Iowa 24, Utah State 14
By JOHN BOHNENKAMP
Associated Press
IOWA CITY, Iowa - Cade McNamara threw for 191 yards and two touchdowns in his Iowa debut as the No. 25 Hawkeyes defeated Utah State 24-14.
The touchdowns came on Iowa’s first two offensive possessions, and the Hawkeyes didn’t get into the end zone again until Kaleb Johnson’s 3-yard run in the fourth quarter. Iowa, which had one of the worst offenses in the nation last season, finished with 284 yards.
McNamara, who transferred from Michigan during the offseason, was listed as questionable for the game with a quad injury to his right leg, but he made an immediate impact with a 36-yard touchdown throw to Seth Anderson on Iowa’s second play from scrimmage. It was the first passing touchdown on the opening series of the season in Kirk Ferentz’s 25 years as the Hawkeyes' coach, and the first for an Iowa team since 1991.
McNamara threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Erick All, another transfer from Michigan, on Iowa’s next drive. Drew Stevens' 20-yard field goal seven seconds before halftime accounted for Iowa's only other points until the fourth quarter.
Utah State (0-1) got field goals from William Testa and Elliott Nimrod and a 16-yard touchdown pass from Cooper Legas to Terrell Vaughn late in the fourth quarter.
POLL IMPLICATIONS
The Hawkeyes should be able to stay in the rankings despite the offensive struggles that looked a lot like last season. McNamara provided early offensive life, but Iowa had problems moving the ball after that.
INACTIVES
Seven Iowa players were listed as out for the game, including defensive lineman Noah Shannon, who is appealing his season suspension from the NCAA for wagering on sports.
Among the other players listed as out were Jermari Harris, who was No. 1 on the depth chart at right cornerback, and offensive lineman Beau Stephens, listed at No. 2 on the depth chart at right guard.
The Big Ten instituted a policy this season that all conference teams release an injury report two hours before game time.
Iowa athletics press release
September 2, 2023
| Scoring Summary |
| First Quarter |
UtahSt | Iowa |
| Iowa |
TD |
14:18 |
Seth Anderson 36 yard TD pass from Cade McNamara (Drew Stevens Extra Point) |
0 |
7 |
| Iowa |
TD |
7:44 |
Erick All 3 yard TD pass from Cade McNamara (Drew Stevens Extra Point) |
0 |
14 |
| Second Quarter |
UtahSt | Iowa |
| UtahSt |
FG |
11:03 |
William Testa 32 yard field goal |
3 |
14 |
| Iowa |
FG |
0:07 |
Drew Stevens 20 yard field goal |
3 |
17 |
| Third Quarter |
UtahSt | Iowa |
| UtahSt |
FG |
12:02 |
Elliott Nimrod 45 yard field goal |
6 |
17 |
| Fourth Quarter |
UtahSt | Iowa |
| Iowa |
TD |
10:17 |
Kaleb Johnson 3 yard TD run (Drew Stevens Extra Point) |
6 |
24 |
| UtahSt |
TD |
1:36 |
Terrell Vaughn 16 yard TD pass from Cooper Legas (Rahsul Faison 2pt conversion attempt is GOOD) |
14 |
24 |
| Team Stats |
| |
Utah State |
Iowa |
| First downs |
20 |
16 |
| Rushing |
5 |
4 |
| Passing |
12 |
8 |
| Penalty |
3 |
4 |
| 3rd Down Efficiency |
5-17, 29% |
6-17, 35% |
| 4th down efficiency |
1-3, 33% |
1-2, 50% |
| Rushes-Yards |
24-116 |
36-88 |
| Passing Yards |
213 |
196 |
| Return Yards |
22 |
56 |
| Completions-Attempts-Int |
32-48-1 |
18-33-0 |
| Sacks-Yards Lost |
1-10 |
1-10 |
| Punts |
6 |
7 |
| Fumbles Lost |
0-0 |
2-0 |
| Penalties - Yards |
10-89 |
7-50 |
| Utah State Passing |
| Player |
Cmp |
Att |
Yds |
TDs |
Int |
| C. Legas |
32 |
48 |
213 |
1 |
1 |
| Iowa Passing |
| Player |
Cmp |
Att |
Yds |
TDs |
Int |
| C. McNamara |
17 |
30 |
191 |
2 |
0 |
| D. Hill |
1 |
3 |
5 |
0 |
0 |
| Utah State Rushing |
| Player |
Carries |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
| R. Faison |
7 |
59 |
8.4 |
0 |
| D. Booth |
8 |
33 |
4.1 |
0 |
| C. Legas |
7 |
17 |
2.4 |
0 |
| R. Briggs Jr. |
2 |
7 |
3.5 |
0 |
| Iowa Rushing |
| Player |
Carries |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
| K. Johnson |
19 |
63 |
3.3 |
1 |
| K. Wetjen |
3 |
22 |
7.3 |
0 |
| L. Williams |
6 |
16 |
2.7 |
0 |
| J. Patterson |
5 |
-2 |
-0.4 |
0 |
| C. McNamara |
2 |
-9 |
-4.5 |
0 |
| Utah State Receiving |
| Player |
Rec |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
| T. Vaughn |
12 |
93 |
7.8 |
1 |
| J. Royals |
5 |
39 |
7.8 |
0 |
| M. Davis |
3 |
22 |
7.3 |
0 |
| R. Faison |
3 |
22 |
7.3 |
0 |
| O. Tia |
2 |
15 |
7.5 |
0 |
| C. Bowman |
2 |
10 |
5.0 |
0 |
| R. Briggs Jr. |
3 |
6 |
2.0 |
0 |
| D. Booth |
2 |
6 |
3.0 |
0 |
| Iowa Receiving |
| Player |
Rec |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
| L. Lachey |
7 |
73 |
10.4 |
0 |
| S. Anderson |
2 |
41 |
20.5 |
1 |
| N. Ragaini |
2 |
36 |
18.0 |
0 |
| J. Patterson |
2 |
19 |
9.5 |
0 |
| E. All |
3 |
15 |
5.0 |
1 |
| L. Williams |
2 |
12 |
6.0 |
0 |
| Utah State Interceptions |
| Player |
Int |
Yards |
| Iowa Interceptions |
| Player |
Int |
Yards |
| X. Nwankpa |
1 |
0 |
| Utah State Punting |
| Player |
Punts |
Yards |
Avg |
| S. Kotsanlee |
6 |
266 |
44.3 |
| Iowa Punting |
| Player |
Punts |
Yards |
Avg |
| T. Taylor |
6 |
292 |
48.7 |
| Utah State Punt Returns |
| Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
| M. Davis |
2 |
22 |
11.0 |
| Iowa Punt Returns |
| Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
| C. DeJean |
2 |
3 |
1.5 |
| B. Deasfernandes |
1 |
0 |
0 |
| Utah State Kick Returns |
| Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
| Iowa Kick Returns |
| Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
| L. Lachey |
1 |
-1 |
-1.0 |
| K. Johnson |
1 |
54 |
54.0 |
| Utah State Missed FG |
| Player |
Length |
| Iowa Missed FG |
| Player |
Length |
