It wasn’t pretty, but Iowa came away with a much-needed win at Rutgers. The defense was pretty spectacular, and bailed out an offense that should have been firing on all cylinders too many times to count. It’s certainly not going to be sustainable to rely on an offense that can only score 14 points a game and it’s unreasonable to expect the defense to allow just one touchdown each outing. There’s a lot about this Iowa defensive line that worries me, and quite frankly I don’t know how you remedy the situation without just playing better.
The Hawkeyes were the beneficiaries of some injuries on the Rutgers roster. Janarion Grant left the game after burning Iowa on a 76-yard reception; that was likely the play the changed the tide seeing as how the Rutgers passing offense became enigmatic after he left the game.
C.J. Beathard was fine, but was forced to run a little more than I think we’d like to see. The offensive line did him zero favors, and it seemed like he was pressured every single time he dropped back to pass. The run blocking held its own, opening enough holes for LeShun Daniels and Akrum Wadley to make a difference with their legs. Still, I’m afraid of how this unit is going to look against more talented defensive lines. The blitz pickup was actually pretty OK, but some of the guys are getting beat one-on-one too many times.
I’m still a little uneasy for how this team is going to look when it plays stiffer competition. I was switching back and forth between this game and Michigan State/Wisconsin, and man the Badgers look like something else. We have Northwestern at Kinnick for homecoming next week, let’s see if Iowa can’t thrash the Wildcats and build some momentum.