A fitting way to end for Iowa

By Brian Heinemann

For the Herald

IOWA CITY ––– With the way the Iowa Hawkeyes have been turning “what ifs” into “what is” this season, it’s fitting that a BCS dream that looked nearly dead in the water a week ago is still very much in the realm of reality.

The “what if” game doesn’t particularly appeal to the Hawkeyes or their coach, Kirk Ferentz, though. They don’t like talking about what might have been or even what could be.

All that separated the Hawkeyes from a perfect season and a trip to Pasedena – for the Rose Bowl or National Championship game – was 10 points and two close losses.

What if?

Iowa lost key starters throughout the season to injuries, ranging from a slew of running backs – Jewel Hampton, Adam Robinson, Brandon Wegher – to a potential All American tight end in Tony Moeaki, a starting safety in Brett Greenwood and an emotional leader in their quarterback Ricky Stanzi.

What if?

The Hawkeyes finished their regular season 10-2 (6-2 Big Ten), taking down Minnesota 12-0 Saturday in a defensive struggle that featured season lows in a multitude of offensive categories for Iowa, keeping their names firmly entrenched in the BCS discussion.

So, what now?

Now, Iowa plays the waiting game. The National Championship game and the Rose Bowl are out of the question, yet the Hawkeyes can end up anywhere from the Fiesta Bowl, to the Orange Bowl, to the Outback Bowl.

“Right now, we can’t worry about that because we’ve done all that we can,” said senior linebacker A.J. Edds, who finished with eight tackles and an interception in his final game at Kinnick Stadium. “We just kind of have to sit back and let the rest of the country shake out and see what happens. But I think at the same time we’ve done enough to get into that conversation.

“Look at our body of work, especially on the road. But it’s not our decision to make. We’re 10-2 and we’ve played pretty well, so let everything kind of figure itself out from here and go from there.”

It’s hard to get the Hawkeyes to talk about the whole BCS thing and the possibilities that await. That attitude starts from the top and makes its way downward, as Ferentz will be the first to admit that he doesn’t pay much attention to the BCS and isn’t overly concerned with where his team heads this bowl season.

He’s just “absolutely amazed” his team won 10 games with all the adversity and incredible situations they encountered and endured this season. Two blocked field goals to survive a scare from UNI, a tight win against Arkansas State, the last-second heroics in East Lansing, the huge comeback to best Indiana – the Hawkeyes have come through so much that Ferentz is just happy to enjoy only the fourth double-digit win season of his Iowa career.

“I’m happy with where we are at,” said Ferentz. “If we don’t go (to a BCS game), we don’t go. That’s the way it goes. I’m just happy we got 10 wins.”

Most of the players chose to let the BCS system and bowl committees handle the situation rather than give their own opinions, with only a few Hawkeyes straying from the general “we did all we can do, it’s out of our hands” philosophy that was prominently displayed Saturday.

And with everything they’ve faced this year – and the fact that Ferentz believes they played their best game of the year on the road in the overtime loss to Ohio State last weekend – the Hawkeyes feel that they can compete with anybody the bowl process pits them against.

“We don’t back down from any challenge,” said wide receiver Marvin McNutt, who had one catch for 28 yards against the Golden Gophers. “We feel like we can play with anybody in the nation.”

They’ll get the chance to likely play one of the best the nation has to offer sometime in the first week of January. And while the destination and opponent remain unclear, the important thing is that the Hawkeyes have their foot in the door and their name in the conversation.

“It’s a very special team with very special players,” Larry Gautier, an Orange Bowl representative who likened this years Iowa team to the “team of destiny” from 2002, said of the Hawkeyes.

“Iowa is clearly in the mix, there’s no question about it.”