Kaleb Johnson Leads Hawkeyes to Victory Against Troy

© Julia Hansen/Iowa City Press-Citizen/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Iowa Hawkeyes (2-1) bounced back to a gritty 38-21 win over the Troy Trojans (0-3) on Sept. 14 at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa. 

Kirk Ferentz's Bully Ball

The game was dominated by Iowa junior running back Kaleb Johnson who ran for 173 yards on 25 carries for 2 touchdowns. Johnson broke off two 30-yard-plus gains. The first was a big 39-yard gain in the first half, and the second was a 33-yard rushing touchdown that put the Hawkeyes up 31-21 and gave the notoriously low-scoring Hawkeyes and its fans some breathing room.

When asked about the long touchdown run after the game, Johnson gave a colorful response: “I’m taking no credit. My O-line played their (butts) off," Johnson said. "But man those dudes put in work.”  Iowa ultimately clinched the game on running back Jaziun Patterson's 39-yard rushing touchdown that put the game away in the 4th quarter.

Big Game for Ross

Iowa struggled to stop junior Troy wide receiver Devonte Ross. Ross had 5 receptions for 142 yards and 2 touchdowns. His first came on a long 63-yard pass from quarterback Matthew Caldwell. Backup quarterback Tucker Kilcrease took over at quarterback after Caldwell threw an interception to defensive back Jermari Harris who ran 28 yards for a pick-six. It was the first interception thrown by Caldwell on the season. The second of Ross’ touchdown receptions was a 62-yard bomb from Kilcrease to bring Troy to within a field goal at 24-21 with 0:58 seconds left in the 3rd quarter. Kilcrease stayed in for the remainder of the game, but only completed one more pass the rest of the game.  

© Julia Hansen/Iowa City Press-Citizen/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Key Stop for the Hawkeyes

The Iowa defense seemed disorganized through the first three quarters of the game but gave their best performance in the fourth quarter. The Trojans were held to just 25 yards for the remainder of the game and only managed to run 11 plays in the fourth. That was partially due to the Hawkeyes recording two sacks on the Trojans' first drive of the fourth quarter. The first came on a first-and-10 when defensive lineman Ethan Hurkett got back to Kilcrease and the second came on a third-and-12 when pass rusher Brian Allen disrupted the Trojans backfield to end the drive. 

What's Next?

With this win, Iowa got the bad taste out of their mouths after a grueling 20-19 loss last weekend to the No. 21 Iowa State Cyclones (2-0). The Hawkeyes will play the Minnesota Golden Gophers next weekend in Minneapolis, Minn. 

The Troy Trojans will try and get off their losing streak next weekend when they play FCS opponent Florida A&M (2-1) as head coach Gerad Parker searches for his first win as coach of the back-to-back Sun Belt champions.