It was not pretty, but the Hawkeyes got the job done against a solid Penn State team.
The Nittany Lions are in a transition period after firing long-time Head Coach James Franklin and losing starting quarterback Drew Allar for the season, but they are still loaded with talent.
Even without Franklin and Allar, Penn State is better than what their 3-4 (0-4 Big Ten) record shows. The program had success during Franklin's tenure due to the culture they built.
Iowa Head Coach Kirk Ferentz was adamant that not a "helluva lot" would change when they took on Penn State last weekend, and he was proven correct.
It was a dogfight for all 60 minutes of the game, and senior captain Logan Jones was adamant that those are the games you live for.
During his media availability before Iowa takes on Minnesota this week (posted by "247Sports"), Jones was asked at length about the team's performance against Penn State.
Jones said they got punched in the mouth and definitely "tasted blood" when Penn State went up 21-10 early in the third quarter, but those are the games he lives for.
He also noted that he would rather win a game where you are fighting and clawing for 60 minutes and ultimately come out on top, rather than blow a team out 37-0.
Jones also had faith in the offense to go out and score on their second-to-last drive, and he went out there believing they would.
Overall, Jones was adamant that he had fun during the Penn State game, and it does not get any better than playing in front of a sold-out crowd at Kinnick Stadium.