While Coach Kirk Ferentz is serving a suspension, Iowa dominates Illinois State with a blowout victory.

The Iowa Hawkeyes were well-focused as they took the field for the second half of their season opener.

On Saturday, Iowa State was defeated 40-0 by the Hawkeyes, with quarterback Cade McNamara throwing three touchdowns in the second half.

For the first time in over two decades, Kirk Ferentz was absent from the sidelines during a game due to a one-game suspension.

The suspension of Iowa wide receivers coach Jon Budmayr was a result of violations during McNamara's recruitment. An NCAA investigation is still ongoing.

Assistant head coach Seth Wallace stepped in for Ferentz Saturday.

Wallace remarked that the Hawkeyes' performance, given the circumstances, was quite impressive.

Last season, McNamara, who missed the final nine games due to a knee injury, threw touchdown passes of 7 and 19 yards to freshman wide receiver Reece Vander Zee. Additionally, he tossed a 31-yard TD pass to Jacob Gill to help the Hawkeyes pull away after leading 6-0 at halftime.

""The second half is likely a better reflection of our team's true nature," Wallace stated."

The second half was constructed from Iowa's final possession in the first half, where they advanced 49 yards in 10 plays, resulting in Drew Stevens' second field goal of the game, as stated by McNamara.

""At the end of the second quarter, we gained momentum and went on a decent drive, but we couldn't finish with a touchdown. Our tempo was poor at the beginning, but once we gained momentum and tempo, it set us up well for the second half," McNamara said."

McNamara completed eight consecutive passes to open the second half and finished with 21-for-31 passing for 251 yards. He also had one carry for 12 yards and had a 20-yard scramble in the first half that was called back due to a penalty.

"McNamara, who sustained a quadricep injury during training camp last season, expressed his satisfaction about running around today. He said, "Today felt really good to be actually healthy and run around a little bit." Although he was not anticipating to run as much as he did, he felt good. Additionally, he stated that some confidence was built with that."

Iowa's new offensive coordinator, Tim Lester, will likely remain in the spotlight throughout the season as he takes over the unit that finished last in the nation in total offense last season. Ferentz's son, Brian Ferentz, handled the offensive coordinator duties in 2023.

In the first half, Iowa had 147 yards of total offense, but in the third quarter, it recorded 180 yards and 11 first downs. As a result, the Hawkeyes finished the game with 492 yards of total offense.

In evaluating his team's loss, Illinois State coach Brock Spack highlighted the first two quarters of the game.

"In my view, the game was lost in the first half because Iowa made mistakes with penalties and we couldn't recover. We did some great things in the first half, but we needed a little help."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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