As November rolls around, the Oregon Ducks are hitting the road after their bye week with sights set on ending the regular season with no more blemishes on their record.
Doing so will be easier said than done though, as Oregon, which slotted in at No. 9 in the initial College Football Playoff rankings on Tuesday, will be paying a visit to Kinnick Stadium to take on the No. 20 Iowa Hawkeyes on Saturday afternoon.
Likely motivated by their placement in the CFP rankings, the Hawkeyes will be a tough out, but the result of the game could be dependent on the health of Iowa quarterback Mark Gronowski, who talked about his injury status with the media on Tuesday.
Iowa Hawkeyes quarterback Mark Gronowski looks to throw a pass during the first quarter against the Minnesota Golden Gophers at Kinnick Stadium. / Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images
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Gronowski admitted that he’s not 100 percent healthy as he continues to deal with a knee injury, but that he’s feeling better as he progresses through the week.
“I wouldn’t say I’m 100% full strength, but I’m definitely feeling better than I did last week and even better than the last game. So, continuing to improve each week,” Gronowski said.
He added that his time rehabbing with the training staff allowed some of the other quarterbacks to get some work in.
“Yeah, I did ease off my body and get some of the other quarterbacks to get some work in,” Gronowski said. “It was a good, productive week and another week of improvement for my knee.”
Iowa Hawkeyes quarterback Hank Brown throws a pass against the Indiana Hoosiers during the fourth quarter at Kinnick Stadium. / Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images
Though Gronowski doesn’t seem to be in any danger of missing Saturday’s game, the Ducks coaching staff should certainly be aware of the possibility that Iowa’s other quarterbacks could step in on a moment’s notice.
Hawkeyes backup quarterback Hank Brown, an Auburn Tigers transfer, has gone just 11 of 21 passing for 107 yards, one touchdown and one interception this season while adding a rushing score.
Brown has had limited action, but Dan Lanning and the Oregon coaching staff should have a plan in place against him in the event that Gronowski re-aggravates his knee injury. With the conditions during the game expected to be windy and rainy, the Hawkeyes could lean even further on the ground game, something that Gronowski is heavily involved in.
This could put him at an even greater risk of being bothered by the knee injury during the game with the amount of hits he’s expected to take.
This season, Gronowski has gone 107 of 165 passing for 946 yards, four touchdowns and four interceptions. While his scoring production as a passer has been limited, he’s more than made up for that on the ground with 76 carries for 313 yards and a team-high 11 rushing touchdowns.
Regardless of what happens for Iowa at quarterback, it’s clear that Saturday’s matchup against the Hawkeyes will be one of Oregon’s toughest tests of the regular season.
