Iowa Hawkeyes vs. Illinois State Redbirds Highlights | CFB on FOX

Let's take in the scene. We are almost ready for the kickoff. N/A Drew Stevens with the kickoff and will. Illinois state have a chance to return. They will not. The ball flies over the head of Jalen Carr. Well, they're going empty. They've motioned running back Mason King out of the backfield. Good pocket. Quick throw. Incomplete pass. Formidable up front in the offensive line, especially via the corner. And here's a keeper. Rittenhouse in trouble escapes one tackle forced out of bounds by jay Higgins and third and nine as the down they have eight starters officially back on that defense and a pass first Iowa snap of the game and they're running it behind kamari Milton graduated with his system. This should lead to new heights got a lot of experience on that line. Mason Richmond, 39, starts at left tackle. Gardner Colby, 36, starts at right guard. Leshon Johnson has come into the game. He's in the backfield. Weejuns in motion. Illinois state sends pressure and an incomplete pass for Luke lashay. Here he is getting his right leg rolled up on on that previous play limped off the field. No pressure on his right leg but a completed pass to Daniel lobkowitz has the redbirds moving a little bit. Quick pass and caught and out of bounds along the sideline. Transfer from Kansas state. Now on second and seven, the ball is out quickly and the ball's in the hands of Iowa. Interception jamari Harris. N/A Six career interceptions. What do you know? A turnover forced by the hawkeye defense. N/A It was a redshirt year, even though he did play a little bit 93 yards rushing last year. And a long look, Jacob gill was in motion and the pass to Addison estranja just hasn't had time to learn Tony Peterson's system as well yet. Winker's right. With Mason King getting hurt earlier in the game. Tony Peterson, again, their offensive coordinator. And to the left side, Castro rips the ball out. It was a first down picked up by winker's. Right that Castro dislodged it. He created the turnover. Ultimately, it's recovered by tj hall. N/A Three drives for Illinois state one three and out and two turnovers. USA at tight end and a fake handoff and a throw in the direction of lashay. It's incomplete at the goal line, ready to look like himself. A little more on the last week and a half after being skittish anytime that there was contact near his knee. Stevens on a 41 yard attempt. Ty Nixon is the holder and the kick is on the way for Stevens outside of 40 yards. He struggled last year. The eyes of the potential pass catcher and that pass catcher was javon Charles from Desoto, Texas at tight end and now kaden Wheaton. Something special may happen here with all of this room to run. Kaden Wesson. He is. Picking him up and putting him down. Touchdown! kaden wagin. N/A Lego block in the back. Receiving team number eight. Ten-yard penalty from the spot of the foul first down, I'll run. That was something really special we just saw out of Wilson deshaun Lee with the block and deshaun Lee. You could tell he was actually trying to evade placing the block into the back of the member of Illinois state's coverage. He had a teammate who sort of blocked, legally blocked the Illinois state coverage player. Playing for coach ferentz. McNamara fakes it to molson and it is a pass on the slant caught. And you see him go in motion and molten and a nice hole. And then off the edge, a play is made. Kamari Moulton those second effort, I thought he lunged it inside the 40 yard line, but they're spotting him a little poorly in my estimation. But short of the 40 and it's a hold on fourth down. It was a fantastic effort from Moulton, but Illinois state just brought so many defenders and they timed up the snap so well, getting bodies into the backfield. Yeah, the body into the backfield. Here is Dillon Gerhart at safety. That's where you want the biggest lead of your hawkeye fan. There's something in the passing attack with the ball inside of two minutes and in good territory here. State half of the field. Jacob Gil. Slight nuances in the run game are different for Iowa this season. Deon parks made the tackle there and a pass to the goal line. Incomplete looking for alworth. 28 yards to go with a 41 yard make tightness it holds for drew Stevens and instead of a 25. They start out at the 40 and looking left and caught and upended is estranja. He loves 12 personnel, and that's the case right now. McNamara throws Reese vanderzee true freshman. The one thing Tim Lester said as Reese vanderzee he is sure-handed. Yeah, if it's in his area, he said that dude's going to catch it. They've gone empty here with the five wideouts set. Hair throwing. Nicely done. Luke leitch. A catch. Absorbs a hit and has a first and goal. 19 yards, 19 yards to Luke lashay. And a strenga. Or lashay. There, but sliding to make the grab with a welcome to Iowa football moment. Touchdown Reese van der zee. N/A First career touchdown as a hawkeye. Off play action. Jacob gill is in motion and Caleb Johnson has room to run. Not there in today's game either. N/A Underneath Gordon Johnson defensive unit has accepted him and they're excited about the opportunity to run something new and they'll be more excited with plays like this. Luke lashay down to the 31 yard line of the redbirds and the chains move again. Said he can run an average route, but just get it near him and he'll catch it. Rollout throw McNamara for the end zone and Jacob gill his first Iowa touchdown. Nicely done 31 yards. The lead is 18 points playing with at this point in the game. So much of it set up off of run action, not even a hard play action fake, but then just sort of an effortless flick of the wrist. Baxter altmyer in Illinois and Cade McNamara back in the saddle again for Iowa. Here's a jump ball and caught. Nicely done by Xavier Lloyd and the crescendo of noise grows on third and 10. Low throw caught short of the first down. Xavier Lloyd from. So fourth and four. Rittenhouse off target incomplete. Based on past track record there had been a 12 team playoff. McNamara and it's a string. That's nice. Warkworth's end right now at tight end. And McNamara is under pressure. Got away from Kessler. And then he's able to. N/A As Kate McNamara evades multiple defenders, protection blown on the interior gets away from two guys, not only squares the shoulders around, but then throws a teardrop over the outstretched hands of the defender. That is a marvelous pass by Kate McKinnon. Third quarter. Nick Kessler and alworth. Really good hands on that play as well. And now McNamara throwing with vanderzee high points the football. He was the bigger, stronger, tougher young man right there and a second touchdown for the true freshman. Well, Kate McNamara is the only one who's able to hear Tim Lester in his headset. But I'd be very curious to hear how Tim Lester sounded as that play was initially developing. N/A That comes with taking over the leadership of this offense. This opens up for Caleb Johnson. Johnson stays on his feet at the line of scrimmage. And then. On the way. Touchdown! Caleb Johnson. Then he was off to the races. This looks just slightly different than what Iowa fans have become accustomed to during Kirk ferentz time here. The path of the o line. Yes, they're still moving in unison for that zone blocking scheme. But as opposed to a lateral charge, it's more of a vertical charge, kind of a 45 degree step really developed in the months to come. Rittenhouse down he goes. Bryan Allen. N/A And here is treble Aidan futch under pressure and he had to eat it and tries to run. But Kate McNamara, along with receivers Reese vanderzee and Jacob gill, have been brilliant in the second half and so is running back Caleb Johnson, who has his second touchdown in half. Number two most talented running back Iowa has access to is Caleb Johnson. It's been banged up at times throughout his career, but when he is healthy, he's as good a difference maker as Iowa has access to in this offensive line. Imposing their will on the game. State did a really nice job in the first half. Kirk and Seth Wallace and Tim Lester. Phil Parker. We had a lot of good chats yesterday and this game. You know, one of the things that the coaches stressed, you're nervous about an opener. It's a big unknown. Going to learn a lot in this first game. And it took a while to get things pointed in the right direction. But it's going to be a shutout win for Iowa. The last one was last November against Rutgers, and they've got another one here against Illinois state. Who has better days to come with a good team in the Missouri valley football conference. But the hawkeyes win this one today as the final seconds tick off a 40 to nothing victory.