Iowa uses total team effort to whip Purdue 24-3 on the road
By Pat Harty
WEST LAFAYETTE, Indiana – Nobody, not even the most delusional, glass-always-half-full Hawkeye fan could’ve seen this beat-down coming.
It wasn’t that the Iowa football team defeated Purdue on Saturday at Ross-Ade Stadium that was so hard to believe, it was how the game unfolded with Spencer Petras and the much-maligned Iowa offense helping to lead the way to a 24-3 victory.
The Iowa defense did its part by holding Purdue’s explosive offense without a touchdown for the first time this season.
But it was Petras and his offensive cohorts that made Saturday’s victory so impressive because they finally help up their end of the deal against what was considered a quality opponent.
The Iowa offense had some nice moments in last Saturday’s 33-13 victory over Northwestern at Kinnick Stadium.
But it was also Northwestern’s seventh consecutive loss, so it was hard to know for sure if the Iowa offense had made significant improvement, or if it was due mostly to playing an inferior opponent.
There was no doubt about the win over Purdue, however, as the Iowa offense showed tremendous balance, precision and even some explosiveness.
“We talk all the time about not listening to the noise,” Petras said. “What matters is our preparation and continuing to work and push things through it.
“No offense to anyone in here, but you guys (the media) had us dead two weeks ago. We couldn’t do anything right the whole outside world felt like it. But that’s not what football is. It’s a week-to-week game and you keep working, and if you do things right and work hard then good results happen. And the last two weeks, I think are proof of that.”
True freshman running back Kaleb Johnson served notice that he is a force on the rise as the Ohio native rushed for a career-high 200 yards, 75 of which came on a touchdown run on the second play of the third quarter.
It marked the first time that an Iowa player has rushed for 200 yards in a game since Akrum Wadley had 204 in a victory over Northwestern in 2015.
The Iowa offensive line also controlled the line of scrimmage from start to finish as Johnson was the beneficiary of some huge holes.
Petras also had one of his best performances as a Hawkeye as he threw touchdown passes to senior tight end Sam LaPorta and senior receiver Nico Ragaini, both of which came in the second quarter.
It was the first touchdown catch of the season for both LaPorta and Ragaini.
The biggest concern at halftime with Iowa leading 17-3 was that Kirk Ferentz would play not to lose in the second half as Iowa 67-year old head coach has a history of becoming ultra-conservative when protecting a lead in the second half.
However, on the second play from scrimmage in the third quarter, Kaleb Johnson broke through a huge hole and sprinted 75 yards for a touchdown.
It was a conservative play call, but the result was impressive as the Iowa offensive line carved out a massive opening for Johnson who only had to make one defender miss in space before reaching the end zone.
There still was plenty of game left, but Johnson’s long touchdown run was when it started to feel as if Purdue just didn’t have an answer for the Hawkeyes on this windy November day.
Purdue had won four of the last five games in the series, and Purdue head coach Jeff Brohm is one of few coaches that has shown a knack for out-coaching Iowa defensive coordinator Phil Parker.
But that wasn’t the case on Saturday as Parker’s veteran defense dominated Brohm’s spread offense pretty much from start to finish.
“I didn’t have my team ready to ready to play,” Brohm said. “The guys didn’t perform and we got our butts kicked. And there’s just no ifs, ands or buts about it.
“And that’s a good football team. We knew that. We knew that we were going to have make plays and get some points early to take them out of what they wanted to do. We didn’t get that done.”
Purdue receiver Charlie Jones, who transferred from Iowa after spring practice, continued to stuff the stat sheet with 11 catches for 104 yards. But they were mostly empty yards as the Iowa defense kept the Boilermakers out of end zone for the first time this season.
Purdue receiver Tyrone Tracy Jr. who also transferred from Iowa after last season, only had one carry for five yards and didn’t catch a pass.
“For us seniors, the only time we’ve beaten these guys before today was 2019 and not many of us were playing back then,” Petras said. “So, they’ve kind of had our number going back whatever it was the last five or six years. It certainly feels good.
“I love Charlie and I love Tyrone, but it does feel good to beat them.”
Iowa offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz also deserves praise for having his players ready, and for devising an effective game plan that featured both the run and pass.
Purdue struggled to cover Iowa’s crossing routes, and with the offensive line protecting Petras, it was a long-awaited recipe for success.
Purdue was held to a season-low 255 yards, while Purdue quarterback Aidan O’Connell only completed 20-of-43 passes for 168 yards. He also threw two interceptions and was sacked three times.
O’Connell entered Saturday’s game averaging 324.3 passing yards per game.
Purdue drove deep into Iowa territory late in the second quarter, but the drive stalled when Iowa defensive lineman Luka Van Ness sacked O’Connell for a 14-yard loss on third down.
Purdue had to settle for a 34-yard field goal by Mitchell Fineran that cut the deficit to 17-3 with 1 minute, 40 seconds left in the second quarter.
Incredibly, that would be the only points scored by one of the best offensive teams in the Big Ten.
Iowa improved to 5-4 overall and 3-3 in the Big Ten, while Purdue fell to 5-4 and 3-3 in conference play.
Iowa now has momentum, and a week to prepare for another opponent that has dominated the Hawkeyes over the past decade with Wisconsin coming to Kinnick Stadium next Saturday.
Two wins in a row certainly doesn’t mean that Iowa has solved all of its promises.
But even the most cynical fan would have to be impressed with Iowa’s performance against Purdue on Saturday because it was a total team effort.
Iowa 0 17 7 0 – 24
Purdue 0 3 0 0 – 3
I – Sam LaPorta 16 pass from Spencer Petras (Drew Stevens kick)
I – Nico Ragaini 29 pass from Petras (Stevens kick)
I – Stevens 26 FG
P – Mitchell Fineran 34 FG
I – Kaleb Johnson 75 run (Stevens kick)