Iowa completes undefeated regular season with 28-20 win over Nebraska

NO. 3 IOWA 28, NEBRASKA 20: Jordan Canzeri broke long touchdown runs on back-to-back series in the third quarter, and Iowa beat Nebraska to complete its first flawless regular season in 93 years.

Coach Mike Riley says he’d like the team to be able to reach a bowl game. “Football’s not gymnastics. There are style points in gymnastics”. You won’t hear him call this Black Friday clash with Iowa a bigger game than, say, a game against Rutgers. Then it was off to the corner to salute their fans before heading to the locker room. The Hawkeyes were ranked fourth in the most recent College Football Playoff rankings.

The weekend’s games will decide the competitors in the Big Ten Championship games, and will see several rivals hit the field. They held Iowa to its second-lowest yardage total of the season, at 250, and ran 83 plays to the Hawkeyes’ 44.

Nebraska couldn’t overcome four interceptions by junior quarterback Tommy Armstrong, including one that Iowa returned for a touchdown, the Hawkeyes’ fourth such score this season. It’s not a matchup between two undefeated or even one-loss teams that will decide the fate of the Big Ten, but it’s a critical matchup from the standpoint that everything is on the line for both teams. Clemson is the other.

“You want to win every game, that’s your goal, ” Ferentz said. “But it’s more important for us trying to build on the momentum we’ve gained at the end of the year”.

Iowa quarterback C.J. Beathard (16) throws before an NCAA college football game against Nebraska in Lincoln, Neb., Friday, Nov. 27, 2015. After the Huskers cut the lead to 21-17 in the third quarter, tailback Jordan Canzeri rushed 68 yards down the left sideline, (running what looked like the same play as a 29-yard touchdown run earlier in the quarter), for a dagger of a touchdown and a two-score lead.

Not matter what their reason for getting there to watch the game, Hawk fans all had one goal in mind-seeing that 12th win. Defensive end Parker Hesse tipped an intended swing pass, caught it, and ran it four yards into the end zone to give the Hawkeyes a 14-7 lead.

With the game scoreless late in the first quarter, Iowa took over at its own 34 and on second down Freedom Akinmoladun forced a fumble that was recovered by Nate Gerry that would have given the Huskers the ball to NU inside the 40, but the turnover was erased by a Husker penalty prior to the turnover.

“Really shot ourselves in the foot”, Riley said. They were 0-for-9 on third down. “It’s another football game, another good team coming in, so we’re going to approach it that way and just play football”, Williams said. “Defense came up huge when we needed it to”, said McBride.

Armstrong has been explosive but mistake-prone in a frustrating season, and showcased his flaws with a disastrous four interception performance against the Hawkeyes.

Put us in great positions to win the game. Dont put the blame anywhere else. After converting a first down, Nebraska was forced to punt after failing to do the same on the team’s second third-down play of the drive. “I didn’t. I felt like I let the seniors down”.

An undefeated appearance in the Big Ten title game and just another impressive season for the Hawkeyes is separated by the Nebraska Cornhuskers, who are 5-6 and playing for bowl eligibility. With at least one more game to play, Iowa has made a five-win improvement over 2014.

“I don’t listen too much, but it’s kind of entertaining and interesting in some ways”, Ferentz said. In fact, you have to go down to team No. 15, Navy, to find another squad with a worse strength of schedule: 90th.