On the what he learned about the team

It was such a great team victory. I really learned they care about—they like playing with each other. They like winning for each other. A team that really cares about the other guys on the team. They just play like that. They enjoy winning together.

On Iowa's last possession

It was good to see the pressure come back. Felt like it went away for about a quarter or so. Mike Morris and Eyabi both single-handedly, four plays, either they were sacking the quarterback or pressuring him into making an incompletion or an early throw. It was good to have that back. The coverage got tighter when it needed to. It was good to see. It was like that in the first part of the game and then at the end when we needed it.

On Mike Morris' growth

Very strong player. Really good against the run. To see him get the push and be able to get some bend around the offensive tackle and create that pass rush, great to see. After the game, I saw Big Mike, Mike Sr. and Melanie Morris, you didn't have to say anything. "Yeah, we know." Big hug, everybody was as happy as could be. So proud. We see it and he's playing—like most players, emotional, people playing and coaching this game, emotional people play and coach this game. To see him kind of letting it out and letting it rip is great to see. There's been consistency in his game. As you said, more production on a consistent basis. Have at it. Keep letting it rip that way.

On Iowa's tight ends

It was important that we get some man-to-man coverage on them and I thought, when we did that, we had success. When the pass rushes coordinator and the coverage was tight, we were covering them up pretty good. We got some of the underneath coverage, we missed a couple of zone drops and left some seam openings. That's a big target, both of them found some of those openings and the quarterback did a nice job of finding him. We won the game, we feel great about that. We also feel great about all the opportunities to improve. Nobody is taking a deep, long bow or patting each other on the back because we see it. All areas that the team could improve. We're genuinely excited about that. There's more here, there's more meat on the bone. Let's get it all.

On whether Gemon Green is the most improved player on the defense

There's probably a few of them that is deserving of that category of most improved. He's certainly off to a really good start this season. Again, you look at and it go, yeah, there's more there. We let them get inside on a couple of in-cuts. Mike Sainristil had outside leverage on a sail route and went for one of those little moves and lost that outside leverage. Just stuff. Stuff like that. Junior had a drop where he was a little bit out of place in the zone drop. As good as we feel, I can just convey—I'm happy about it. We won. It's a great win for our team. Also, you're just in this race to chase perfection that you'll never get. Want to find excellence. I think our guys are just hungry for that. Back on the practice field today to find any little way to improve individually and collectively as a team.

On Nikhai Hill-Green's status

He's working through it. Just because I come on the Jon Jansen podcast doesn't mean I'm going—I'm just not in a position to talk about guys. I weekly say that and I weekly get asked. Once again, probably the fifth-straight week, that's just not something—like you wouldn't want me talking about your son and his football health. Talk to him, talk directly to him. You say you're just asking, I'm just saying, I can't answer that question, that's not something I'm at liberty to discuss.

On where he wants to see the next step the defense makes

Tighter zone coverage when we get into those zone drops. Latching onto guys that come in the zone. Covering up some of those seams and holes that occurred on the dig routes and the in-breaking routes. That pass rush, keep coming. No doubt we're getting some real good play from the inside guys and the outside guys. When that gets grooved when it's just humming and everybody is—down after down with numbing repetition. Where we're seeing where we can get to. That's what we're doing. Chasing perfection as I said. You just hope to attain excellence.

On J.J. McCarthy

I thought he did really good. We thought he was one of the top performers on the offensive side of the ball and on the team. I thought he did a great job of taking what they gave him. He only missed one throw, the deep throw to Roman. Could've put a little more air on it. Kind of threw a more flatter ball than he would've liked to. Just handling the environment. The snap count, the cadence, the alignments, the checks. Really good for being in that environment for the first time playing the entire game.

On Donovan Edwards

He saved our bacon on the one when he jumped on the fumble and turned it into a 21-yard loss. Did not result in a turnover. Just a great heads-up play by him. He added some real good runs in the running game. Made a nice couple of catches out of the backfield including a touchdown from J.J. Just a lot of energy. Only a sophomore but he's very much a leadership presence on and off the field. Just the whole trip. You feel optimistic when he's around. I feel optimistic when he's around. He's got that deep voice, that loud voice. He affects a lot of people, including me in a positive way.

On Edwards' receiving ability

A lot of people would struggle with that. Only the real good athletes and guys with really good ball skills can make that kind of play look that easy. He does that. I like guys who like football. Donovan loves football. I love Donovan. It's in the way he attacks everything and the way he approaches the game. If there's somebody having more fun out there in practice or in the games, there's maybe a few guys who are as much as he is. He just genuinely has a lot of fun playing the game.

On handling Blake Corum's Heisman Trophy expectations

It's a real healthy way. I guess I just don't worry about that. He always has really high expectations. He has since he's walked onto this campus. He does it in a really calm, cool, collected way as well. It's almost like a smile. Now, he's added this getting up on the second level and making somebody miss. He can do that at the first level. Make the shallow cut, get up close to the defender and then make him miss. That one where—at the second level, five-yards deep. He had a big hole. There was somebody right in the middle of it. That guy didn't know whether to wind his watch or what to do. That kind of thing, when he can get up onto the second level of the safeties and the corners got a beat on him, if he can get by that second level and turn the 10-yard gain into a 40 or 50-yard gain. It's coming, you saw it that past Saturday. Another thing that's good to look forward to in his game. Also, he looks better to me the more reps he gets. The more touches he gets. He shows no signs of any fatigue or anything.

On whether Corum is a back that needs more reps as the game goes on

I wouldn't say he needs it because we've seen him be so good in the first quarter. Rush for a bunch of yards on 10 carries or 12 carries. I don't think he needs but I don't think it fazes him, either. As we saw with 30 carries or 25 carries. Once he gets past 20—there's some backs that are like that. If you get past 20 carries, there's nothing left there in the tank in the game. The real special ones can go 25, 30 carries and look like they're getting even stronger and better.

On the offensive line

I think that was their best game collectively as a unit. Individually, there was some really outstanding play. Zinter and Olu, the way they work together. Trente, I thought he had his best game. That's the third week in a row that I've thought that. Great to have Trevor Keegan back. I think he makes a big difference. We talk about how good Gio is doing, really pleased with Gio. It's even better with Trevor in there. Ryan Hayes has been real steady as can be. Collectively, all playing together is starting to gel.

On Luke Schoonmaker

I always thought Schoonie was really good but he's playing even better than I thought he was. He'll be a really good pro tight end. Keep her going, keep it going Schoonie. It's somebody that I think J.J. is really comfortable with. Knows that you can look at it almost like a security blanket-type of receiver. And blocking so good. He's blocking really good on the perimeter, he's blocking so good in-line, he's really good inserting, man-on-man, in the man schemes, the zone schemes, he's just really blocking well. Running fast. He's doing everything that you could really ask for and he's doing it with the same attention to detail you always see out of Luke Schoonmaker. He's a real pro already in his approach and his preparation.

On Indiana

They've been throwing the ball. The quarterback, they have a lot of trust in him. Really good arm that can throw it to all parts of the field. The running back has got 300-some yards and they're not running it as much so it's gotta be a pretty good average that he has. He's a real patient runner, gets behind their offensive line and it almost looks like a draw play every play as he's patiently waiting for the hole to open up. Defensively, they're really goo. They mix things up a lot. Different than Iowa. It's a tough-minded defense, hard-hitting defense. A lot more looks. Iowa, yeah, you kind of get a good feel of what they're playing. It's this or that. A lot of different looks from Indiana. The preparation has got to be on point. To be able to identify the looks pre-snap and then also be able to read once the ball has been snapped. Really good challenge in all phases this week.