Saturday night brought a true rarity in Kirk Ferentz Iowa football. After three possessions of punting not winning, the head Hawkeye pulled the plug on Spencer Petras and inserted backup quarterback Alex Padilla.
Padilla came in and provided an instant spark for the Iowa offense. His first two possessions ended in Hawkeye touchdowns. While the raw output wasn’t terribly spectacular - Padilla finished 18 of 28 for 178 yards and no touchdowns or interceptions - the offense looked competent for solid stretches with Padilla in the game.
The Hawkeyes seemed to have a pep in their step and Brian Ferentz found more flexibility in the playbook than we’ve seen in weeks.