When you undergo a year of near misses, critics can come out of the closet.  Consider Iowa’s four defeats:

  1. A last-minute loss at home to Wisconsin where Iowa controlled most of the game
  2. An interception late in the game at Penn State at the PSU goal line just when Iowa was poised to take control
  3. To rally at Purdue, only to see the Boilers conduct a last-minute drive for a game winning field goal
  4. Iowa went into yesterday’s home game at Northwestern as an 11-point favorite and, to most observers, was clearly the more talented team.  Pat Fitzgerald weaved yet more of his Wildcat magic as Northwestern upset Iowa 14-10.

Now, for the intrigue.  Iowa’s strapping Noel Fant was considered the nation’s premier tight end coming into 2018 and is Iowa’s career leader in TD receptions as a tight end (no small feat, considering that Iowa is a tight end factory.  Dallas Clark and Tony Moeaki are among tight end alumni in the Ferentz era).  Fant was targeted only 3 times among Nate Stanley’s 41 attempts yesterday.

Folks are wondering why.  We see no clear answer.  Three possibilities:

  1. Sophomore TJ Hockenson is also deemed to be a high quality tight end and, as such,  has seen lots of playing time
  2. Perhaps Fant has not been deemed to fully recover from an earlier concussion
  3. The Iowa staff is still upset about Fant’s role in the pivotal goal line interception at Penn State

Such implied criticism of Ferentz and his staff would never have happened if the 2018 version of Iowa were not the Heartbreak Hawkeyes.  Fant’s older brother, a coach in Omaha, would not have dropped repeated Twitter bombs.

Iowa, so close to repeating their 2015 stellar season that led them to the Rose Bowl, yet, so, so, so far away.