Football weekends

Drake and Northern Iowa won quietly this past weekend, while Iowa loudly defeated Iowa State at Kinnick Stadium. For those who went, I hope you had fun. Sorry, about the Bloody Mary puke, Jumpin Joe.

Three of Iowa's Big 4 teams are on the road this weekend, and Northern Iowa has a bye. Panthers' coach Mark Farley said he plans to use the off week to work on fundamentals. Northern Iowa and Iowa State face off in two weeks.

Do you think Iowa and Iowa State are showing improvement? One could argue the Cyclones are improving because they gained an early lead on a top-20 team. However, Iowa showed it could finally get past the pesky Cyclones and the team is off to a 3-0 September start, a rarity in the Kirk Ferentz era.

What about Drake and Northern Iowa? The Bulldogs' beat Division-III Wisconsin-Platteville 35-7, and rookie quarterback found receivers Tyler Putnam and Shea Moroni for scores. Willie Cashmore ran in two touchdowns and DeCarlos Love scored once. Running back Scott Phaydavong had 26 carries for 106 yards, and Putnam had five catches for 120 yards.

The Bulldogs will need more go-to players than just Phaydavong when they open Pioneer Football League play at Valparaiso, ending their three-game homestand.

Iowa also opens its conference season at Big Ten doormat Illinois, while Iowa State starts Big 12 play at Texas, which won the national championship last January.