Iowa vs. Iowa State: Grades

By Brendan Stiles

HawkeyeDrive.com

IOWA CITY, Iowa — The No. 9 Iowa Hawkeyes defeated the Iowa State Cyclones on Saturday, 37-7. The win puts Iowa at 2-0.

Below are the grades I would give each group of players:

Quarterbacks — A-

Ricky Stanzi avoided throwing interceptions for the second consecutive week and completed 11-of-18 passes for 204 yards. He threw two touchdown passes to Marvin McNutt and Allen Reisner, and ran in for a score from one yard out. The Mentor, Ohio native also completed some deep passes, including a 66-yard strike to McNutt and a 55-yard reception from Reisner.

Running Backs — A

Adam Robinson and Jewel Hampton combined for 34 carries and 240 yards rushing in the 28-point victory. It didn’t matter which back was in, both were very effective. Robinson had a 75-yard run, the longest of his career, as well as a 39-yard touchdown run. Both had runs where they exhibited power and speed.

Wide Receivers — B+

The wideouts looked better against Iowa State than they did the week prior against Eastern Illinois. Marvin McNutt had a 66-yard reception and also caught a 9-yard touchdown pass on the Hawkeyes’ opening possession. Derrell Johnson-Koulianos got the start this week and led the way in terms of receptions with five.

Tight Ends — A-

Allen Reisner had three catches and finished with 66 receiving yards. One of those catches was on a play that resulted in 55 yards, and another was a two-yard touchdown reception in the first half.

Offensive Line — A-

Once again, the O-Line dominated the trenches. Iowa showed a balance on offense, and it was primarily because the guys up front created holes for the backs and gave Stanzi time in the pocket to look down field.

Defensive Line — A-

Again, the defensive stats may not have been an indicator, but I thought the D-Line was much more effective against Iowa State than against Eastern Illinois. It was a big reason why Iowa State running back Alexander Robinson didn’t crack the century mark in rushing yards like he did last season, and why the Cyclones only had a total of 78 yards on the ground.

Linebackers — B+

The linebacking corps was better this week. Jeff Tarpinian returned and started at middle linebacker, leading the Hawkeyes with 11 tackles on the afternoon. Tyler Nielsen recorded a third-quarter interception as well. Those two, along with Jeremiha Hunter, Bruce Davis, and Troy Johnson, all saw plenty of action against Iowa State.

Secondary — B+

Shaun Prater’s return to the starting line-up at cornerback proved big, as he recorded an interception on the Cyclones’ opening series of the second half. Brett Greenwood also had an interception in the third quarter with Iowa State’s offense threatening. Tyler Sash, while not getting a pick, did have a solid game for the Hawkeyes.

Special Teams — B

The good was this: Ryan Donahue had a decent game punting, Michael Meyer had a couple of touchbacks on kickoffs, and Trent Mossbrucker was again 5-for-5 on PATS. Now with that said, the Cyclones did break a couple of big kickoff returns in this game. Also not much in the return game for Iowa on Saturday, kickoff or punt.

Overall — A

Considering that Iowa State might be more talented this season than it was in 2009, this year’s win over the Cyclones might be more impressive. Once again, Iowa dictated the tempo of this game on both sides of the ball from the very start. Iowa State never had a chance to climb back in it. Forget that one score Iowa State had because it came with the back-ups in on defense. This was as complete a performance as Hawkeye fans could have asked for out of their team, and this type of win can lead to the sort of confidence needed to enter a place like Arizona next week. On top of that, this was a rivalry game, so any 28-point win over a hated rival is going to be worthy of a good grade.

“BIG UPS”

My player of the game will get “Big Ups” from me (For those new toHawkeyeDrive.com, I’ll give these out on Twitter every now and then). After No. 9 Iowa’s  win over Iowa State, I was left with a difficult decision and ultimately gave them to quarterback Ricky Stanzi.

It was challenging because the running game was effective for the Hawkeyes, and Adam Robinson did rush for 156 yards on 14 carries. But I chose Stanzi not only because of his three scores (two through the air, one on the ground), but because of some of the other big plays he made. He completed a 66-yard pass to Marvin McNutt which set up his touchdown toss to Allen Reisner, and later threw a dart to Reisner that went for 55 yards. In a game where quarterback play was going to be essential, Stanzi delivered for the Hawkeyes, thus he is worthy of “Big Ups.”

2010 BIG UPS TALLY:

9/4/2010: Iowa 37, Eastern Illinois 7 — Adam Robinson

9/11/2010: Iowa 35, Iowa State 7 — Ricky Stanzi