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Iowa football: Three bold predictions for the Hawkeye’s offense

By Andrew Wade

BLOOMINGTON, IN - OCTOBER 13: Mekhi Sargent #10 of the Iowa Hawkeyes runs with the ball against the Indiana Hossiers at Memorial Stadium on October 13, 2018 in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
BLOOMINGTON, IN - OCTOBER 13: Mekhi Sargent #10 of the Iowa Hawkeyes runs with the ball against the Indiana Hossiers at Memorial Stadium on October 13, 2018 in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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TAMPA, FL – JANUARY 01: Nate Stanley #4 of the Iowa Hawkeyes passes during the 2019 Outback Bowl against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Raymond James Stadium on January 1, 2019 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
TAMPA, FL – JANUARY 01: Nate Stanley #4 of the Iowa Hawkeyes passes during the 2019 Outback Bowl against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Raymond James Stadium on January 1, 2019 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images) /

Stanley is named 1st team All-Big Ten

Anyone who has read my stuff for the past year knows I am not super high on Nate Stanley. I think he has a ton of talent, but there is a lot to correct and be concerned about.

That being said, his maturity at the Big Ten media days really impressed me, and it got me thinking, “maybe this is the year he turns it on”.

For the past two seasons, I have just been waiting for him to truly break out. There have been glimpses before that got me incredibly excited like against Indiana when he looked like Ben Roethlisberger out there shaking defenders off left and right, and against Nebraska when he was looked poised and confident late in the game.

The big thing holding him back is the untimely turnovers, the lack of risk-taking (the irony between this factor and the previous factor is real), and his inability to deliver the ball accurately.

As Pro Football Focus pointed out though, Stanley is significantly better when playing in a clean pocket, and he has two of the nation’s best offensive tackles keeping him clean and there are reasons to believe the interior offensive line will be much-improved from last season.

Furthermore, I believe the Iowa football team is going to put more on Stanley’s shoulders than ever before in year three of commanding the offense. They need to if they want to have the potential of being a College Football Playoff sleeper. It may be put up or shut up time for the Iowa football team this season with Nebraska getting stronger but it’s also put up or shut up time for the Hawkeye’s signal-caller.

If he leads the Hawkeyes to 10 wins or more and sets the Iowa single-season record (and career-record for that matter) for touchdowns while throwing for over 3,000 yards he could find himself ahead of Big Ten quarterbacks Shea Patterson and Adrian Martinez on the All-Big Ten teams.

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