Ad Disclosure
Rapid Reaction: QB Nate Stanley, Iowa overcome slow start with blowout win over Miami (OH)
By Paul Harvey
Published:
Final Score: Iowa 38, Miami (OH) 14
Brief Recap: It may not have been the start Iowa was looking for, but the Hawkeyes put a slow first half behind them in Saturday’s win. Quarterback Nate Stanley and company managed just 10 points in the first half and carried a 10-7 lead to the break. Fortunately, Iowa turned it up a bit in the second half and finally put the game away late.
Key Moment: Believe it or not, the end result was still up in the air early in the fourth quarter. Miami cut Iowa’s lead to 24-14 with just under 13 minutes left in the game and plenty of momentum. Fortunately, the Hawkeyes offense put that to bed quickly. Stanley and running back Mekhi Sargent engineered a drive that covered 75 yards and nearly seven minutes to put the game on ice. Toren Young put the finishing touches on the drive with a two-yard score.
RELATED: WATCH: Nate Stanley finds WR Oliver Martin in end-zone for his first catch as a Hawkeye
Key Stat: Iowa finished 9-for-14 on third-down conversions. The team struggled to be efficient in the first half. But once they got rolling after the break, things started to pick up. Converting on key third downs allowed Iowa to build and keep its lead down the stretch. By contrast, Miami converted just four third downs all game long.
Key Player: It’s hard to overstate the balance that Nate Stanley and Mekhi Sargent bring to Iowa’s offense. Stanley was efficient with the ball, completing 21 of 30 passes for 252 yards and 3 TDs. Sargent carried the ball 14 times for 91 yards and a touchdown while adding four catches for 65 yards. If forced to choose, Stanley is undoubtedly the steady leader for the Hawkeyes, but the duo was fantastic together in Week 1.
What it Means: It took the Hawkeyes a minute to wake up, but once they did they turned in a vintage performance under Kirk Ferentz. The score stayed semi-close for a long time, but Iowa slowly wore down the competition before pulling away late. Ferentz’s squad looked steady on both sides of the ball in the second half, and there are no big surprises to take away from the Week 1 win. The Hawkeyes move on to start B1G play against Rutgers next Saturday.
Paul is a lifelong fan and student of all things college football. He has been covering college football since 2017 and the B1G since 2018.