Cyclone Football Preview: CyHawk
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The Cyclones take their undefeated record into Iowa City to take on their in-state rivals. Both teams got a victory in their first matchup, however, each team did it in a very different way. The Hawkeyes escaped FCS opponent SDSU by a score of 7-3, while the Cyclones were victorious over SEMO by a score of 42-10.
Previewing the Iowa Hawkeyes
Iowa struggled greatly on offense, with only 166 total yards to shoo for their effort. QB Spencer Petras was awful, with a quarterback rating of 1.1, and Cyclone fans let him know.
Leshon Williams was the leading rusher for the Hawkeyes, rushing 24 times for 72 yards with an unimpressive 3 yards a carry. However, the defense was almost as impressive as the offense was unimpressive. They held the Jackrabbits to 120 yards and also racked up two safety. One of thee safety was from former Ames High quarterback Joe Evans. The Cyclones will need to find ways to move the ball against this terrific Iowa defense. Another top weapon for the Hawkeyes is punter Tory Taylor. Taylor is one of the best punters in football and is incredible at switching the field. The Cyclones will need to do something about his ability on special teams.
Previewing the Cyclones
New quarterback Hunter Deckers looked really strong in the opener against SEMO, and his connection to star receiver Xavier Hutchinson looked unmatched in that opened. Hutchinson had an insane game, totaling nearly 130 yards and 3 touchdowns receiving. The offensive line looked pretty good for the both the run and pass game, where Jirehl Brock and Norton looked like the best two backs for the Cyclones. Norton is most likely not going to be able to play for the Cyclones this week, so Eli Sanders will get the touches behind Brock.
The Defensive line will need more of a pass rush this week if they want to keep Iowa's offense out of the endzone. The Cyclones looked strong in the secondary last week, with converted wide receiver Darien Porter making some big plays for the Cyclones and will need more of the same in that department. Colby Reeder and the linebacking crew need another solid week, as well as special teams continuing to improve to match the loaded special teams unit of the Hawkeyes.
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