A heavy toll: Injuries hit hard for Hawkeyes
IOWA CITY (MCT) — The Iowa football team drained their physical and emotional gas tanks at Michigan State.
Running back Adam Robinson’s left foot was proof. The redshirt freshman tried to put a brave face on it. The boot he wore gave him away. When asked about it, he didn’t have an answer.
“I’m not concerned at all, something minor,” said Robinson, who had career highs of 27 carries and 109 yards in the Hawkeyes’ 15-13 victory Saturday night. “They (medical staff) are not sure what’s wrong with it. I’ll go get it checked out tomorrow.”
Suddenly, Iowa’s running back position is on crutches and wearing a boot.
Robinson, a redshirt freshman from Des Moines, wasn’t on the depth chart the UI released Monday. Going into this weekend’s game against Indiana (4-4, 1-3 Big Ten), the No. 7 Hawkeyes (8-0, 4-0) have true freshman Brandon Wegher, who’s suffered hand and rib injuries the last two weeks, and junior Paki O’Meara listed as their running backs.
O’Meara hasn’t logged a carry since Iowa State.
He hasn’t had a meaningful carry since fumbling against Northern Iowa in the opener.
Freshman Brad Rogers made the trip to Michigan State. He’s still in redshirt mode, but could be an option. Redshirt freshman Jeff Brinson probably isn’t. He was on crutches and had his right foot in a boot last Tuesday.
It didn’t look good when MSU defensive end Colin Neely caught Robinson from behind near the MSU goal line and landed with his full weight on his left ankle. It appeared to bend outward.
But it didn’t stop Robinson from celebrating when quarterback Ricky Stanzi hit wide receiver Marvin McNutt for a 7yard TD as time expired.
“I actually threw down my crutches and hobbled out there on the field with my teammates,” Robinson said. “I celebrated quite a bit.”
Robinson admitted the game was the most physical of the season, which explains the amount of injuries.
“This one by far was the most physical,” he Just going off Monday’s depth chart, Iowa didn’t fare too badly.
Safety Brett Greenwood left the game on a cart in the third quarter after a helmet-to-helmet collision with teammate Tyler Sash. He was listed as a starter on Monday.
“I talked to him on the field for a second and he said, go get ‘em, just like he would normally,” Sash said. “Then, I saw him on the sidelines and that was a good sign.”
Wide receiver Colin Sandeman likely suffered a concussion in the fourth quarter, drawing a personal foul penalty on MSU’s Jeremy Ware. He was listed as a No. 2 receiver on Monday.
Without Sandeman, Iowa would be fresh out of punt returners, with the other, Paul Chaney Jr., lost for the season two weeks ago with a torn ACL.
On Iowa’s first series, offensive lineman Dace Richardson suffered a break somewhere on his lower-left leg. Coach Kirk Ferentz said he underwent knee realignment surgery, likely wouldn’t return until the bowl game.
“That hurts,” offensive tackle Bryan Bulaga said.
“And it’s not so much what we’re missing, it’s more for him. Everything he’s been through with his knees, to have this happen, it’s awful. We all feel really terrible for him. It’s not, oh God, we lost a great offensive lineman. It’s we lost Dace.
It’s more feeling bad for him, because he’s been through some stuff. It’s too bad.” The emotional toll is less tangible, and it’s also one that these guys seem to have total control of.
The Hawkeyes have trailed in seven of their eight games, including all four Big Ten victories.
Last season, Iowa lost its four games by a total of 12 points. This year, the Hawkeyes have won four of their eight games by a total of eight points.
“The next four Big Ten games are as important if not more important than the four we just got done playing,” linebacker A.J. Edds said. “We’ve got to know that the target keeps getting bigger.
“I’m sure people just talk about how we’re falling into stuff and getting lucky and that’s fine.
They’re right. We’re just getting lucky. So, just let that kind of keep growing.”
