Iowa football: Know your 2019 opponents, Michigan
By Ryan Sikes
The Iowa football team will have to travel to Ann Arbor this season. The Hawkeyes have won five of the last 6 matchups though.
The Iowa football team must travel to Ann Arbor in their Week five matchup against a solid Michigan Wolverines football team who is returning senior quarterback Shea Patterson. After a carousel at the quarterback position for several years, Patterson has provided some stability at the position. The Ole Miss transfer completed 64.6 percent of his passes last season for exactly 2,600 yards with 22 touchdowns and 7 interceptions.
The offense will have to find a new running back as leading rusher Karan Higdon has graduated and senior Chris Evans‘ status with the team remains unclear at the moment. He was suspended by the team in February and is no longer on scholarship or enrolled at the University. Given this news, one would figure that senior tailback Tru Wilson will get the nod for the starting gig. He rushed for 364 yards on 62 carries last season.
Patterson will have one of his main targets returning in junior wide receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones who hauled in 47 receptions for 612 yards and 8 touchdowns in 2018. The team will have to replace the production of tight end Zach Gentry who was drafted in the fifth round by the Pittsburgh Steelers. The early 2019 depth chart projects senior tight end Sean McKeon to be the starter after coming off a 2018 season in which he caught just 14 receptions for 122 yards.
So both the running back and tight end positions will have players with expanded roles this season. It’ll be interesting see what the Michigan defense looks like this season after losing a lot of talent to the NFL Draft. Chase Winovich, Devin Bush, Rashan Gary, and David Long were all selected by NFL teams, and the Michigan defense will need to account for their production.
Winovich racked up 59 total tackles, 15.5 tackles for loss, and 5 sacks last year. Right now it looks like junior Kwity Paye will take his place on the defensive line after posting 27 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, and 2 sacks a year ago. Devin Bush accumulated 66 total tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks for the Michigan defense in 2018. Senior linebacker Devin Gil figures to take his spot in the middle of the defense.
Look, on paper the Wolverines should win this game but some crazy things have happened when Iowa and Michigan get together. In 2016, Michigan came into Kinnick Stadium ranked as the number three team and was upset on a game-winning field goal as time expired. The Iowa football team has won five out of the last six matchups but Iowa has not faced a true pro-style quarterback like Patterson.
In the previous games, the defense was able to bottle up dual-threat quarterbacks like Denard Robinson, Tate Forcier, and Devin Gardner. They will have their hands full as Jim Harbaugh tries to get his first win over the Iowa football program in his career.