A much-needed diversion came in the mail on Tuesday
By Pat Harty
IOWA CITY, Iowa – As I returned home from my morning walk on Tuesday, I saw something sticking out of my mailbox that made it seem as if things were normal again.
This feeling of normalcy only lasted briefly, though, as I skimmed through my Athlon Sports 2020 college football preview.
The articles were written and submitted in late February and March, so there is very little mention of the Covid-19 global pandemic, and no mention of the allegations of racial disparities and bullying within the Iowa football program.
I know that to be a fact about the magazine’s deadline as I’ve been writing the Iowa preview for Athlon for nearly 20 years.
The chance to skim through the magazine and focus solely on football was a nice and much-needed diversion from the new normal.
And though it still is uncertain whether there will even be a 2020 season, or an abbreviated season with no fans in the stands, we still can hope and prepare as if games will be played.
Assuming the games will be played, Athlon predicts that Iowa will finish 8-4 overall and 5-4 in the Big Ten, and third in the West Division behind Wisconsin and Minnesota. It also has Iowa ranked 25th nationally and facing South Carolina in the Music City Bowl in Nashville, Tenn.
Iowa is coming off a five-year stretch where it won 47 games, including three bowl games. That is the most wins during a five-year stretch in program history.
So there is reason to be optimistic, even with so many significant personnel losses from last season, including 2019 Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year Tristan Wirfs, three-year starting quarterback Nate Stanley, All-America defensive end A.J. Epenesa, All-Big Ten safety Geno Stone and starting defensive tackles Cedrick Lattimore and Brady Reiff.
Iowa has a solid nucleus to build around as evidenced by Athlon’s 2020 preseason All-America teams that include four Iowa players.
Senior Keith Duncan is listed as the first-team All-America kicker; senior receiver Ihmir Smith-Marsette is the first-team All-America return specialist; senior Alaric Jackson is a second-team All-America offensive lineman and sophomore Tyler Linderbaum is the third-team All-America center.
The big question with Iowa, of course, is at quarterback where third-year sophomore Spencer Petras is considered the front-runner to replace Stanley as the starter.
The 6-foot-5, 230-pound Petras didn’t have a chance to solidify himself during spring practice, which was cancelled due to Covid-19, nor did he play much as Stanley’s backup last season.
So Petras lacks experience, but first-year starting quarterbacks have a history of performing well under Kirk Ferentz.
Petras, or whomever wins the starting job, will have the luxury of playing behind an offensive line that returns five players with starting experience, led by Jackson, who is on course to become the first four-year starter at left tackle in program history.
The offensive line also added a key piece during the summer as Coy Cronk joined the team as a graduate transfer after having started 40 games at left tackle for Indiana.
Jackson and Cronk could give Iowa the most experienced pair of tackles in the nation, with nearly 80 career starts between them.
Iowa also has an emerging star at running back in sophomore Tyler Goodson and arguably the best group of receivers in 22 seasons under Kirk Ferentz.
There are some key pieces to replace on defense, but Phil Parker usually finds a way to get the job done.
The schedule is brutal, however, with a road game against Minnesota in the conference opener on Friday, Sept. 18, and with back-to-back road games at Ohio State (Oct. 10) and Penn State (Oct. 17).
Iowa also faces Iowa State in the second game on Sept. 12th at Kinnick Stadium, and Athlon has the Cyclones ranked 17th nationally in its preseason publication.
Of course, the dates for these games could change due to Covid-19, which shows no signs of going away.
I’m still not convinced any games will be played, but I am convinced that if games are played, stadiums will mostly be empty.
Iowa issued back-to-back press releases on Monday that certainly didn’t inspire confidence about the season being played under normal circumstances.
The athletic department announced in the morning that sales of season tickets were going to be paused, along with the sales of various ticket packages for the season.
It also was announced Monday afternoon that nine more UI student-athletes had tested positive for the virus.
Some might consider it an alarmist attitude to think the season could be in jeopardy, and I hope I’m wrong, but with the virus reportedly on the rise in 23 states, it’s hard to picture fans packing stadiums to watch college football in less than three months.
The Story County Board of Health strongly recommends that Iowa State cancels spectators at sporting events this fall.
But if games are played, one storyline that would follow Iowa throughout the season is how it responds to the allegations of racial disparities by former Iowa players that ultimately cost Chris Doyle his job as the Iowa strength and conditioning coach.
On one hand, it could make the players more unified, or it could cause a distraction that lingers.
All I know is that I spent about 30 minutes on Tuesday thinking about nothing but college football as I read Athlon’s preview.
And it was 30 minutes of pure, undistracted joy.