Iowa football: Storylines Hawk fans should watch for against Miami (OH)

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TAMPA, FL – JANUARY 01: Mekhi Sargent #10 of the Iowa Hawkeyes rushes 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) /

Running Game

I’ve been consistently targeting the running game in my articles. That’s because Iowa is a running team that hasn’t been very good at running the ball the last year or two. With the schedule we have this season, we won’t be winning nine games with a repeat performance from our ground game.

The good news is that the Iowa football team should have the depth to wear down a MAC defense to the point of running the ball at will in the second half. Even if the Hawkeyes aren’t busting off big runs in the first half, the running game should be humming in the second half.

With that in mind, I’m most interested in seeing how many big plays the Iowa football team generates earlier in the game. If Iowa is moving the ball well in the first half, then they aren’t relying on the depth advantage that most Big Ten teams have over most MAC teams. While this alone wouldn’t be a guarantee of a good season, it is certainly a step in the right direction.

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