Iowa Coach Notes Critical Improvement In Crucial Area

Iowa Hawkeyes head coach Kirk Ferentz loves what he is seeing from this major position group.

Oct 12, 2024; Iowa City, Iowa, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes head coach Kirk Ferentz looks on during the fourth quarter against the Washington Huskies at Kinnick Stadium. The victory would the 200th of Ferentz’s Big Ten career. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images / Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

The Iowa Hawkeyes put together a terrific performance this past Saturday, routing the Washington Huskies by a score of 40-16.

It was certainly a nice bounceback effort for Iowa after getting hammered by the Ohio State Buckeyes the week prior, and it was also refreshing to see the Hawkeyes play a sound game on both sides of the ball for once.

But Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz has noted one area in particular that has shown vast improvement: the offensive line.

"We're improving up front," Ferentz said, via Dargan Southard of The Des Moines Register. "And we were all cautiously optimistic because we're more veteran, a little bit more developed than we've been. We've gone through a couple tough years up front. Nobody's fault, but that's just how it's gone. So I think we're closer to where we want to be, and it's fun to watch guys' confidence start to grow a little bit."

Iowa accumulated 328 yards of total offense against Washington, and while that isn't extraordinary, an impressive 220 came via the ground game, and the Hawkeyes averaged a solid 6.4 yards per play.

Of course, the star of the show for the Hawkeyes is running back Kaleb Johnson, who racked up 166 rushing yards and a couple of touchdowns in Week 7 and has rattled off 937 yards and 12 scores on the season overall.

However, for as dominant as Johnson has been, he wouldn't be as effective without the offensive line opening up big holes for him, so the the guys in the trenches certainly deserve some credit.

Iowa is now 4-2 this year and will take on the Michigan State Spartans this Saturday.