Iowa – Iowa State
Time: 11 AM CT
Spread: IOW -2.5
Total: 48
Odds c/o 5dimes
Iowa began Week 1 with an easy 24-3 victory over Wyoming, and now it will take on instate rival Iowa State at 11 AM (CT) on ESPN Saturday. The Hawkeyes are narrow 2.5-point favorites in the affair, which features an over/under total of 48 points according to college football oddsmakers at 5dimes. Iowa State also was a Week 1 victor, winning 42-24 over Northern Iowa.
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IOWA STATE
In Iowa State’s victory, the Cyclones got 271 passing yards from quarterback Jacob Park on 27 of 35 passing. David Montgomery rushed for 82 yards on 14 carries (5.9 yards per) with a pair of TD runs. Montgomery’s top target was Allen Lazard, who caught eight passes for 108 yards. Hakeem Butler scored one of the two reception TDs with 75 yards on seven catches.
Defensively, Brian Peavy was huge with 10 tackles, including one for a loss, and Reggie Wilkerson, Joel Lanning and D’Andre Payne all had six tackles or more in the game, as well. The Cyclones also held Eli Dunne to 23 of 38 passing and forced three interceptions from the Northern Iowa quarterback. The defense was not outstanding because giving up 24 points was still suboptimal and the Panthers managed a score in every quarter, but with the Cyclones offense doing its thing, it was more than enough to emerge as the favored victors.
This week will present a much more heady challenge, despite the Cyclones having home field advantage in this one.
Iowa State is still attempting to build on last season’s weak 3-9 campaign, which saw the team go just 2-7 in Big 12 play. Park is a JUCO transfer and former play caller for Georgia, and he took the QB job from incumbent quarterback Joel Lanning by week 8 of last season. Park threw for 1,791 yards last season with 18 TDs and just five interceptions. Montgomery is the tailback and he won the starting position over Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year Mike Warren. Warren still got 12 touches in Week 1, but he had just 38 yards on those.
When Kene Nwangwu returns from an Achillles’ injury, the Cyclones will have three quality backfield options vying for touches. Park also has an assortment of good passing targets to build the pass offense around, so Iowa State should be able to maintain a better balance and better overall offense this season. Last year, the Cyclones averaged just 27.7 points per game and its rush offense lingered at No. 88 in the nation (with a pass offense ranking No. 40 overall).
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IOWA
The Iowa Hawkeyes had a big rushing game in Week 1, and despite Nathan Stanley throwing just 8 of 15 for completion, he had three TD passes and just one interception. Akrum Wadley had a big game rushing the ball with 116 yards on 24 carries (4.8 yards per), but the the Hawkeyes failed to record a rushing touchdown despite 138 total yards on 41 team carries.
Nick Easley led the team in receiving yards with 77 on four receptions, and Noah Fant had two of the team’s three receiving TDs, his only two catches. Matt VandeBerg added 19 yards on a pair of catches. Overall, it was an efficient game from Iowa, but it is going to need some more offensive explosion this week.
Iowa finished 8-5 last season with a 6-3 mark in the Big Ten, trying for second place in the West division of the Conference. Wadley is the buik of its offensive attack, and the OL is experienced enough to enable him to have a big season. Senior guard Sean Welsh is the head of a strong unit that has 88 career starts between it. James Daniels is a good center, especially.
The Hawkeyes won the 2016 Joe Moore award, which was awarded to the top OL in the nation. It is their work that has made it possible for the program to produce its first 1,000 yard rushers.
That blueprint for success is part of why Iowa is not overly concerned about Stanley being something of a mediocre quarterback. He only needs to be marginally good to ensure Iowa wins. Oddly, the Hawkeyes have eight Tight Ends on scholarship, though, so it might be that they work heavily with Stanley’s vertical, short game, to get the most of a roster that was a little poorly thought out.
No matter what the case, Wadley and the OL should be enough to overpower Iowa State’s defense and allow the Hawkeyes to emerge as about one-TD victors over the Cyclones in this Week 2 matchup.
