It wasn't just the Iowa offense that hurt the Hawkeyes in loss to Michigan State

Kirk Ferentz seems to be very set in his ways, and that includes having an offense that struggles at Iowa and not benching quarterbacks that clearly should be benched. At halftime, quarterback Cade McNamara only had 30 passing yards and finished the game with just 150. The Hawkeyes offense only put 20 points on the board, the most by just one point in any loss this season.

It wasn't all the offense tonight for the Hawkeyes though, the team as a whole struggled, including Phil Parker's famous defense. The Hawkeyes were without star defensive player Sebastian Castro and they could feel his absence.

At halftime, Iowa was down 12-0, with the defense not allowing the Spartans to find the end zone and doing everything they could to keep the Hawkeyes in the game. However, in the second half, the Iowa defense began to look a lot more mortal than they normally do. Due to the offense struggling, the defense seemed to be on the field for long periods of time as the Spartans were able to put together long drives.

The defense allowed just two touchdowns in the second half, but all together, the Spartans were able to kick six field goals for a total of 18 points. If the Hawkeyes defense could have kept the Spartans out of the end zone, the game could have been very different.

However, it is hard to blame the defense for the 32-20 loss when the offense couldn't get on the board until the second half. Even though he finished the game with 98 yards, star running back Kaleb Johnson had a quiet night by his standards. When Iowa can't get Johnson going, the rest of the offense struggles and that was the case against Michigan State.

If the Hawkeyes weren't officially eliminated from College Football Playoff contention, they definitely are now with three losses on the season, especially against one that they could have won. The Spartans came ready to stop the run game, and the Hawkeye's passing game has struggled all season long behind McNamara. Ferentz has shown he isn't going to bench the sixth-year senior, even though fans are calling for it every game.

The Hawkeyes will have to turn the page, though, as they have a game against Northwestern a week from now. Could Ferentz actually play backup, Brendan Sullivan, against his former team? All will be seen next week.