No doubt about it, a 31-7 fi…

By Travis Kliewer

State of Football in the State of Iowa: Shining and Shameful

No doubt about it, a 31-7 final score signifies a shellacking. The yards-rushing ratio tells the same tale: Penn State, 341; Iowa 48. Total offense? 500 to 240. First downs? 29 to 14, not in Iowa’s favor, naturally. But what the stats don’t show is that Joe Paterno’s Penn State team had to fight tooth and nail to leave Iowa City with their no. 2 ranking intact.

When PSU back Eric McCoo ran 47 yards for a score with less than five minutes to go in the third quarter, Iowa still didn’t lay down. In a game in which Iowa did so much unexpectedly well and Penn State did several things unexpectedly poorly, two plays stand out as sealing the Nittany Lions’ win. In the fourth quarter, fourth-and-goal on the Penn State two, Iowa quarterback Randy Reiners was taken down short of the goal, and the score remained 21-7. Shortly after, Iowa forced PSU to punt, but a horrendous twelve men on the field violation gave possession of the ball back to the Lions, who promptly took it into the end zone for the clincher.

Still, there is little doubt that Kirk Ferentz’s team of under-talented, under-muscled, and speed-impaired football players looked the nation’s no. 2 team in the eye and did not flinch. All hope is not lost.

The Hawks’ performance against Nebraska in the first game of the season was equally impressive. Sure, the Cornhuskers only ran a handful of plays against the Hawks en route to a lackluster 7-0 halftime score, but what was so impressive was the utter lack of penalties and how Kirk Ferentz’s squad refused to unravel in the face of a football team that has been likened to the former Soviet Union. In both that game and last Saturday’s contest, Iowa stayed mentally focused and disciplined. Two weeks ago, however, Michigan State exposed a completely different ball club, an incompetent alter ego that lurks below the surface of the overachievers of last Saturday. Against the Spartans, Iowa managed only 107 yards of offense, and excelled in the humiliation category. It may be that they were embarrassed by the eventual Big Ten champion, but that is no excuse.

Such a hapless gridiron performance is rare indeed, but one can only wonder which Hawkeye team will take the field this week against Northwestern. Freud would say that if the same wretched squad that kicked itself in the teeth against MSU on national television turns out to be the superego of this year’s Iowa team, we’re looking at a 1-10 year. However, if it’s merely the id, and coach Ferentz can find a way to sublimate those dark tendencies toward ineptness, well…there may be a few bright spots left in the season yet to be experienced. And if playing with heart could put a few points on the board, last Saturday’s score would have looked a lot more like 42-31.

On the other end of the spectrum stands Iowa State’s performance against the aforementioned Cornhuskers. Very few outside of Ames expected an outcome much different from the 49-14 drubbing, but that’s not what was so dishonorable about Saturday night.

The Cyclones have a history of stats-padding long after the contest is decided. That’s why the elder Davis of Iowa State, Troy, didn’t win the Heisman a few years ago, and rightfully so; many of his rushing yards came via garbage-time carries against reserves.

Such is still the case with Dan McCarney’s coaching philosophy. After three quarters, ISU had a total of 183 yards, and only 53 on the ground. Darren Davis, ISU’s nation-leading rusher, had a total of 37 until Nebraska started substituting liberally. By late fourth quarter, the Cyclone first team was playing against the Husker fifth—yes, fifth—team. But what makes me want to relocate to Montana and not claim this state as my home is Iowa State’s conduct in the final seconds of the game.

With 32 seconds to go in the game, Iowa State called a timeout. One of the FoxNet announcers wondered aloud if that had been accidental, and you could practically hear a multitude of eyebrows raise across two states. Then with fifteen seconds left, Iowa State calls their final timeout. A few of the Nebraska faithful, known nationally for their sportsmanship, become audibly disgruntled. Then with time running out after a first-down pass, quarterback Sage Rosenfels spikes the ball to stop the clock with six seconds to go. Thunderous boos, and some of them coming from my living room.

Not only is milking the clock with your starters in a game that was finished at halftime disrespectful to the other team, it’s disrespectful toward your own reserves, who also need and deserve playing time. And Mr. McCarney, do you think you made it easy for the Iowa State faithful to hold their head up as they exited Nebraska Memorial Stadium? Doubtless is has been unimaginably tiresome for the Cyclones to be the perennial embarrassing uncle to everyone else in their conference. But even when all hope of winning the game evaporates, the Iowa State coaching staff needs to realize there is value in winning respect.