Iowa
Officiating Mistakes Cost Iowa Upset Against USC
Iowa Hawkeyes’ 26-21 loss at USC turned on multiple controversial officiating decisions in the third quarter. A series of missed calls set up an interception that flipped momentum and ended the Hawkeyes’ upset bid.
CBS Sports’ Chris Hassel posted video of the most egregious play that sparked outrage across college football. Running back Kamari Moulton carried the ball six yards on second down when a USC defender grabbed and twisted his facemask to bring him down.
Cannot believe the officials missed this obvious facemask call.
Instead of 1st and 10 at USC 43 Iowa has to throw on 3rd and long and it’s picked. pic.twitter.com/KPlCTk6pZn
— Chris Hassel (@Hassel_Chris) November 15, 2025
No flag came out despite the obvious violation. The call should have given Iowa a 15-yard penalty and automatic first down at USC’s 43-yard line with the Hawkeyes leading 21-19.
The missed facemask wasn’t an isolated incident. Moulton had his helmet turned more than 90 degrees sideways and vertically on multiple occasions throughout the game without drawing flags. Fans also pointed to numerous uncalled holding penalties against USC’s offensive line that extended Trojan drives.
The officiating failures proved costly on the very next play. Instead of having a first down in USC territory, Iowa faced third-and-4 from its own 44. Quarterback Mark Gronowski threw a pass that deflected off receiver Jacob Gill’s knee and into the hands of USC freshman defensive lineman Jahkeem Stewart for an interception.
USC capitalized on the short field, driving 40 yards in six plays for a go-ahead touchdown. Running back Bryan Jackson scored from one yard out to give the Trojans a 26-21 lead early in the fourth quarter.
They missed/didn’t call ANOTHER facemask! pic.twitter.com/GEqqZuBjiP
— Chris Hassel (@Hassel_Chris) November 15, 2025
Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz addressed the officiating after the game: “I thought I saw a couple of things that maybe could’ve gone the other way. Apparently nobody thought it was flag worthy. You’ve got to play through those things. It doesn’t always work the way you want.”
The missed calls drew immediate backlash on social media. “Honestly – this along with all the obvious holds – there needs to be an investigation into the refs. Isn’t fun when they affect the game so bad – it’s like watching women’s basketball refs,” one fan wrote.
“Simply a game-changing missed facemask call that hurts the Iowa Hawkeyes. This is just inexcusable. You can’t miss this. His head turned. Embarrassing,” another stated.
Simply a game-changing missed facemask call that hurts the Iowa Hawkeyes. This is just inexcusable. You can’t miss this. His head turned. Embarrassing. pic.twitter.com/qYogjoSIGs
— Hawkeyes Wire (@HawkeyesWire) November 15, 2025
“Officials miss a hold or hands to the face (take your pick) and then Iowa gets hit for the collision in the end zone. They’re not even looking for USC penalties now,” a third fan observed.
The perfect visual summary of today:
Officials miss a hold or hands to the face (take your pick) and then Iowa gets hit for the collision in the end zone. They’re not even looking for USC penalties now. #Hawkeyes pic.twitter.com/MTPoUDC6kK
— Cody Hills (@ByCodyHills) November 15, 2025
The controversy extended beyond the missed penalties. Iowa committed an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on their sideline with 1:25 remaining that gave USC a crucial first down and allowed the Trojans to run out the clock.
The loss dropped Iowa to 6-4 overall and 4-3 in Big Ten play after blowing a 21-10 halftime lead. The Hawkeyes managed just 108 total yards in the second half and failed to score after intermission.
Despite the officiating controversies, Iowa still had one final chance to pull off the upset. On fourth-and-6 with under two minutes remaining, Gronowski launched a deep pass to receiver Kaden Wetjen, who made a spectacular catch near the USC 10-yard line. However, replay showed his toe landed just out of bounds by mere inches, ending Iowa’s comeback attempt.
Iowa’s College Football Playoff hopes had already died in an 18-16 loss to Oregon on November 8. The USC defeat marked another painful near-miss in a season defined by close losses to ranked opponents.
The Hawkeyes have now lost four games this season by a combined 15 points, with three of those opponents potentially making the College Football Playoff. The defeat extended Iowa’s losing streak against ranked teams to 13 consecutive games.
Iowa has bowl eligibility secured with two regular season games remaining against Michigan State and Nebraska. The combination of questionable officiating and self-inflicted mistakes at USC captures the essence of Iowa’s frustrating 2025 campaign.
Don’t forget to bookmark Iowa Hawkeyes on SI for the latest news. exclusive interviews, recruiting coverage and more!
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When are the Iowa Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10:00 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
- Pick 3 (Day): 12:20 p.m. CT daily.
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- Pick 4 (Evening): 10:00 p.m. CT daily.
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This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by an Iowa editor. You can send feedback using this form.
Nebraska men’s basketball faces a critical week that will determine its Big Ten Conference and NCAA Tournament seeding.
The Huskers play at UCLA on Tuesday night and finish the regular season next Sunday at home vs. Iowa.
The Huskers are currently tied for second place in the Big Ten with Michigan State. Both teams have four conference losses. They are one game in the loss column ahead of Illinois and Purdue, with five losses. Wisconsin has six losses.
The top four teams earn the coveted triple bye for the Big Ten Tournament. Regular-season champion Michigan has one spot locked up.
Here are the remaining schedules of the contenders for the triple bye, with conference record in parentheses:
Nebraska (14-4)
* Tuesday: at UCLA
* Sunday: vs. Iowa
Michigan State (13-4)
* Sunday: at Indiana
* Thursday: vs. Rutgers
* Sunday, March 8: at Michigan
Illinois (13-5)
* Tuesday: vs. Oregon
* Sunday, March 8: at Maryland
Purdue (12-5)
* Sunday: at Ohio State
* Wednesday: at Northwestern
* Saturday: vs. Wisconsin
Wisconsin (12-6)
* Wednesday: vs. Maryland
* Saturday: at Purdue
Maintaining an NCAA seed no worse than 3 should benefit the Huskers, who wouldn’t have to play, theoretically, the No. 1 seed until the Elite Eight game.
It’s a ton to play for in the final week of a historic regular season for Nebraska. But that’s what March is all about.
Nebraska at UCLA
When: Tuesday, 10 p.m. CT
Where: Pauley Pavilion, Los Angeles
Records: Nebraska, 25-4, 14-4 in Big Ten; UCLA, 19-10, 11-7 in Big Ten
TV: FS1
Rankings updated based on games through Saturday.
UCLA rankings
* Associated Press Top 25: Not ranked
* NCAA Net Ratings: 40
* USA Today Coaches Poll: Not ranked
* Kenpom.com: 41
* ESPN Power Index: 34
* Top 25 and 1: Not ranked
* Team Rankings.com: 41
In Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology projections for ESPN, UCLA is a 9-seed for the 68-team NCAA Tournament. The next Bracketology will be released Tuesday.
Nebraska rankings
* Associated Press Top 25: 12
* NCAA Net Ratings: 12
* USA Today Coaches Poll: 10
* Kenpom.com: 11
* ESPN Power Index: 15
* Top 25 and 1: 8
* Team Rankings.com: 11
In Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology projections for ESPN, Nebraska is a 3-seed for the 68-team NCAA Tournament.
Nebraska-UCLA analysis
The Bruins are coming off a strange week. They crushed visiting rival USC, 81-62, on Tuesday, then lost at Minnesota, 78-73, on Saturday.
UCLA is 16-1 at home, its only loss to Indiana, 98-97, in double overtime on Jan. 31.
The game will be a homecoming for Huskers forward Berke Buyuktuncel, who played at UCLA in 2023-24, his freshman season. Buyuktuncel has started 27 games and averages 6.7 points and 5.6 rebounds per game this season for the Huskers and frequently earns praise from coach Fred Hoiberg.
Nebraska thoroughly dispatched USC on Saturday, 82-67, an impressive performance on the road against a Trojans team desperate for a statement win to help — or save — their NCAA hopes.
Pryce Sandfort scored 32 points — one short of his career high — as the Huskers won their 14th conference game, a school record. Nebraska is 7-2 on the road in conference games.
This should be a great matchup — UCLA a strong team playing at home vs. a Nebraska team playing well and full of confidence. This feels like a one-possession game.
Iowa at Nebraska
When: Sunday, March 8, 4 p.m. CT
Where: Pinnacle Bank Arena
Records: Nebraska, 25-4, 14-4 in Big Ten; Iowa, 20-9, 10-8 in Big Ten
TV: Fox
Rankings updated based on games through Saturday.
Iowa rankings
* Associated Press Top 25: 33
* NCAA Net Ratings: 28
* USA Today Coaches Poll: 30
* Kenpom.com: 24
* ESPN Power Index: 35
* Top 25 and 1: Not ranked
* Team Rankings.com: 31
In Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology projections for ESPN, Iowa is an 8-seed for the 68-team NCAA Tournament.
Nebraska rankings
* Associated Press Top 25: 12
* NCAA Net Ratings: 12
* USA Today Coaches Poll: 10
* Kenpom.com: 11
* ESPN Power Index: 15
* Top 25 and 1: 8
* Team Rankings.com: 11
In Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology projections for ESPN, Nebraska is a 3-seed for the 68-team NCAA Tournament.
Nebraska-Iowa analysis
The Hawkeyes are coming off a puzzling, 71-69 loss at Penn State on Saturday. Iowa led 67-62 with 3:49 to play, and then scored only one more basket. Iowa plays host to Michigan on Thursday.
Nebraska will get a final curtain call at Pinnacle Bank Arena, where the Huskers are 15-2.
Nebraska should have revenge on its mind after losing at Iowa, 57-52, on Feb. 17, in Sandfort’s return to Iowa City, where he played for two seasons.
Whatever Nebraska nerves were a factor at Iowa shouldn’t be in play at Pinnacle Bank Arena. Nebraska shot only 21 percent from distance in Iowa City. Sandfort scored 13 points, his lowest total since Jan. 10, when he scored 12 at Indiana.
Iowa’s Bennett Stirtz scored 25 points. That won’t happen in this game. Neither will Nebraska’s ice-cold shooting from distance, especially if the game could determine the triple bye for the Huskers.
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The Class 1A and Class 2A Iowa high school boys basketball state tournament brackets are now official following substate action.
The Iowa High School Athletic Association Boys State Tournament begins Monday, March 9 from the Casey’s Center in Des Moines, Iowa.
St. Edmond, the top-seed in 1A, gets Woodbine in a rematch of a quarterfinal from a year ago. Woodbine ended the run of defending state champion Madrid in a substate final on the same court that St. Edmond qualified on when they defeated Riverside.
Burlington Notre Dame plays Bellevue, MMCRU meets Boyden-Hull and Bishop Garrigan battles Bellevue Marquette Catholic in the other elite eight games.
The other substate finals saw Burlington Notre Dame defeat Calamus-Wheatland, MMCRU eliminated North Union, Bishop Garrigan downed South Winneshiek, Bellevue bested East Marshall and Bellevue Marquette Catholic topped Montezuma.
In 2A, Kuemper Catholic is the No. 1 seed and will face Union Community in the opening game on Wednesday, March 11. The other quarterfinals see Treynor vs. Grundy Center, Unity Christian vs. defending state champion Western Christian and Iowa City Regina vs. Aplington-Parkersburg.
Kuemper Catholic survived vs. Roland-Story, Union knocked off Pella Christian in a nail-biter, Treynor bested Underwood, Grundy Center downed Beckman Catholic, Unity Christian handled Southeast Valley, Western Christian ran past Tri-Center, Iowa City Regina downed Northeast and Aplington-Parkersburg defeated Cascade.
Here are the Iowa High School Athletic Association Boys State Basketball Tournament pairings for Class 1A and Class 2A.
Quarterfinals
Tuesday, March 10
Semifinals
Thursday, March 12
Championship
Friday, March 13
Wednesday, March 11
Semifinals
Thursday, March 12
Championship
Friday, March 13
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