Iowa vs Iowa State: EA Sports College Football 27 Simulation Results

We fired up EA Sports College Football 27 once again this week. The game was rather accurate in its 40-13 prediction of an Iowa Hawkeyes win last week. This week, we give the game another test in the form of the Cy-Hawk rivalry.

EA Sports is siding with Iowa, but it did not come without stress or some anxious moments along the way that tested Iowa.

Iowa beats Iowa State 28-13

The final score here is not indicative of how this game went. Entering halftime, the Hawkeyes trailed Iowa State 13-7, before putting up a 21-0 second half. Should things play out this way Saturday, it will be a nervy halftime break inside Kinnick Stadium.

Kudos to the video game offense and defense for finding a way in the second half, though, as both did their jobs exceptionally well.

Iowa Offensive Stats

Iowa's offense came back to earth in this one a bit. The Hawkeyes tallied 376 yards of total offense, but surprisingly, were led by the passing attack. The Hawkeyes stayed with a good mix, running the ball 28 times to 35 pass attempts.

Passing Stats

Hank Brown: 8-for-16, 108 yards
Jeremy Hecklinski: 9-for-18, 131 yards, 1 touchdown, 1 interception

The passing attack was just fine in this simulation. The quarterbacks once again split reps, and each had a subpar 50% completion percentage. That said, the yards were there, and Jeremy Hecklinski did throw one touchdown pass.

Rushing Stats

Kamari Moulton: 19 rushes, 97 yards, 2 touchdowns
Nathan McNeil: 9 rushes, 40 yards, 1 touchdown

As expected, Kamari Moulton led the way for Iowa on offense, capped off by two touchdowns. Nathan McNeil, in place of L.J. Phillips Jr., who is out with an injury, poured in a strong 40 yards and found the end zone once as well.

Receiving Stats

Reece Vander Zee: 6 receptions, 92 yards, 1 touchdown
DJ Vonnahme: 5 receptions, 60 yards
Tony Diaz: 4 receptions, 54 yards
Kamari Moulton: 2 receptions, 33 yards

After Tony Diaz stole the show last week, Reece Vander Zee took his turn in the spotlight, posting 92 yards and a touchdown. Diaz still added 54 yards, while DJ Vonnahme was consistent with 60 yards.

Iowa Defensive Stats

Iowa's defense has another strong showing. The Hawkeyes held Iowa State to 251 total yards. The Cyclones ran for 104 yards, but at 3.6 yards per carry, while Jaylen Raynor went 16-for-35 through the air for 147 yards and an interception. He added 55 yards on the ground.

The Cyclones' lone touchdown came from Aiden Florda, who ran 13 times for 39 yards. Omari Hayes led the Iowa State receivers with 46 yards on four receptions.

Defensive Stats

Cam Buffington: 8 tackles
Jayden Montgomery: 7 tackles
Deshaun Lee: 6 tackles
Zach Lutmer: 6 tackles
Jaylen Watson: 6 tackles, one interception
Kenneth Merrieweather: 4 tackles, 2 sacks
Iose Epenesa: 2 tackles, 1 sack

Iowa's usual suspects led the way on defense, with the two linebackers leading the team in tackles. What is very encouraging is Jaylen Watson reeling in an interception, while Kenneth Merrieweather and Iose Epensa tallied three combined sacks.

Riley Donald's Quick Thoughts

This score feels very accurate. It feels like a game that could be tight at half, with Iowa State extinguishing all that they have, before Iowa's advantages in the trenches start to show down the stretch.

I would hope to see Iowa run the ball a little better than this to save the defense from being on the field a ton, and I expect such to be the case on Saturday night.

Defensively, this is quite possibly how I would predict this game to go down to the last yard. Iowa stayed stout against the run and made Jaylen Raynor sling it, which tilted Iowa's way in the video game, and very well could follow suit in real life.

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