Iowa’s 28-21 win over Nebraska was huge in that it keeps the Hawkeyes alive for a Big Ten championship appearance. But it’s not just the stakes that make this among the best of Kirk Ferentz’s 178 victories.

The way the Hawkeyes snatched this game away from the Cornhuskers was just so vividly Ferentzian in nature.

What the heck does that mean, you ask?

It means that Iowa tied a game at 21 without the benefit of its offense scoring a touchdown. Twelve points from field goals, 7 points from a blocked punt returned for a score, 2 points on a safety. The safety occurring, of course, because Iowa pinned its opponent deep on a prior punt.

It means that once Iowa took its first lead of the game with 3 minutes left, it looked like this:

And, of course, it means that a team that MacGyvered its way to 10 wins would seal the game with yet another interception. Jermari Harris put the dagger in with Iowa’s nation-leading 22nd picked-off pass of the year.

If you were to distill the culture of Iowa football in 22 years of Ferentz into 60 minutes, this 28-21 win would churn out of the machine. Kirk’s Moonshine. Ferentz Football.

Even Ferentz himself seemed to recognize this, getting emotional in his postgame TV interview.

Yes, gagging away games like this is Nebraska’s entire identity. But don’t let that take anything off the luster of this win. It was the idealization of Iowa football made reality.

In a way, it’s so good that what’s next shouldn’t even matter. Iowa fans should be rooting against Wisconsin, of course, which is pretty easy regardless of circumstances. And Michigan would make a much more ideal Big Ten title opponent than Ohio State for a multitude of reasons.

But if it doesn’t play out that way and the Hawkeyes don’t hit the field again until Jan. 1, that’s just fine too. This is one to savor, whether it’s for a week or a month.