2013 Iowa Hawkeyes
College Football
Preview
Odds and Schedule
Iowa returns plenty of starters for the new season, but that’s not saying a lot after the Hawkeyes finished with their worst season in quite some time at 4-8. They dropped their last six Games of the season after winning at Michigan State. QB James Vandenberg threw 25 TDs in 2011, but only seven in 2012 under new offensive coordinator Greg Davis who came over from Texas. This year, they’ll have a new quarterback which won’t be decided until the fall.
As a result, the Hawkeyes are list as 1000 to 1 shots to win the BCS Title at sportsbook.ag. That translates into slim to none. But hey, that’s why they play the Games, right?
While the QB position is in question, Iowa will have a few running backs at their disposal, including last year’s leader Mark Weisman. They still haven’t found a replacement for Marvin McNutt at wide receiver and hope someone will step up this year to help the new QB. Kevonte Martin-Manley could be that guy. As usual, the Hawkeyes will have a stout offensive line and an all-around tight end in C.J. Fiedorowicz.
Defensively is where the Hawkeyes excel, but again they weren’t overly impressive in Big Ten play last season. They stopped Nebraska to 13 points in the final Game of the season which was their high point. They’ll return eight starters to the unit including key linebackers Anthony Hitchens and James Morris. If they can stay strong and confident for the entire year (something that didn’t happen last season), the Hawkeyes should be able to improve on that front.
2013 Iowa Hawkeyes Football Schedule
Aug. 31 vs. Northern Illinois
Sept. 7 vs. Missouri State
Sept. 14 at Iowa State
Sept. 21 vs. Western Michigan
Sept. 28 at Minnesota
Oct. 5 vs. Michigan State
Oct. 19 at Ohio State
Oct. 26 vs. Northwestern
Nov. 2 vs. Wisconsin
Nov. 9 at Purdue
Nov. 23 vs. Michigan
Nov. 29 at Nebraska
A problem for Iowa will be their Big Ten Schedule which doesn’t help at all. Not to mention they have to face Jordan Lynch and Northern Illinois again in their opener and travel to rival Iowa State which is never an easy place to play.
In Conference play, Iowa starts on the road against Minnesota who made it to a bowl Game last year. Next, they’ll face Michigan State, Ohio State, Northwestern and Wisconsin. A road Game at Purdue could be considered a break, but Iowa lost at home to them last year. To finish the season, Michigan and Nebraska await. The Hawkeyes have to face all of the top teams in the conference, and the weaker teams they do play are on the road.
Another Four-win season could be in Iowa’s future if their new quarterback can’t get things rolling. Their running Game isn’t good enough to carry this offense multiple times during the year and their defense isn’t going to shut down opponents to 10 points per Game. If nothing comes to fruition, it could be another miserable season for the Hawkeyes.