”
The offense was the showcase of the first half, then it was the Iowa defense taking over in the second half.
Iowa State quarterback Austen Arnaud had a day to forget, completing 20-of-44 passes for one touchdown and three interceptions. The touchdown scored by the Cyclones came with 1:51 remaining in the game, and was the first touchdown scored by Iowa State in this series since 2006.
As for the three interceptions, they were all consecutive courtesy of junior cornerback Shaun Prater, senior safety Brett Greenwood, and junior Tyler Nielsen, respectively.
Prater made his return to the Hawkeye starting line-up after missing last week’s game with Eastern Illinois due to a leg strain that had bothered him throughout the summer. Also returning to the Iowa defense was senior linebacker Jeff Tarpinian, who had been dealing with a hand injury. Tarpinian led the defense was 11 tackles on Saturday.
Iowa State was held to a mere 78 yards on the ground Saturday, a stark contrast from the 190 rushing yards the Hawkeyes surrendered last season in Ames.
“All week, we were kind of saying we didn’t play up to Iowa defense standards last year,” Tarpinian said. “We wanted to go out and prove that wrong, and keep them contained in the rush game.”
This determined group of Hawkeyes will now take their act on the road for the first time next week, traveling to Tucson, Ariz., for a date with the Arizona Wildcats. Iowa defeated Arizona last season at Kinnick Stadium, 27-17.
“There are a lot of challenges involved, and we just got to be ready to go at kickoff,” Stanzi said. “The best way to do that is to prepare this week.”
Kickoff is scheduled for 9:30 p.m. Central on Sept. 18. The game against Arizona will be televised by ESPN.
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