Iowa Football: Quick takeaways from 26-20 win over Nebraska

Iowa football defeated Nebraska 26-20 on Saturday afternoon at Kinnick Stadium. Here are the quick takeaways and observations from the game.

It wasn’t pretty, but the 24th ranked Iowa Hawkeyes squeaked out a 26-20 victory over the Nebraska Cornhuskers on Saturday to claim the Heroes Trophy for a sixth-straight season.

The Hawkeyes showed impressive resilience in the second half after giving up a 13-6 lead before halftime. At one point, Iowa was down 20-13 with 12:05 remaining in the 3rd-quarter. The Hawkeyes rattled off 13 unanswered points and held on for the win.

Iowa football has now won four straight games after beginning the season with two losses. The Hawkeyes move to 4-2 and play Illinois on the road next Saturday.

Quick takeaways and observations:

• The Hawkeyes won another game in spite of their quarterback. Spencer Petras had another subpar outing on Saturday, bringing into question his future as the team’s starter. This is the Big Ten. Football is a results-driven game. The results simply haven’t been good enough from Petras this season. He’s far too inaccurate and doesn’t have the poise to step up and deliver in clutch situations. Petras finished 18-of-30 for 193 yards, one touchdown and one back-breaking interception.
• Petras’ ineptitude creates problems for the entire offense, coaches included. His poor accuracy makes for tough catches for his receivers. Brandon Smith recorded at least two drops on low throws. Offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz is forced to limit his options as a play caller. The running backs struggled to get anything going early after Nebraska starting selling out against the run.
• Tyler Goodson logged a career-high 30 carries against the Huskers. He finished with 111 rushing yards and no touchdowns. Goodson looked hesitant to hit the hole today, but there were a handful of times he broke free from the line of scrimmage for substantial gains. He’s the Hawkeyes’ best player on offense without a doubt.
• Keith Duncan is the best kicker in college football. He finished the day 4-of-5 on field goal attempts, with his lone miss hitting the crossbar on a 51-yard attempt with 2:02 remaining in the game. If not for him, Iowa probably doesn’t win.
• Charlie Jones is arguably the best punt returner in the Big Ten. His presence has been immense in altering field position in Iowa’s favor this season. On Saturday, Jones returned two punts for 39 yards (19.5 average), helping to flip the field.
• Daviyon Nixon and Chauncey Golston continue to wreak havoc on opposing quarterbacks. Nixon was in the backfield too many times to count, and Golston logged the game-clinching sack fumble with 1:19 remaining. In all likelihood, both will be playing on Sundays next season.
• Jack Campbell is emerging as one of the Hawkeyes’ best players on defense. The 6-foot-5, 243-pound linebacker missed Iowa’s first three contests with mono, but has since taken on a larger role each successive week. Campbell was all over the field today.
• Speaking of taking on a larger role, Zach VanValkenburg has embraced his opportunity this season. VanValkenburg has helped fill the void left by defensive end AJ Epenesa, who was drafted by the Buffalo Bills this past April. VanValkenburg recovered the game-sealing fumble forced by Golston. It was his fourth fumble recovery this season.