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Despite upset defeat, season not lost for Iowa

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Updated Nov 9, 2009 12:45 PM ET
     
 
CFN's Instant Analysis of Northwestern's 17-10 upset of No. 8 Iowa:

Iowa can still sniff Rose

Relax, Hawkeyes fans. Your team wasn't going to play for the national championship anyway, and you were likely going to have to beat Ohio State in Columbus to get to Pasadena. So, basically, nothing has changed for the Hawkeyes except for the weeping and gnashing of teeth that would've ensued if they went 12-0. With that said, there's no excuse for a loss at home to Northwestern, just as there was no excuse for such a lousy performance against Indiana. It's not as if the Hawkeyes were playing the world-beaters, and it's not as if the game were over after losing Ricky Stanzi to his ankle injury. Of course, not having the leader and No. 1 quarterback matters, but 1) Iowa was still winning when he got knocked out, 2) Northwestern also lost its starter, and 3) It ... was ... Northwestern. This is a Wildcats team that sputtered and coughed against Eastern Michigan, one of the five worst teams in college football, and this is a team that can't get a score without it being wrapped in a nice gift basket. If Iowa really were a national title-caliber team, it would've pounded away on the mediocre Wildcats D and come up with a point over the final 50 minutes. Pat Angerer and Jeremiha Hunter did their part, combining for 27 tackles, but the offensive line that did such a great job against Indiana struggled to get the running game going and James Vandenberg was miserable in place of Stanzi. And that's it. That's the difference between an all-timer of a season and being among the mere mortals. Again, though, Iowa is fine. Take a step back, regroup, beat Ohio State, go to Pasadena. — Pete Fiutak

Enough with playing defense

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Does this mean we can finally stop defending the Hawkeyes? While I've said all along I've enjoyed Iowa's run and respected what it has accomplished, it got awful tiring answering questions about the program's legitimacy. Throughout it all, the Hawkeyes were a good program enjoying a magical ride during the first two months of the 2009 season. However, in football, as in life, if you play with fire, eventually you'll get burned. Able to overcome injuries and close calls all season, Iowa finally reached its breaking point in Week 10, losing QB Ricky Stanzi to an ankle injury in the second quarter and a game to Northwestern in front of a dejected home crowd. No miraculous comeback. No more chapters to the Cinderella story. And, quite possibly, no BCS bowl game if the wheels come off in Columbus next weekend. The big winners, of course, are Penn State and Ohio State, who now have legitimate shots at a Big Ten title after watching Iowa deftly dodge landmines week after week. The biggest loser? Besides the obvious, how about the conference itself? It has lost a voice in the national championship discussion. — Richard Cirminiello

Iowa can't catch a break

1. Iowa received good fortune throughout the season, but there's no question the Hawkeyes were handed a bucketful of bad breaks on Saturday. First, there was the injury to Ricky Stanzi, whose presence on the field (even with a few turnovers on the stat sheet) would have meant a great deal for Kirk Ferentz and Co. in the second half of this game. Then came a highly dubious holding call that nullified an Iowa touchdown run in the second quarter. Then came Daniel Murray's using just enough wicked curving action to barely miss a 46-yard field goal. Then came a steady stream of luckless occurrences on 50-50 calls that all went Northwestern's way. Oh, and throw in at least two defensive holding penalties that weren't called on Wildcats defensive backs who collared Hawkeyes receivers before the ball was thrown. The football fates giveth, and the football fates taketh away. One at least hopes Stanzi will be able to stand tall next week in Columbus. Win that game, and Iowa will still reach a BCS bowl. 2. Speaking of taking away ... take nothing away from Northwestern, now assured of another non-losing season under the tireless Pat Fitzgerald. Yes, Fitzgerald really sweated bullets before a panicky fourth-and-1 drama near midfield early in the fourth quarter, but other than that dance with disaster, the young coach had his team ready to compete, persevere and thrive even with a lack of a healthy quarterback. With both Mike Kafka and Dan Persa banged up, it can't be said Iowa played at a severe disadvantage. Both teams had backup quarterbacks in this fight; Northwestern's second-stringer was better than Iowa's Plan B, and that's the biggest reality to take away from this game. — Matt Zemek
Tagged: Iowa, Eastern Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State, Northwestern, Hawaii, Indiana

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