Iowa runs over Wisconsin in Brendan Sullivan’s first start at quarterback
Iowa rushes for season-high 329 yards in 42-10 victory
By Pat Harty
IOWA CITY, Iowa – Hawkeye fans saw what happens when a dominant rushing attack joins forces with a mobile quarterback, and it was a beautiful sight to see.
Unless you’re a fan of the Wisconsin Badgers.
Junior quarterback Brendan Sullivan made his first start for the Hawkeyes, and it couldn’t have gone much better as Iowa cruised to a 42-10 victory over Wisconsin on Saturday at Kinnick Stadium.
Sullivan only passed for 93 yards on seven completions, but it didn’t matter because the Iowa offensive line dominated in the trenches pretty much from start to finish.
Iowa outgained the Badgers 329-124 on the ground as junior Kaleb Johnson rushed for over 100 yards for the seventh time in nine games this season.
The Hamilton, Ohio native rushed for 135 yards and scored three rushing touchdowns, pushing his season total to 19 rushing touchdowns.
Johnson also has one receiving touchdown this season and 20 touchdowns overall, tying Shonn Greene’s program record for most touchdowns in a season.
The 6-foot-, 225-pound Johnson used a combination of power, vision and speed to shred the Badger defense.
But as great as he was, Iowa’s veteran offensive line was even better.
“It’s just fun to be a part of an offensive line like that,” Sullivan said. “They have no quit in them. They’re always going to give it their all. It’s just fun to be back there and trust them. They’ve got my back and I’ve got theirs. The trust they’ve built is really good.”
There were multiple times in Saturday’s game when Johnson barely was touched as he blasted through massive holes on the line of scrimmage.
Backup running backs Kamari Moulton and Jaziun Patterson also took advantage of the run blocking as they rushed for 74 and 56 yards, respectively, while Sullivan gained 58 yards on the ground.
Sullivan started for the injured Cade McNamara, who suffered a concussion in last Saturday’s 40-14 victory over Northwestern.
Iowa also played without No. 3 quarterback Marco Lainez and without starting tight end Luke Lachey starting receiver Reece Vander Zee and No. 2 tight end Addison Ostrenga due to an injuries.
Kirk Ferentz said Lainez’s injury will require surgery. The injury occurred this week in practice.
“He’s a great guy, I feel bad for him,” Kirk Ferentz said of Lainez.
Hawkeye fans had been clamoring for Sullivan to see more playing time, and the Northwestern transfer certainly didn’t let them down.
Sullivan ran the offense with poise and precision, and he ran with the football like few Iowa quarterbacks have since probably C.J. Beathard nearly a decade ago.
But it was all made possible by the offensive line, which features four multi-year senior starters, including Mason Richman, who made his 39th consecutive start at left tackle in Saturday’s game.
Richman and his offensive line cohorts have suffered through some growing pains in recent seasons, but they’ve stayed the course and are now performing at a high level under offensive line coach George Barnett.
“I love those guys,” Kaleb Johnson said of his offensive line. “Those guys work their tails off.”
Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz has stayed patient with his offensive line, saying that you can’t microwave experience, and now his patience is being rewarded.
“I think they’re gaining confidence and they’re growing,” Kirk Ferentz said of the offensive line. “We certainly came into the season feeling like we’re a little bit closer to where we want to be. They’re making good progress.”
The offensive line also benefitted from the return of junior guard Beau Stephens, who had missed the previous two games due to an injury.
“It was good to get Beau back in there,” Kirk Ferentz said. “Not taking away from anyone else. But there’s a reason he’s a starter.
“So, a lot of good things there.”
In the third quarter, Iowa marched 84 yards for a touchdown on 10 plays, all of which were rushes. The touchdown came on a nine-yard run by Kaleb Johnson with 6 minutes, 24 seconds left in the quarter.
Drew Stevens converted the point-after kick to give Iowa a 21-3 lead.
And considering how much the Badgers were struggling on offense, the 18-point deficit seemed almost insurmountable.
That would prove to be true as Iowa continued to build on its lead in the fourth quarter.
Iowa improved to 6-3 overall and 4-2 in the Big Ten and will hit the road again for a game against UCLA next Friday night in Los Angeles.
The Bruins won at Nebraska on Saturday.
Wisconsin fell to 5-4 and 3-3 and has now lost four of its last five games against the Hawkeyes.
Iowa converted two first downs on its opening possession of the game, marching to the Badger 49.
But then on 4th-and-1, Kirk Ferentz chose to punt rather than try for a first down, much to the dismay of fans, who showed their displeasure by booing loudly.
Wisconsin then marched into Iowa territory on its first offensive possession of the game, but then settled for a 38-yard field goal by Nathanial Vakos.
Both teams committed three penalties on the drive, including the Iowa defense twice being called for delay of game due to illegal shifts at the line of scrimmage.
Iowa kicker Drew Stevens then missed a 56-yard field goal with 1:52 left in the first quarter as his kick bounced off the right upright.
The first quarter ended with Iowa trailing 3-0, but also with Iowa driving into Badger territory.
Sullivan connected with Jacob Gill for 16 yards on the final play of the first quarter, giving Iowa a first down at the Wisconsin 32.
Sullivan would go on to score the game’s first touchdown on a 1-yard plunge into the end zone with 12:49 left in the second quarter.
Kaleb Johnson then blasted through a massive hole and scored on a 16-yard touchdown run with 8:49 left in the second quarter.
Stevens converted the point after kick to give Iowa a 14-3 lead.
Neither team would score again in the first half.
Both teams also combined to commit 13 penalties in the first half, including seven by Iowa, which entered the game averaging just two penalties per game.
The Hawkeyes rushed for 152 yards in the first half, led by Kaleb Johnson’s 92 yards.
The Badgers on the other hand, were held to just 47 rushing yards in the first half.
Sullivan only threw eight passes in the first half, completing five for 34 yards.
Iowa outscored the Badgers 42-7 in the second, third and fourth quarters.
Wisconsin 3 0 0 7 – 10
Iowa 0 14 14 14 – 42
W – Nathanial Vakos 38 FG
I – Brendan Sullivan 1 run (Drew Stevens kick)
I – Kaleb Johnson 16 run (Stevens kick)
I – Johnson 9 run (Stevens kick)
I – Jacob Gill 7 pass from Brendan Sullivan (Stevens kick)
W – C.J. Williams 14 pass from Braedyn Locke (Vakos kick)
I – Kaleb Johnson 2 run (Stevens kick)
I – Jaziun Patterson 4 run (Stevens kick)