Brian Ferentz continued his tenure as Iowa’s offensive coordinator in Week 8 in search of the 325-point quota this season. That is the mark the Hawkeyes need to hit in 12 games plus a bowl game (including 7 overall wins) for the embattled OC per his updated contract.

Unfortunately, the push to that mark continues to lag behind during the conference slate. On Saturday, the Hawkeyes lost 12-10 at the hands of Minnesota and were notably shutout in the second half. The final 30 minutes of that game included 5 punts from Iowa, a lost fumble and a game-ending interception on offense.

Four of those second-half drives featured 0 yards or negative yards. Quarterback Deacon Hill finished 10-for-28 passing the ball, and Iowa’s leading rusher was Kaleb Johnson with 18 yards on 6 carries.

As a result, Iowa is stuck on 156 total points for the season, falling 44 points below 200 points. That would be the mark for averaging 25 points per game through the first 8 games.

Iowa does have some winnable games on the rest of the schedule, but it’s hard to envision a time when the Hawkeyes just turn things around on offense considering the recent trend and injuries.

The Hawkeyes reportedly will not make OC Brian Ferentz or any other assistant available to the media during the bye week. That move is a departure from the standard of previous seasons under Kirk Ferentz.