Iowa Hawkeyes 2018 Football Preview

Two July departures, combined with suspensions and graduation losses could turn 2018 into a rebuilding year for Iowa.

If you need a singular example of Mike Riley’s failure at Nebraska, the Iowa series probably is the best example to work with. Prior to Mike Riley, Nebraska had won three out of four games since the Huskers moved to the Big Ten. That one loss could be excused by the Bo-lievers as the inevitable result of having to turn to a third-string quarterback in 2013. Nevertheless, Nebraska fans grew tired of losing four games each season, and so a change was made after the 2014 season.

Under Mike Riley, the Hawkeyes outscored Nebraska 124 to 44…and frankly, the games weren’t as close as the scores indicated. And with that three game winning streak, Iowa now leads the series during the Big Ten era four games to three. For Husker fans, that’s a bitter pill to swallow. Last season, Nebraska led Iowa 14-7 until Iowa tied the game just before halftime. And in the inevitable conclusion to the Riley era, the Huskers didn’t even bother to come out for the second half as the Hawkeyes scored 42 more points on the blackest of Black Fridays.

Last season, the Hawkeyes had their moments of success. Besides blowing out the Big Red, Iowa also took Ohio State behind the outhouse for a 55-24 shocker. They did come up short against Penn State as the Nittany Lions scored as time expired. But they also got blown out by Wisconsin and were mostly dominated by Purdue to finish the season 8-5. Bill Connelly points out that this was your average Iowa team; the Hawkeyes have won seven or eight games in six out of the last eight seasons.