Iowa looks to fix issues on road

IOWA CITY (AP) ? Iowa is 6-4 overall and 3-3 in the Big Ten despite a relatively easy schedule that has included seven home games.

There?s nothing easy about the rest of the year.

Iowa wraps up the season with a pair of road games, starting Saturday at Purdue (5-5, 3-3) and finishing with freshly minted rival Nebraska on Nov. 25. The Hawkeyes are 0-3 on the road this season, losing at Iowa State, Penn State and Minnesota by a total of just 14 points.

?We got outplayed all three times. Plain and simple. It?s a challenge for us to ramp up our level of performance,? Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said.

The Hawkeyes could have won any or all of those games.

Iowa held a 24-17 lead late in the fourth quarter at rival Iowa State in September. But the Hawkeyes let the Cyclones drive the length of the field for the tying score late in the fourth quarter and lost 44-41 in triple overtime.

Iowa was within a field goal of Penn State in the fourth quarter, but quarterback James Vandenberg fumbled the ball at midfield after a sack and the Nittany Lions converted the turnover into the game?s only touchdown. The Hawkeyes lost the ball three times in the final quarter and fell 13-3.

Iowa?s 22-21 loss at Minnesota remains a head-scratcher. The Hawkeyes led 21-10 in the fourth quarter, but the Gophers sandwiched a pair of touchdowns around an onside kick Iowa wasn?t ready for and sent the Hawkeyes home stunned for the second year in a row.

Iowa had its chances on the road. But the Hawkeyes simply haven?t taken advantage of them.

?We have not played our best football in the three phases on the road this year. That?s just the gist of it, that?s the bottom line. We have to play better on the road,? Vandenberg said.

Iowa is two games over .500 because, until last weekend, it had been virtually unbeatable at home.

But Michigan State snapped the Hawkeyes six-game home winning streak, which included a stirring win over Michigan, by turning turnovers into points while gashing Iowa?s inconsistent defense. The Spartans turned two Iowa giveaways into touchdowns in the first half and jumped out to a 31-7 lead.

The Hawkeyes were driving to make it a one-touchdown game when they were called for not lining up properly on a 4th-down-and-1 they appeared to have converted. Vandenberg missed on the next pass, and the comeback was over.

Now, they face a Purdue team that upset Ohio State at home last weekend, winning in overtime 26-23.

Much has been made of Iowa?s up-and-defense, which against Michigan State gave up the most points in a game this season except for Iowa State?s triple-overtime win.

It?s likely too late to make many changes on that side of the ball, so the only improvement will have to come from the players themselves.

?We?ve got to come out with more energy, like it?s a home game,? Iowa defensive end Broderick Binns said. ?If we come out with the intensity that we do in the home games this year, I feel like we?ll come out and play better.?

If Iowa?s defense can turn the corner during these next two weeks, it could prove to be the difference between a decent bowl bid and a minor one.

?The only thing I can say is we?ve got to just keep pushing forward, focus on this week and getting our first win on the road,? cornerback Shaun Prater said.