Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1537537
9 4 A U G U S T 2 0 2 5 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M Every year, Iowa fans grumble about the Hawkeyes' perpetual struggles on of- fense. And every year, the Hawkeyes go out and win eight or nine games anyway, sometimes more. Last year's team went 8-4 in the regu- lar season and had Missouri on the ropes in the Music City Bowl before fading in the fourth quarter of a 27-24 loss. Iowa did all that despite ranking 129th in the country in passing offense (131.6 yards per game) and 117th in total offense (328.8 ypg). This year's team might need to lean more heavily than usual on the offense, because it lost its most reliable playmak- ers on the defensive side of the ball. De- fensive tackle Yahya Black was chosen in the fifth round of the NFL Draft by Pitts- burgh, and four other starters signed free agent contracts. Two starters return on the defensive line — senior tackle Aaron Graves and se- nior end Ethan Hurkett, both of whom were consensus honorable mention All- Big Ten picks last season. Hurkett led the team with 6.5 sacks and 11.5 tackles for loss, while Graves totaled 6 sacks and 8 TFLs. They tied for the Big Ten lead with 3 forced fumbles apiece, part of a defensive effort that produced 24 takeaways, a hall- mark of Iowa's defenses under longtime coordinator Phil Parker. At linebacker, the Hawkeyes will surely miss Jay Higgins, who ranked second in the Big Ten with 124 stops in 13 games last year, averaging nearly 10 tackles per game while totaling 4 interceptions. Both he and Nick Jackson will need to be re- placed after they signed free agent deals with Baltimore and Tampa Bay, respec- tively. The secondary is the Hawkeyes' most experienced position group on defense, with three starters back. The biggest star is strong safety Xavier Nwankpa, who started 10 games as a junior and ranked eighth on the team with 41 tackles, in- cluding a career-high 10 against Wash- ington. With its significant graduation losses on defense, the challenge for Iowa will be to improve on the opposite side of the ball in Tim Lester's second season as offen- sive coordinator. There've been some big losses here, too, notably at quarterback and running back, with Big Ten rushing leader Kaleb Johnson moving on. The Hawkeyes have turned to an FCS transfer to spark their offense. Quarter- back Mark Gronowski compiled 12,075 all-purpose yards at South Dakota State and will be expected to elevate a pass- ing offense that ranked 16th in the Big Ten last year. However, Gronowski missed spring practice while recovering from shoulder surgery. He'll need to get up to speed quickly in August, especially with the Hawkeyes set to face nonconference rival Iowa State in Week 2. On the ground, sophomore Kamari Moulton and junior Jaziun Patterson combined for 782 yards and 5 touchdowns while backing up Johnson last year. Play- ing behind a line that returns three start- ers, they'll need to boost their production if Iowa is going to field its usual punishing ground game. One area where the Hawkeyes will al- most certainly shine is on special teams, another of the program's traditional strengths. Drew Stevens is one of the best kickers in the nation, having hit 20 of 23 field goal attempts as a junior, while punter Rhys Dakin — yes, he's an Aussie — averaged 44.1 yards in his first season of college football. — Matt Herb O C T . 1 8 | T I M E T B A | T V T B A | K I N N I C K S T A D I U M | I O W A C I T Y , I O W A Senior safety Xavier Nwankpa leads a secondary that returns three starters this fall. PHOTO COURTESY IOWA ATHLETICS GAME 7 IOWA 2025 SCHEDULE Date Opponent 2024 Result Aug. 30 Albany — Sept. 6 at Iowa State L, 20-19 Sept. 13 Massachusetts — Sept. 19 at Rutgers — Sept. 27 Indiana — Oct. 11 at Wisconsin W, 42-10 Oct. 18 Penn State — Oct. 25 Minnesota W, 31-14 Nov. 8 Oregon — Nov. 15 at USC — Nov. 22 Michigan State L, 32-20 Nov. 28 at Nebraska W, 13-10 BEST-CASE SCENARIO A manageable early schedule could set up a season-defining clash with Penn State at Kinnick Stadium in mid- October. WORST-CASE SCENARIO QB Mark Gronowski's absence in spring practice could have a domino effect that consigns the Iowa offense once again to the bottom rungs of the Big Ten rankings. QUICK FACTS All-Time Series: Penn State leads, 18-14 Last Meeting: Penn State posted its first shutout over a Top 25 opponent since the 1999 Alamo Bowl when it blanked the 24th-ranked Hawkeyes, 31-0, in front of a White Out crowd at Beaver Stadium on Sept. 23, 2023 Head Coach: Kirk Ferentz (204-124 in 26 seasons at Iowa; career coaching record: 216-145) 2024 Record: 8-5, 6-3 Big Ten Returning Starters: 10 (5 offense, 5 de- fense) RETURNING LEADERS Rushing: RB Kamari Moulton (473 yards, 3 TD) Passing: QB Jackson Stratton (219 yards, 1 TD) Receiving: WR Jacob Gill (411 yards, 2 TD) Tackles: DE Ethan Hurkett (56) Sacks: DE Ethan Hurkett (6.5) Interceptions: CB Deshaun Lee, CB TJ Hall, S Koen Entringer, S Zach Lutmer (1)