Not on the field. Up in the stands. He just couldn’t stay away.
He played for the Hawkeyes in the 2005 and 2006 seasons, showing promise as a grinding, tackle-shucking running back, but he was clothes-lined by academic shortcomings and had to attend Kirkwood Community College for a year.
He couldn’t separate from Iowa football completely, though. He had to come and watch.
“It obviously was a little tough,’’ Greene said. “It kind of got me down, but it also picked me up knowing I had to get back here.’’
On Saturday, he was back. Academically eligible. On the field. In the lineup. Carrying the ball 22 times for 109 yards in a 46-3 rout of Maine.
And although Greene clearly was tired as he chatted with reporters, it would have been pretty hard to strip the smile off his face.
“It meant a lot,’’ he said. “I love football. Football is my life. It was a great sigh of relief when I stepped out onto the field today.’’
Hawkeyes fans are going to see a lot more of Greene. He might be the key to their entire season.
Coach Kirk Ferentz tried out two different quarterbacks, two kickers and at least two left guards in Saturday’s season opener. There was a lot of rotating and testing, and when the game was over there still was not a clear consensus who deserved to have those jobs.
But there’s no doubt who the starting running back is. It’s Greene.
Freshman Jewel Hampton provided a few thrills in the fourth quarter, displaying some obvious quickness and elusiveness while scoring a pair of mop-up touchdowns.
But Hampton does not know all the plays, he’s a novice when it comes to pass protection, and according to Ferentz, he was wearing his socks improperly. He also was working against a defense that was both worn out and substituting liberally. Maine coach Jack Cosgrove said he sat his All-American defensive end, Jovan Belcher, and others the entire fourth quarter because they were so beat up.
Hampton provided a titillating glimpse of the future. Shonn Greene is the present.
He was a big part of why the visiting Black Bears were so worn down at the end. He carried eight times on Iowa’s game-opening 10-play scoring drive and continued to hammer away for three quarters before giving way to Paki O’Meara and Hampton.
“There must have been 765 offensive plays for Iowa in this game. Am I close?’’ Cosgrove said.
“Physically, we had a hard time standing up to them,’’ he added. “It’s obvious they have a lot of kids who have played a lot of games in the Big Ten. It was really hard for us to stand up to them, especially in the run game.’’
Of course, the question you always need to ask after these early-season cakewalks is what was really learned from pummeling some team you were supposed to pummel.
Maine took the field with a defensive front not much bigger than the back they were trying to stop. Greene is 5-foot-11, 235 pounds. Maine’s two defensive tackles were 239 and 251.
Iowa will face much bigger, much more formidable obstacles in the future, and its success could hinge heavily on whether or not Greene can continue the battering ram performance he delivered Saturday.
“He’s not quite in game shape yet, ready to go the whole distance, but we’re pleased with his progress and it’s great to have him back,’’ Ferentz said.
Greene agreed that it was a good start. Nothing more.
“I think I’ll be much better in the games coming up,’’ he said.
Don Doxsie can be contacted at (563) 383-2280 or ddoxsie@qctimes.com Comment on this story at qctimes.com.
