Iowa looks to avoid another loss to FCS opponent from the Dakotas
By Pat Harty
IOWA CITY, Iowa – There are some Hawkeye fans out there, and maybe a lot of them, that would prefer that Iowa didn’t play FCS opponents in football.
Especially the really good FCS teams such as South Dakota State, which Iowa will face in Saturday’s season opener at Kinnick Stadium, because those who are against playing FCS teams will say that there is hardly anything to gain with a victory.
Should Iowa defeat the Jackrabbits on Saturday, even if it were in convincing fashion, some would dismiss it or try to minimize it simply because South Dakota State is an FCS team.
It might help a little bit that South Dakota State is ranked third in the FCS preseason poll, and has made 10 consecutive playoff appearances, including making the semifinals in four of the last five seasons.
But when you’re a Power Five team and the defending Big Ten West Division champion, as is the case with Iowa, a loss to any FCS team would be inexcusable to some fans.
The last time Iowa team faced an opponent with the name Dakota as part of its title, it resulted in a 23-21 loss to North Dakota State in 2016 at Kinnick Stadium.
It was bad enough for Iowa to lose a nonconference game at home, but North Dakota State being an FCS opponent made it worse, the narrative being that it didn’t matter that North Dakota State was and still is the greatest FCS program of all time, Iowa had no business losing to an opponent from a lower level, especially at home.
That same narrative will be front and center on Saturday when Iowa faces South Dakota State from the Missouri Valley Conference.
It’s similar to when Iowa faces an opponent from the Mid-American Conference, which has happened quite often, but the MAC gets some benefit of the doubt from competing at the FBS level.
The Jackrabbits aren’t on the same pedestal as North Dakota State, but they are one of the best FCS programs in the country, and have been for a while under veteran head coach John Stiegelmeier, who is entering his 26th season as head coach.
South Dakota State played 25 games during the 2021 calendar year, including a 10-game slate in the spring that culminated with a runner-up finish in the national championship game.
But again, the Jackrabbits are an FCS team, and fair or not, that is the prevailing storyline surrounding this matchup.
Yes, it’s disrespectful to the South Dakota State players to say that Iowa has no business losing this game.
Just like it was disrespectful to say that Iowa had no business losing to North Dakota State six years ago.
But that’s just the way it is when a Power Five team faces an FCS team.
The concern when losing to an FCS team is that it’s a warning that hard times are ahead for the Power Five team that loses.
Iowa would go on to finish 8-5 in 2016, which is far below the expectations for what was C.J. Beathard’s senior season at quarterback, and with Iowa coming off its 12-2 season in 2015.
But on the other hand, Hawkeye fans were in a major funk after it took two blocked field goals in the final seconds for Iowa to defeat Northern Iowa 17-16 in the 2009 season opener at Kinnick Stadium.
The concern, or in some cases the assumption, was that Iowa had serious issues since it needed a miracle to defeat an FCS opponent.
But Iowa would go on to finish 11-2 that season, capped by a 24-14 victory over Georgia Tech in the 2010 Orange Bowl.
“Winning is not easy,” said Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz. “That was a miracle that we won in ’09 with a good football team. We had a really good football team as it proved out.
“Each and every week is a challenge, and we’re playing a team that’s got a lot of proven success and they’ve got a lot of proven players coming back, so they’ve got our total attention and total respect. The minute you start looking at it differently, that’s when you get in trouble, I think, in competition.”
Iowa’s loss to North Dakota State hardly was a fluke considering North Dakota State rushed for 239 yards and held Iowa to just 34 rushing yards on 25 attempts.
North Dakota State won the battle at the line of scrimmage on that day.
Iowa and South Dakota State both defeated Colorado State last season, but the Jackrabbits won more convincingly by a score of 42-23, while Iowa prevailed 24-14 at Kinnick Stadium.
“We beat Colorado State, but it wasn’t very handily last year,” said Iowa quarterback Spencer Petras. “So there is definitely a reminder there. They’re a really well-coached football team and they play really hard.”
Iowa should win Saturday’s game because it has better players and more depth, or at least it should have better players and more depth than South Dakota State, whose roster is filled with players that weren’t recruited by Iowa, or by any Big Ten teams for that matter.
Solon native Adam Bock starts at middle linebacker for South Dakota State and he led the team with 135 tackles last season.
He grew up cheering Iowa, but was never offered a scholarship, or even a chance to walk-on.
“The leader of their defense is a Solon guy, who I’m sure is going to be pretty motivated on Saturday playing in Kinnick,” Petras said of Bock. “They’re going to come in here ready to go and they’re going to want to win. They’re not going to lay down. There’s no easy games, and this is absolutely not an easy game.”
Petras certainly has the right mindset, but is still won’t change the narrative surrounding Saturday’s game.
South Dakota State is on quite run, but it’s also just 2-9 against FBS foes.
So again, Iowa won’t gain much from winning, besides a 1-0 record, but it would lose a lot in defeat.