SportsDirect Inc. staff
Sep 21, 2013
Iowa 59, Western Michigan 3: Kevonte Martin-Manley returned two punts for touchdowns less than a minute apart and the Hawkeyes rolled up 446 yards in total offense to blow out the visiting Broncos.
Martin-Manley had returns of 83 and 63 yards at the 11:45 and 10:46 mark of the second quarter and had 184 return yards overall for Iowa (3-1). Defensive back B.J. Lowery added two interception returns for touchdowns, the second of which boosted Iowa's lead to 45-3 early in the third quarter.
Western Michigan (0-4), playing its third game against a Big Ten team
this season, continued its miserable start under first-year head coach
P.J. Fleck. The Broncos didn't get a first down until midway through the
second quarter and finished with 209 yards of total offense and four
turnovers.
The Hawkeyes weren't quite as sharp on offense but still finished with 258 yards rushing. Quarterback Jake Rudock passed for two touchdowns before taking a seat midway through the third quarter, and Jordan Canzeri and Mark Weisman added scores on the ground.
Both teams struggled in the first quarter, but the Hawkeyes took advantage of excellent field position to open a 10-0 lead before breaking out to a 38-3 halftime lead behind Martin-Manley's big second quarter.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Martin-Manley is the first Hawkeye to return two punts for scores in a single game. … Western Michigan leading WR Corey Davis took an upper-body shot in the first quarter and did not return. … Iowa, which scored its most points since a 62-10 win over Northwestern in 2002, defeated Western Michigan for the first time in three tries.