Mark Gronowski has been living in the training room for the past few weeks.
Gronowski has been rehabbing a left knee injury since the game against Indiana on September 27, and it was clearly still affecting him during Iowa's dominating 37-0 win over rival Wisconsin last weekend.
While the rushing attack was clicking on all cylinders and the defense was dominating, Gronowski was working his way back from rehabbing his ailing left knee.
During the win over Wisconsin, Gronowski threw for 107 yards, but it took him 24 attempts to reach that number. He also only rushed for nine yards on four attempts, which is nowhere near his usual amount.
After the win, Gronowski stated that he was not limited, but his numbers showed a different story.
We gave Gronowski an average grade for his performance against Wisconsin, but we were glad he stayed healthy throughout the game.
Gronowski's status was not in question this past weekend against Penn State, but he looked out of sorts through the first half.
All the momentum was with Penn State coming out of half, and they went up 21-10 after their first offensive drive of the third quarter.
Gronowski implored his guys not to give up, and they quickly responded with a touchdown of their own, including a 37-yard scramble by Gronowski.
Iowa's defense came up with a critical stop on fourth and one on the next possession, which turned into a Hawkeye field goal.
After allowing a field goal to start the fourth quarter, the Hawkeyes were in control and took the lead following a 67-yard run up the middle by Gronowski.
Following a failed two-point conversion, the Hawkeyes held a slim 25-24 lead and called upon the defense for one more stop. They delivered a stop on fourth and four, and it was the offense's turn to ice the game.
During arguably the biggest play of the game, Tim Lester called a designed run for Gronowski, including a fake to the running back, and he went untouched for 14 yards.
That first down sealed the win for the Hawkeyes.
The passing game left a lot to be desired, but Gronowski's legs made the difference as he showed his grit and toughness. He finished with 130 rushing yards and two touchdowns, capping off a historic night.
Final grade: A