Iowa players meet at midfield during a change in drills at practice on March 29, 2022 at the indoor practice facility in Iowa City, Iowa. (Rob Howe/Hawkeyenation.com)
Hawkeyes Fired Up for 2022 Kickoff
IOWA CITY, Iowa - Kirk Ferentz had just concluded his first weekly news conference of the football season Tuesday when Steve Roe, Iowa’s Director of Athletic Communications, whispered, “Captains.”
Ferentz, in his 24th season as the Hawkeyes’ head football coach, headed back to the podium.
He mentions captains for the upcoming game early in his weekly news conferences. It’s a tradition, as much as Nile Kinnick, Hayden Fry, Andre Tippett, The Wave and the coach’s baseball analogies.
“First-game jitters,” Ferentz said of his omission.
This is not a normal week for Ferentz, his coaching staff and his players. It’s the week of the season opener, against FCS power South Dakota State at 11 a.m. Saturday inside Kinnick Stadium.
“It’s been 8-plus months,” quarterback Spencer Petras said. “ It’s time to go out there and compete.”
Those 8 months have been all about developing the team that takes the field for the first time on Saturday. But this week, the big picture has been replaced by a much smaller window. Them replaces us on the to-do list.
“Everything you do prior to the first game is about getting ready for that first game,” Ferentz said. “And it’s not all about that first game, but all 12 of these games are really critical. We don’t get to play 162 games a year, so each and every one really means something, and how we can handle each challenge week by week.”
Game preparations started at team meetings on Sunday. Defensive lineman Logan Lee went into that meeting feeling a bit anxious. But once the coaches started installing the game plan, that took the edge off.
“The biggest thing is just being able to learn and apply new schemes against a new offense,” Lee said. “Once we’ve done that, things don’t change a whole lot for the values we have and the values we try to hold. We’re trying to get after it every day in practice, like we did in camp.”
Lee expects the anxiousness to return for a spell on Saturday, when the team walks down the tunnel to Duke Slater Field.
“Once we get in Kinnick and the stadium is full, I’ll get a few butterlies,” he said.
Petras said the season opener creates two challenges.
“First, you don’t want to start your prep too early because you don’t want to get sick of your opponent,” Petras said. “You don’t want to be watching the same cut-ups over and over and over. You want to gain a rhythm to have a normal game week, like we’ll do all season. It also feels like the longest week of the year, because we’re just ready to go out there and play. So the second key is taking every day for what it is, winning the week and winning the preparation battle. We’re all really excited to go play. And it’s time to go play. But we can’t overlook the process of what it takes to win the game.”
Cornerback Riley Moss heads into his fifth season with a world of experience to lean on. He understands the dynamic of playing in a season opener.
Iowa opened the 2021 season against two rated opponents in Indiana and Iowa State. South Dakota State might seem like a step down in competition, but the Jackrabbits are a Football Championship Subdivision power that looks everything like a tough out for the Hawkeyes.
“Teams like this want to come out and hit you in the mouth, so you’ve got to be ready to play,” Moss said. “I’m excited to come out and play with my boys and see what we can do. We’ve been playing against our offense for so long that I think we’re ready to face someone else.”
Moss said it’s important to slow things down heading into a season opener.
“I think throughout the years I’ve learned that,” Moss said. “That first game you’re coming out pretty hot. You’re doing the Hawk Walk and stuff. Kinnick is packed and you’re getting excited. I think you have to keep your emotions to a low and do what you’re trained to do and just play football.”
Ferentz said he usually gets a pretty good read on what kind of team he’ll have over the eight-month window between the end of a season and the start of the next one.
“And this team, I’ve been saying pretty consistently, I felt good about them since we got going in January,” he said. “They seem to care about each other. They work hard, they have a good attitude, good work ethic. That’s a good starting point. At least it gives you an idea of what you might be able to expect as you move forward. That’s how we handle these challenges as they come up.”
Starting offensive guard Connor Colby said he’s excited to get the season underway.
“It’s good to be a Kinnick,” he said.
Instead of being focused on individual development, the picture shifts to the opponent this week.
“More exposure to what they’re going to bring to the table,” Colby said.
Colby said he’s anxious to put on the uniform again and play a real game.
“It’s another opportunity,” he said. “We get to play football. And we’re all excited about that.”
