IOWA CITY — Even when Mark Gronowski did something right in his Iowa football debut, something went wrong. It was that kind of Saturday for the South Dakota State transfer and the Hawkeyes.

On a second-and-goal from Albany’s 1-yard line midway through the third quarter, Gronowski took a shotgun snap and powered up the middle for his first rushing touchdown as a Hawkeye. But shortly after he got up to be celebrated by his teammates, he fell back to the ground.

The good news: It was only cramping in his calves.

The optics, though: Fitting for the day.

Gronowski’s first performance as Iowa’s quarterback was underwhelming to say the least, casting a cloud over the Hawkeyes’ 34-7 victory against the University of Albany, an FCS program that went 4-8 a year ago and has an interim head coach.

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