IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) -Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz doesn’t have a Facebook page or any interest in tweeting.
How ironic, then, that the best friend his 7th-ranked Hawkeyes have these days is a computer.
Iowa’s perfect start has been a rather ugly one full of close calls that have drawn skepticism. The doubts are evident in the Top 25, where the Hawkeyes (8-0, 4-0 Big Ten) rank lowest among unbeaten teams from BCS-affiliated conferences heading into Saturday’s game with Indiana (4-4, 1-3).
The computer rankings used by the BCS, however, absolutely adore Iowa. Five of the six mathematical formulas used by the BCS say the Hawkeyes are the top team in America.
k. He knows how thin the Hawkeyes’ margin of error will be the rest of the way.
“Computers have not seen us play. If they had eyes and could see us play, they would say ‘Are you kidding me?”’ Ferentz said.
That’s how Indiana felt after it blew a 25-point lead to Northwestern last week and lost for the fourth time in five games.
The Hoosiers jumped ahead 28-3 midway through the second quarter and appeared on their way to an easy win. Northwestern answered with a pair of quick touchdowns, and Indiana never scored again on the way to a 29-28 loss that put its hopes for a bowl bid in jeopardy.
Indiana hosts Wisconsin, plays at 12th-ranked Penn State and hosts rival Purdue after its date with Iowa, needing two wins for bowl eligibility.
“The players were really disappointed. It hurt and we had a long bus ride home from Northwestern,” Indiana coach Bill Lynch said.
Though the Hoosiers are a 17 1/2-point underdog to Iowa, recent history suggests that it could be a lot closer game than that.
For starters, Iowa has only registered one easy win, a 35-3 blowout of Iowa State, and has already set a school record with four wins by three points or less.
The Hoosiers have also beaten Iowa in two of the last three meetings – and both were stunners the Hawkeyes won’t soon forget.
nd lost 31-28. That defeat kicked off a skid that ended with a 2-6 mark for Iowa in the Big Ten.
The following year, Indiana destroyed the Hawkeyes in Iowa City, 38-20.
“The fact is they have beaten us two out of the last three ball games so we have to be at our best,” Ferentz said. “And we certainly have our cause for concerns on the home base here.”
Those concerns involve injuries to a pair of key offensive players, running back Adam Robinson and lineman Dace Richardson. Both are likely out for the rest of the regular season after getting hurt against the Spartans.
The loss of Robinson and Richardson is yet another challenge for an offense that’s averaging just 23.6 points per game. Iowa will start true freshman Brandon Wegher at running back, and Julian Vandervelde will slide into Richardson’s spot at right guard.
“You expect every game to be close when you get this deep in the season, especially in the Big Ten,” Iowa quarterback Ricky Stanzi said. “We’re not too concerned about close games. We’d probably more concerned if there were little mistakes that were hurting us.”
Though the BCS computers love Iowa because of what it’s done against quality opponents on the road, there’s little doubt that the voters would think more of the Hawkeyes if they could throttle a team like Indiana.
Iowa’s track record suggest that that might be easier said than done – which is just fine with Ferentz.
“The idea is to be there at the end,” Ferentz said. “If you can make it to the end and be standing, that’s the idea. That’s all we are really worried about.”
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