Iowa tackle Robert Gallery and kicker Nate Kaeding have both been named to the American Football Coaches Association All-America Team. Gallery is a finalist for the Outland Award given to the nation’s top lineman while Kaeding may win a second straight Lou Groza Award as the nation’s top place kicker. Those two, along with senior safety Bob Sanders, form a trio that coach Kirk Ferentz says was instrumental in the Hawkeyes 9-3 regular season. Ferentz says all three were “impact players” and he says with all due respect to great players like Brad Banks, he can’t remember being around guys who were so exceptional at their positions. Iowa’s bowl destination appears to hinge on Ohio State and whether the Buckeyes get selected by a Bowl Championship Series game as an at-large. If they do, the Hawks would likely end up playing on New Years’ Day and the Capitol One Bowl in Orlando could pass over Purdue and select the Hawkeyes. Ferentz says there is no perfect system and outside of trying to get the two best teams in the national championship game, fan support plays a big role in bowl selection. Ferentz says you can’t blame a community for factoring a team’s fan base in the selection process because the reason cities host bowls is to boost their economy.
