Iowa football: Five observations from win over Miami

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IOWA CITY, IOWA- AUGUST 31: Wide receiver Brandon Smith #12 of the Iowa Hawkeyes celebrates a touchdown reception in the first half against the Miami Ohio RedHawks on August 31, 2019 at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa. (Photo by Matthew Holst/Getty Images) /

Brandon Smith will be getting the ball a lot

We’ve heard stories of how good Brandon Smith is on 50/50 balls, and we’ve seen glimpses of it the past two seasons, but it looks like the Iowa football team is going to take advantage of his jump ball skillset much more in Smith’s junior season.

So far, it’s paying off.

Twice in the red zone, the Hawks called for a fade route to Smith. Both times, Stanley threw a beautiful and well-placed ball and both times Smith came down with it. The first one didn’t end up counting because the defensive back did a great job of getting Smith out of bounds, but it was still an amazing catch. And the second one was just as pretty.

Smith finished the night with 3 catches for 26 yards and 1 touchdown, but if last night was any indication, he could be in line to put up big-time touchdown numbers this season.

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