Those hopes were dashed on Tuesday when Robinson’s mother said her son was going to transfer from Iowa and explore other options.

“We don’t know where he will be enrolling, but he will be someplace, hopefully in time for summer school.” Sally Robinson said.

This winter, it seemed like Ferentz left the door open at least a crack, but that is no longer the case.

Robinson was a tough, tough competitor for Iowa, arguably the team’s MVP last year when you saw what happened to the offensive production after he suffered a concussion in the 4th quarter against Michigan State.

Through that game, Iowa’s offense was averaging over 32 points per game and converting more than 50% of its third down plays. After that game, over the final four regular season games, Iowa didn’t average 20 points and only converted 32% of their third downs.  Robinson was a key factor in Iowa moving the chains and keep the defense rested and off the field.

Marcus Coker certainly filled in well in his absence and has more upside as a big time rusher in the Big Ten..yet that is sort of Robinson’s modus operandi; he’s not flashy or fast, he’s just tough and productive.

Coker will be Iowa’s bell cow next year and some younger players are going to have a chance to get the backup reps.

Marc Morehouse has more in this item, including a quote from Kirk Ferentz.  Also included in this item is an update on the academic status of Rodney Coe.  “It’s still early in the game,” Ferentz said Tuesday. “We’ll know more on that stuff later on.” More good stuff at that link.

This year’s event was attended by well over 1,000 Iowa fans, one of the best turnouts for this event I have seen, and I have been either attending and/or emceeing the event since 2002.  The photo atop this item was my view from the stage an hour before we began the program.

One of the reasons this event is near the top of my ‘favorite things’ list is the opportunity I get back in the green room to chew the fat with players and coaches, away from a traditional media Q&A setting.  It’s enjoyable making small talk with folks that you normally have a microphone in front of, get to know them better and trade stories about family.

Terry Brands was in tow on Tuesday night, and whenever a Brands is present at one of these events, laughter is not far behind.  Both Terry and Tom are incredibly thankful and appreciative of the support they get from Iowa fans and they always make a point to let folks know that.

I was telling Terry that I was going to talk a bit about their season, and how impressive it was to see how far the program came this year from finishing 4th at The Midlands to having another unbeaten dual meet season, beating Penn State in their dual meet at Happy Valley and finishing 3rd at nationals despite starting the season with eight holes in their roster from the year before, in addition to the preseason injury to Dylan Carew.  He did his best to ‘thank’ me for those sentiments, but it was clear he was uncomfortable hearing them.

“I hear what you are saying, but that is not what we are about,” Brands said, respectfully.  He reiterated that sentiment on the dais later that night.

Former Hawkeye Ryan Bowen represented the Basketball program and shared an anecdote or two and did a solid job…I spoke with a few folks from the athletic department and was able to announce on the stage that the final pieces are being put into place for the Dale Howard Classic, a basketball event to be held at Wells Fargo Arena where the Iowa Hawkeyes will play against Creighton this year.  The date has not been made public just yet.

After the event concluded, I asked Gary Barta if this was something they wanted to do on an annual basis, and he said it was, while at the same time saying they did not have any commitments yet in place for an opponent the next year.

My speculation: It might turn out to be something where Iowa plays a game at The Well in years where they host Drake, for an every other year at The Well event…however, I wouldn’t count out an every year affair at The Well, either.  This is great news for Central & Western Iowa Hawkeye fans and it’s a good marketing idea by Iowa.  With the program hopefully on its way out of a decade of substandard production, this is a way to bring the Hawkeyes to more fans in a part of the state that can provide a strong boost to ticket sales…

Kirk Ferentz presented a few awards like he always does at this event, but one of them was a new award, sort of a ‘Coach’s Choice’ award as to the assistant coach of the year.  The inaugural recipient was Iowa Strength & Conditioning Coach Chris Doyle.

Unless you have been living under a rock, you know that Coach Doyle and the program have taken a few shots in recent months related to the Rhabdomyolysis ‘outbreak’.  I suspect this award and the timing of it’s delivery was what baseball fans might call a purpose pitch; another public show of support and solidarity from Ferentz to the man who has had a HUGE hand in helping Iowa football grow into what it has become.

My guess is that if you privately polled former Iowa football players about which person in the program had the biggest impact on turning them into the best football player they could be, Chris Doyle would win the poll, and that is not intended to disrespect any other staff member.  Ferentz, Doyle, Norm Parker and other coaches each fills a role and each plays a part in the lives of their players.  That being said, the players are around Doyle more than any other coach and it’s not even close.

Doyle’s appearance and subsequent speech were the first comments from him, publicly, since the Rhabdo story broke.  He received a standing ovation from the crowd, the longest of the night….

Also in attendance Tuesday night was Mary Ferentz, Kirk’s wife.  She talked about the new Ladies Football Clinic Event whose proceeds will go to the Iowa Children’s Hospital, an organization she is closely involved with.  You can read the story at this link.

Karl Klug, Jeff Tarpinian and Brett Greenwood were also honored Tuesday night, and it was nice getting a chance to chat with them off stage and take in a bit more of their personalities.

Ricky Stanzi was to have been in attendance but he had to cancel at the last moment; Stanzi is to be in Cleveland on Wednesday to work out and meet with the Browns.

Ferentz spoke with reporters before the event kicked off, and among the topics he gave answers to were the status of Willie Lowe and Adam Robinson.  Ferentz said the door remains open for Lowe to stay on the team and that he should know more in the next few weeks.

As for a possible return to the team for Adam Robinson???  Here is the entire item, which includes this quote:

“I’ve talked to his mom,” Ferentz said. “My No. 1 focus for him is to do well academically, and then we’ll see where it takes him.” Is there a crack in the door? “We’ll see where he’s at at the end of the semester, and we’ll go from there,” Ferentz said.

My guess is if Robinson takes care of his work in the classroom and shows the desire to return to the program as well as doing so in a penitent way, the chances are 50/50.  That’s a far cry better than the odds I would have given you a few months ago.  That being said, I would also guess that Robinson will be assured of nothing and will likely be in a backup role to Marcus Coker.  Coker has far more upside than Robinson, however Robinson is one tough individual and if he ‘gets with the program’ and becomes a model student as well as having taken care of some of his judgement issues, he makes the team better.  But it’s just not that easy…we’ll see, but Ferentz certainly didn’t close the door. …

Members from 15 different Iowa sports teams took part in Sunday’s Day of Caring event in Iowa City...read this item for more details.

Finally, it looks like Iowa City is going to leave gameday vendors on Melrose alone, for the most part.

OWA STATE PATROL CITES ADAM ROBINSON FOR POSSESSION OF MARIJUANA

Des Moines, IOWA — On December 27, 2010, at approximately 10:45 p.m., a Trooper with the Iowa State Patrol stopped a vehicle for no front plate on East 4th Street, south of Des Moines Street in Des Moines.

The driver was identified as Ermin Zornic, age 20, and the passenger as Adam Robinson, age 21. During his initial approach to the vehicle, the Trooper detected a strong odor of marijuana coming from inside the vehicle. A probable cause search of the vehicle was conducted and marijuana was found inside the vehicle.

Zornic, the driver, was charged with Possession With Intent to Deliver Marijuana and OWI charges are pending toxicology tests. He was incarcerated in the Polk County Jail.

Mr. Robinson was cited for possession of marijuana and released on his own recognizance with a promise to appear in court on January 5, 2011, at 1:00 p.m.

A criminal charge is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

———–

Robinson was suspended from the team earlier this month by Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz.  Here is what Ferentz said related to Robinson at that time:

Q.  Do you expect Adam back?

COACH FERENTZ:  That’s a personal conversation.  But my anticipation is he’ll be back here in January.

Q.  (Question regarding Adam’s situation.)

COACH FERENTZ:  We had an incident a week ago, I think that’s welldocumented what that was all about.  My sense again, I don’t go on the message boards, my sense from the feedback I’ve gotten, a lot of people have lumped all three players together.  It sounds like the number is bigger than three.  If that is accurate, then that’s news to me.

As I think Gary said earlier, we don’t anticipate anything or announcements on arrests.  We expect the rest of the players to go down to the bowl and expect them to practice and compete well.

Then this regarding Robinson: “Adam Robinson is a good guy. He just has not been taking care of business the way I expect him to. It’s a simple equation. He got to the point. He was approaching that point a couple weeks ago, as evidenced in the Ohio State game, him not participating at the front end. In my estimation, he wasn’t learning fast enough from that point on.  To the best of my knowledge, he’ll be eligible for the game unless he fails to take his finals. I don’t anticipate that. It’s not a matter of eligibility. It’s a matter of him following up the way I feel he should.”

If Robinson did suffer a concussion in that game, it may have come on the first play of Iowa’s first drive of the 4th quarter, at the 14:56 mark.  Robinson got the carry and was hit hard.  You could see him trying to shake the cobwebs out of his head after that play, and he was whincing a few times as if he were hurt.  He got the carry on the next play, and it was a loss of two yards.   Ricky Stanzi then completed a pass that resulted in a first down, and Robinson came out of the game and did not return.

You can love your coaches and still be critical of them, just like you love your children but sometimes they do things that make you scratch your head, or worse.

I have a great deal of respect for the Iowa coaching staff, but that does not mean they are perfect, just like none of us is perfect.

Last week, Kirk Ferentz admitted he’d do a few things differently in the Wisconsin game, and we all appreciated those words.

Having Adam Robinson in the game in the fourth quarter when the score was 37-6 at the time he took ‘the hit’ seems questionable, especially for a guy that has had as many carries as Robinson has put up the past several weeks. I’d say that whether or not Robinson was injured on that play or before.

Here are Robinson’s carries vs team carries in recent games:

Penn State:  28/36
Michigan: 31/36
Wisconsin: 23/30
Michigan State: 20/42

Robinson had 82 rushes in the three game span from Penn State to Wisconsin, among the most in FBS. Robinson had amassed just 13 carries in the first half of the Michigan State game, where Iowa led 30-0.

Of Iowa’s 42 rushes against Michigan State, 11 came after Robinson left the game and Marcus Coker had taken the previous series before Robinson was injured.

I realize Iowa is thin at running back, but when you are up 37-6, it’s not like you are trying to do anything but run out the clock, or at least that is what the Iowa staff was trying to do. Sure, they wanted to move the ball and keep it as long as they could, but it was run out the clock time.

Former Iowa running back Ed Podolak said late in the radio broadcast that such a situation was the worst thing for a running back; the other team knows you are going to run it and they can tee off on you.

The Iowa coaching staff has repeatedly said that they are going to need more than just Robinson down the stretch because of the physical play of the Big Ten.

If Robinson does have a concussion, and there has been no word of that from the Hawkeye program, you likely won’t see him play against Indiana. Iowa should win that game without him, but the task would be more difficult without the third leading rusher in the Big Ten.

However, it bodes ill for the remainder of the regular season. Once you suffer one concussion, the second comes easier and if you amass too many, your playing career can be cut short. See Jayme Murphy and Paki O’Meara.

Concussions are cumulative as are their effects, and some studies have shown that once you suffer one concussion, the risk of a second increases by 400%. The effects and symptoms of a concussion last longer and are more dramatic with each successive concussion.

Robinson is one of the toughest football players I have seen wear an Iowa uniform, but concussions are serious business and all the more so in today’s age of football and the awareness surrounding that injury.

We’ll just have to sit back and see how this one plays out, but if Robinson is indeed concussed and it happened on that fourth quarter play, it could wind up being a costly decision.

The University of Iowa football team has begun reaping the rewards of a spectacular 10-2 regular season. Seven Iowa players have been named to either the Coaches or Media first all-Big Ten teams. Junior offensive tackle Bryan Bulaga has been named the Offensive Lineman of the Year and Head Coach Kirk Ferentz, for the third time, is the Big Ten’s Dave McClain Coach of the Year.

The Hawkeyes just completed regular season play with a 10-2 overall record and a second place (6-2) Big Ten finish. Iowa will play in a yet to be determined New Year’s Day (or later) bowl game. It’s only the fourth time in history that an Iowa team has won 10 games in the regular season.

Earning first-team all-Big Ten honors are Bulaga, senior offensive guard Dace Richardson, senior tight end Tony Moeaki, junior defensive end Adrian Clayborn, senior linebacker Pat Angerer and defensive backs Tyler Sash (sophomore) and Amari Spievey (junior). Bulaga, Clayborn, Angerer and Sash made the first unit as named by both the coaches and the media. Spievey, Richardson and Moeaki were on the coaches’ first unit. All seven are on the first unit for the first time. The seven Iowa players picked to the Coaches’ team are a league high (Penn State had six).

Named to the second coaches unit were senior linebacker A.J. Edds, senior center Rafael Eubanks and junior wide receiver Derrell Johnson-Koulianos. Named to the media’s second team were Eubanks, Moeaki, senior offensive tackle Kyle Calloway, Spievey and junior free safety Brett Greenwood.

Making the coaches honorable mention list were junior defensive tackles Christian Ballard and Karl Klug, junior punter Ryan Donahue and freshman running back Adam Robinson. Also on that list were Calloway and Greenwood. The media honorable mention list included Donahue, sophomore defensive end Broderick Binns, Edds, Johnson-Koulianos, Klug, junior place-kicker Daniel Murray, Robinson and junior quarterback Ricky Stanzi.

Bulaga, a 6-6, 315-pound junior from Crystal Lake, IL, is the sixth Hawkeye offensive lineman to win league lineman of the year accolades. Previous winners include Mike Haight (1985), Dave Croston (1986), Mike Devlin (1992), Eric Steinbach (2002) and Robert Gallery (2003). Bulaga was a second team all-Big Ten selection in 2008 and was named to the 2009 pre-season watch lists for the Outland Trophy and Rotary Lombardi Outstanding Lineman Award.

Ferentz is the Big Ten Coach of the Year for the third time in the last eight years. Only Michigan’s Bo Schembechler has won the honor more times than Ferentz. Ferentz is just winding up his 11^th year with the Hawkeyes. He previously won the Dave McClain Coach of the Year Award in 2002 and 2004. He was Associated Press and Walter Camp National Coach of the Year in 2002.

Ferentz is the second winningest coach in Hawkeye football history. He has a career record of 92-76 and is 80-55 at Iowa.

A.J. Edds was Iowa’s honoree for the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award.

That’s like what he means, as this team has been doing just that since spring practice.  Tony Moeaki and several other would be starters didn’t go in the spring drills.  Julian Vandervelde injured his arm in June.  Jewel Hampton injured his knee in early July.  Tackles Kyle Calloway and Bryan Bulaga missed more practices than they participated in during the month of August.  Jordan Bernstine broke his ankle in August.  Colin Sandeman & Derrell Johnson-Koulianos missed a great deal of practice in August.  Paul Chaney tore his ACL against Michigan.  Pat Angerer has been battling an issue with his thumb.  Shaun Prater tweaked his knee and missed the Arkansas State game. Dace Richardson and Adam Robinson will miss the rest of the regular season with injuries suffered against Michigan State….

I can keep going, but here is a look at the players that were likely starters that have not missed a start and/or have not been carted off the field this year:

OFFENSE: Rick Stanzi, Rafael Eubanks, Brett Morse, Trey Stross
DEFENSE: The front seven, Amari Spievey & Tyler Sash

That’s just 13 of the 22 starting positions that haven’t missed significant time.  Given that Iowa began the year minus two starters that were done for the season in August, the list is really staggering, especially on the offensive side of the ball.  Even then, Stross, Spievey, Angerer and a few others have dealt with the flu, especially leading up to Iowa’s game at Wisconsin.

One has to wonder: is it really possible that this sort of attrition and adversity WON’T catch up to this team at some point?

For Iowa to start a season 8-0 is an amazing accomplishment.  Healthier teams and better Iowa teams have not done that.  I’d favor the 2002 Iowa Hawkeyes by at least 10 points over this year’s version, and they missed relatively few starts to injuries; D.J. Johnson & Bob Sanders being the only two that I can recall off the top of my head, yet they lost their third game of the season to Iowa State, at home.  Now, Fred Russell did miss much of the second half and Brad Banks tweaked his thumb in that game, but that loss was more about Seneca Wallace’s witchcraft than anything else.

Much like the 2004 Iowa team that was beseiged by injuries at the running back position yet won eight straight games to END that season, this year’s team is answering the bell each week, with a different lineup on the offensive side of the ball seemingly every time they step onto the field.  It’s no wonder the offense has yet to find any sort of cohesiveness.

Losing Jewel Hampton before the year was a tough blow, but better to know that right out of the gate so that you can adjust and plan during training camp than for that to happen at two-thirds of the way into the season.  Robinson is going to be a huge loss to this team; he was the Big Ten’s third leading rusher and he has been the only tailback that resembles a Big Ten running back that Iowa has put on the field this year.  That’s not a shot at Brandon Wegher; he is just a different kind of back.  He’s not a power guy that you can feed the ball to 22 to 25 times.  At least, I don’t think he is.  As great as Dace Richardson has been playing this year, I think Iowa will be able to replace him a little easier than they will Robinson, which is mainly due to the depth Iowa has along the offensive line.  Much of that depth has been built this year with younger players having to step on the field to fill in for starters such as Bryan Bulaga, Julian Vandervelde and Kyle Calloway when they had to miss time.

I asked Kirk Ferentz about Brad Rogers at Tuesday’s press conference, as to whether or not the redshirt may come off.  “Oh yeah, we are running out of bodies in the backfield,” Ferentz said.  “It’s not a real crowded room right now.  We are down to two tailbacks, so we are open to anything right now.  It’s not like we have a lot of directions to turn to.”

Rogers is a 5-10, 225-pound true freshman who arrived on campus overweight and out of shape, according to Coach Ferentz.  However, Rogers was on the trip to Michigan State last week. “We traveled him last week and told him he may be going in the ballgame so be ready.  We did not envision the complications we had.  If he has to go in, he will do a good job.  He’s really impressed us over the last eight weeks, as he looks 100% better than he did two months ago.  I am impressed with his attitude and work ethic.”

Well, that’s a good start.

It’s not like Iowa was tearing up the league running the ball; they were 10th in the Big Ten in conference play at just over 112 yards per game.  But Robinson was starting to pick up steam in the backfield, getting more and more comfortable behind Iowa’s zone blocking scheme and he was picking up the hard yards.  Patience in the zone scheme is the second toughest thing to overcome as a young player, with the first being pass protection.  Both Robinson and Wegher have excelled in that area, playing well beyond their years in pass protection since the moment they stepped on the field.  Seriously, those two deserve a standing ovation for their work in that department.

Neither of them has lost a fumble this year, either, which is an amazing statistic.

I suspect Paki O’Meara will get a few carries to see if he has any success this week, plus he is more experienced in the blocking schemes.  That being said, I am not sure that Ferentz is going to have the luxury of holding on to Rogers’ redshirt, because even if he is not needed this week, you have to think he will be needed over the final three games.

Winning these next two home games is now a bit harder than it seemed a week ago, and the importance of these two games has grown immensely.

Minnesota’s star wide receiver Eric Decker is done for the year with a foot injury, and he is literally their entire offense.  I can see Tim Brewster giving QB Marquis Gray more looks the rest of the way, as he brings a running dimension to their offense and the passing game will sputter without Decker; we saw that happen last year, too.  Still, can you envision Iowa losing the last game of the year with a trip to a BCS Bowl game on the line?  If they beat Indiana and Northwestern, that’s likely going to be the scenario, whether or not they win or lose at Ohio State.

The Buckeyes play Penn State the same week Iowa hosts Northwestern.  If Ohio State should lose that game, and if Iowa gets to 10-0, the Hawks would have to lose their last two games at Ohio State and home against Minnesota in order to NOT go to Pasadena.  That’s called playing with house money, and I think that is a very real possibiltiy.

It all starts this weekend at home against Indiana.  Wegher is a tough kid, and he has shown some flashes of brilliance this year.  He’ll get a big chance to make a big time name for himself if he can help carry the Hawks to a 10-0 start.

These next two games sure seem a lot more difficult right about now.

The Iowa Hawkeyes are now 8-0 on the season, their first ever 8-0 start to a season in school history.

Getting to that point was not easy. As I wrote in a column from Sunday, Iowa has had to play four straight conference games against teams who believed they had a shot at a Big Ten title and the Rose Bowl. With Penn State, they were thinking national championship, so you know Iowa got the best shot they could muster that night. Michigan was coming off of a loss at Michigan State, but that was just their first loss and they still felt like they could win the rest, as they had Penn State and Ohio State at home. Wisconsin knew that if it beat Iowa, it would be favored in its remaining games and they had a shot at a Big Ten title and BCS bid. Michigan State knew that if it lost to Iowa, it had no chance at a Big Ten title, but if it won and took care of business the rest of the way, their destiny was in their own hands.

When you play a slate like that, it exacts a physical toll. Iowa navigated that arduous four game stretch, winning all four games including three on the road. That was quite an accomplishment, and one that I will never forget.

Yet, it took a toll…the physical play caught up with Iowa on Saturday night, as Dace Richardson, Adam Robinson, Colin Sandeman, Brett Greenwood and Brandon Wegher suffered injuries. Those are just the injuries we could tell from watching the game. The MSU contest was easily the most physical game this year, and one of the most physical games in memory. MSU laid it all on the line, because that’s all they had left to do.

Richardson will be out until at least the bowl game, with a lower leg/foot break. No word on Sandeman or Greenwood with regards to availability for the Indiana game. Wegher will be available for that game, but its a strong possibility that Adam Robinson, Iowa’s leading rusher, may not be available for this week’s game against Indiana, or beyond; Iowa will know this week if he will require surgery on his ankle.

So as they have had to do so many times this year, the Hawkeyes will march forward with their ‘next man in’ philosophy. The home games against Indiana and Northwestern, games that many Iowa fans, me included, had already put in the win column, become more treacherous now.

I said prior to the Michigan State game that if the Hawkeyes won in East Lansing, they would have one foot in Pasadena. I still feel they are in the driver’s seat for the Rose Bowl, but only if they win their next two games. That will give them some ‘breathing room’ if they are unable to win in Columbus for just the 3rd time since the late 1950’s. Of course, they must beat Minnesota in the season finale, but there is no way that Iowa loses that game with the Rose Bowl on the line, or perhaps more.

Iowa is going to be down to Brandon Wegher and Paki O’Meara at running back for at least the Indiana game. I think those two are capable, but the margin for error and injury has evaporated from this team. Jeff Brinson has had a foot injury that just will not heal, and he has not been a factor in games or practice as of late. Iowa can always pull the redshirt off of Brad Rogers. Some will wonder if you make a move like that in game nine of a season.

Iowa pulled the redshirt off of offensive lineman Mike Jones in game seven of his freshman year. Seasons like this don’t come around very often, and if the coaches feel Rogers can help them win now, and need him to help them win now, I don’t think they would hesitate and players love opportunities to get involved, especially during a season like this one. But I have not heard any indications of that; it’s just roster speculation.

This season has been marked with adversity since the summer conditioning sessions, where Julian Vandervelde injured his arm & Jewel Hampton injured his knee. That continued into fall camp, when Jordan Bernstine broke his ankle. Kyle Calloway and Bryan Bulaga were out of fall camp practice more than they were in it, and Bulaga missed three weeks of practice and games in the regular season. Tony Moeaki missed three games this year, too, and several receivers have missed significant playing time this year. Pat Angerer has an injured thumb.

The 2009 Iowa football story has been truly amazing to this point, and if this season ends in Pasadena, one way or another, it may be the most amazing chapter in Iowa football history because of what they had to overcome to get there.

With the win, Iowa leads the series against Michigan State by a 21-18-2 margin. Iowa’s victory is the first for the Hawkeyes in East Lansing since a 21-7 win in 1995. The home team had won the last nine games in the series.

Iowa wins with a touchdown on the last play of the game for the first time since the 2005 Capital One Bowl. In that contest the Hawkeyes scored on a 56-yard pass from Drew Tate to Warren Holloway for a 30-25 win.

Dating back to 2008, Iowa has won its last six games away from Iowa City, including wins at Minnesota, Iowa State, Penn State, Wisconsin and Michigan State, and over South Carolina in the 2009 Outback Bowl. Iowa has allowed just 46 points in those games.

Iowa becomes the second Big Ten team ever to win road games at Penn State, Wisconsin and Michigan State in the same season. Michigan completed the trifecta in 1977.

With the win at Michigan State, Iowa improves to 4-0 on the road this season, with a Nov. 14 contest at Ohio State remaining. Iowa has won at Iowa State, Penn State, Wisconsin and Michigan State. Iowa won all five road games in 2002 before a neutral site loss to Southern Cal in the 2003 Orange Bowl.

Michigan State won the toss and deferred, with Iowa electing to receive. Iowa has started on offense in 110 of its last 125 contests. The Hawkeyes have started the game on offense in 112-of-131 games under Ferentz. Iowa has started on offense in 10 straight games. Iowa deferred after winning the toss last year in a win over Purdue and the Boilermakers elected to receive on a very windy day in Kinnick Stadium.

Iowa games vs. Purdue (11/15/08), Penn State (11/08/08), Wisconsin (10/10/08), Minnesota (11/10/07), at Northwestern (11/3/07), vs. Michigan State (10/27/07), at Penn State (10/6/07), vs. Iowa State (9/16/06), vs. Minnesota (11/19/05), vs. Michigan (10/22/05), at Purdue (10/8/05), at Minnesota (11/13/04), vs. Purdue (11/6/04), at Miami, OH (9/7/02) and at Michigan State (9/27/03) are the only contests that the Hawkeyes didn’t start on offense. Iowa won 12 of those 15 games.

Iowa did not score on its first possession of the game. Iowa scored a touchdown on its opening drive vs. Arizona and a field goal on its opening drive vs. Northern Iowa. Iowa also did not score on its opening drives at Iowa State, at Penn State, vs. Michigan, at Wisconsin and at Michigan State.

Michigan State did not score on its opening possession. Iowa has allowed just one opponent (Penn State, game four) to score on its opening drive in its last 21 games. The Spartans became the fourth Iowa opponent to score the first points of the game with a field goal in the first period.

Iowa was 4-4 in the red zone against Michigan State, with three field goals and a touchdown. Iowa has scored on 51 of the last 56 red zone possessions (32 TDs and 19 FGs), dating back to the Michigan State game in 2008. Iowa is 34-38 combined inside the red zone its last 11 games.

Michigan State scored six points on two drives inside the Iowa red zone, collecting two field goals. Iowa opponents are 16-17 in the red zone this season, with eight FGs and eight touchdowns.

Michigan State’s second field goal of the game of 23 yards came after the Spartans has a first and goal at the Iowa one. Including an offside penalty on Iowa, MSU ran four straight plays for no gain before getting the field goal.

Iowa RB Adam Robinson had career bests in rushing attempts and yards (27-109). He had 20 attempts at Wisconsin and 101 rushing yards vs. Arizona. This becomes his second game this season with over 100 rushing yards (Arizona).

Iowa has outscored its opponents 113-51 in the second half in eight games. The 15 points scored at Michigan State mark the lowest total for Iowa this season (20 at Wisconsin).

There were no turnovers in the game. Michigan State had two fumbles, but retained possession.

Iowa had at least one turnover in its first seven games, with a low of one in wins over Northern Iowa (fumble) and Arizona (interception). Iowa entered the MSU game leading the nation in interceptions (15) and ranking second in total turnovers.

Iowa, in its first seven games, scored 67 points (eight TDs, four FGs) following 23 opponent turnovers (15 interceptions, seven fumbles, one blocked punt).

Iowa had recorded at least one takeaway in 40 of its last 42 games before MSU, dating back to the 2006 campaign. Iowa had collected at least one turnover in 20 consecutive games, dating back to the final contest of the 2007 season.

Iowa opponents have scored 30 points following 11 Iowa turnovers (eight interceptions, three fumbles). Michigan, Arkansas State and Arizona returned interceptions for touchdowns, Northern Iowa scored field goals following two Iowa fumbles and Penn State scored three points following an interception.

Iowa’s opponents have scored the first points of the game in all four Iowa road games this season. Iowa State, Wisconsin and Michigan State opened with a field goal, while Penn State started with a touchdown. Iowa scored 35 straight points at Iowa State, 21 at Penn State and 20 at Wisconsin.

Iowa PK Daniel Murray had a 37-yard field goal in the second period and two 20-yard kicks in the fourth. He tied his career-high of three field goals, which came earlier this season in a win over Michigan (in four attempts). He made field goals of 37 and 48 yards at Wisconsin. He made 2-3 field goals in a win at Penn State. The 48-yarder at Wisconsin is a career best. Murray has made 14-18 field goal attempts this season and all 19 PAT kicks.

DE Adrian Clayborn had another solid game for Iowa, collecting four tackles, including three tackles for loss and two QB sacks. He forced a fumble in the third period as well.

Instant replay was not used tonight.

After two straight road games, Iowa returns home next Saturday for the first of two straight games in Kinnick Stadium. The Hawkeyes host Indiana (11 a.m.) next week and Northwestern on Nov. 7.

Derrell Johnson Koulianos

Trey Stross

Rick Stanzi

Pat Angerer

Adam Robinson

AJ Edds

Pat Angerer

Adam Robinson

Christian Ballard

Bryan Bulaga

Rick Stanzi