The 2009 Iowa Hawkeyes football team represented the University of Iowa and the Iowa Hawkeyes athletic program during the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team played its home games at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa. 2009 marked Kirk Ferentz's 11th year as head coach of Iowa. The Hawkeyes finished the season as the 2010 Orange Bowl Champions.
The Hawkeyes came off a 9–4 season in 2008, including a win over South Carolina in the Outback Bowl and a 24–23 upset of Big Ten champion of Penn State.
Season
Schedule
The Hawkeyes played 13 opponents in the 2009 season, finishing 11–2 (6–2 in conference play) and defeated Georgia Tech in the 2010 Orange Bowl.
Rankings
Roster
Game summaries
Northern Iowa
Source: Box Score
The Hawkeyes struggled early, gaining just 104 yards of total offense in the first half. After trading field goals, UNI took a 10–3 lead after quarterback Pat Grace threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to Ryan Mahaffey. The Hawkeyes woke up in the second half, going 70 yards in six plays and getting an 11-yard touchdown run from Adam Robinson with under 10 minutes remaining in the third quarter. Iowa would regain the lead early in the fourth quarter when Tony Moeaki caught a touchdown pass from Ricky Stanzi.
After a Billy Hallgren field goal, the Panthers threatened late in the game, with Grace leading them down the field in the final minutes to set up a potential game-winning kick and an upset. Hallgren's first attempt was blocked, but the officials ruled the ball went behind the line of scrimmage and UNI recovered with one second left. Jeremiha Hunter blocked the second kick, sealing the victory for the Hawkeyes. This was the first time in FBS history that a team had blocked two field goals on consecutive plays.
Despite the win, Iowa's struggle against a Football Championship Subdivision opponent knocked them out of both the Associated Press and USA Today Top 25 polls until their upset of #5 Penn State at the end of the month.
Iowa State
Source: Box Score
The Cyclones scored first with a 46-yard field goal from Grant Mahoney in the first quarter. But Iowa was able to capitalize on good field position resulting from an onside kick attempt by Iowa State and took the lead for good on a one-yard pass from Ricky Stanzi to Brett Morse. The Hawkeyes benefitted from six turnovers, scoring four more touchdowns off Cyclone mistakes. Tyler Sash had three of Iowa's five interceptions, tying a school record.
Arizona
Source: Box Score
The Hawkeyes scored on the opening drive, with a 2-yard touchdown run by Adam Robinson. But Arizona tied the score at 7 after Trevin Wade returned a Ricky Stanzi interception 38 yards into the end zone. Iowa's defense would again prove to be the difference-maker in this game, not allowing a touchdown until 1:53 was remaining in the game, with the Hawkeyes well ahead. Tyler Sash also netted his seventh interception in five games (dating back to last year).
Penn State
Source: Box Score
ESPN's College GameDay was in State College for the Saturday night Big Ten opener. The Hawkeyes fell behind early, 10–0, after a 79-yard pass from Daryll Clark to Chaz Powell on Penn State's first play from scrimmage and then a 20-play drive by the Nittany Lions that led to a Collin Wagner field goal. But Iowa would score 21 unanswered points after that to stun Penn State for the second consecutive year. The defense shut down the Nittany Lions in the final three quarters, forcing four turnovers, and the turning point in the game came when Penn State punted, clinging to a 10–5 lead in the fourth quarter, Adrian Clayborn blocked a punt and ran it back 53 yards for a touchdown to give the Hawkeyes the lead. With the momentum changed, they were more easily able to move the ball on their final two drives. For many Penn State fans, the way the game played out reminded them of the games from their dismal 3–9 (1–7) season with many close losses in 2003, but for many Iowa fans, the way the game played out also brought back memories of 2003, reminding them of their 2003 season where they finished #8 in the nation and beat Penn State 26–14 at home, during a span of three years (2002, 2003, 2004) where they were #8 for three consecutive years and won a share of the conference championship in two of those years (2002 and 2004).
The win at Penn State on prime-time network television catapulted Iowa to a number 13 ranking in the AP Poll and a number 17 ranking in the Coaches' Poll. At year's end, it would also prove to be a selling point for choosing the Hawkeyes over the Nittany Lions for an at-large bid in the Bowl Championship Series.