Penn State fans cheer on the Nittany Lions during a White Out game against Minnesota at Beaver Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 22, 2022, in State College. (Dan Rainville / USA TODAY NETWORK)
Takeaways: Penn State Shuts Out Hawkeyes
Penn State’s “Whiteout” turned into a blackout for Iowa’s offense, and it led to a rare shutout for the Hawkeyes.
The 31-0 defeat to the No. 7 Nittany Lions at Beaver Stadium in State College, Pa., was a low point for Iowa’s offense in front of a prime-time national television audience.
The numbers explained the devastation:
— Penn State ran 97 offensive plays to Iowa’s 33.
— The Nittany Lions had 397 yards of offense, Iowa had 76.
— Penn State had a 28-4 edge in first downs.
— Penn State had a 45:27-14:33 edge in time of possession.
It added up to the first shutout against the Hawkeyes since the 2000 season — a 31-0 loss at home against Illinois in Kirk Ferentz’s second season as coach.
A rainy night in Happy Valley turned dismal for the Hawkeyes in a hurry. They had the ball for 5 minutes, 41 seconds in the first quarter, then just 8 minutes, 52 seconds the rest of the game.
The criticism that has been following Iowa’s offense since last season seemed to dim a little bit in the Hawkeyes’ 3-0 start to this season. But this game showed a lot of flaws, especially up front with the offensive line, and it’s something that will have to change in the coming weeks, if it can at all.
Some other takeaways from night:
CADE’S STRUGGLES: Quarterback Cade McNamara was expected to put some life into the Hawkeyes’ offense since transferring from Michigan, but his inconsistency continued in this game.
McNamara was 5-of-14 passing for just 42 yards. His longest pass play was a 20-yarder to Erick All on Iowa’s third offensive play of the game.
McNamara started the season plagued with a quad injury that limited his practice time through the final weeks of fall camp, but he has said he is healthy now. He has completed just 50.6 percent of his passes in the first four games, and that number is going to have to rise if the Hawkeyes are to be successful.
THE TURNOVERS: Iowa had six fumbles in the game, losing four of them, an uncharacteristically sloppy night for an offense that prides itself on fundamentals.
The most devastating one came from All, who fumbled after getting inside the Penn State 20-yard line after a pass completion in the first quarter with the game still at 0-0. The Nittany Lions converted the turnover into a field goal, and it would be a long time before the Hawkeyes would be in Penn State territory again.
HERE’S A POSITIVE: Iowa’s linebackers continue their impressive start to the season.
Jay Higgins led the Hawkeyes with 18 tackles, while Nick Jackson had 13. Kyler Fisher had seven.
That position group had some questions on where everyone would fit heading into the season, but it’s clear that’s become the strongest group on the Hawkeyes’ defense.
A LONG WAY TO GO, BUT…: There are still eight Big Ten games remaining, including six games against the Big Ten West teams and two games against East teams Michigan State (2-2) and Rutgers (3-1). There is a lot of season remaining, and the Hawkeyes have a lot of time to fix its flaws.
But unless the offense can start to become consistent in all phases, the struggles will continue, and the criticism will grow.
A night in Happy Valley brought back the anger, and it’s not a good thing for the program.
