When the Iowa football team takes the field on Saturday, it will come with a complete group of running backs, a luxury they never had last season.

Injuries decimated out the Hawkeye running attack, as four running backs went down with injuries.

Marcus Schnorr was injured in Iowa’s season opener against Kent State and was forced to have knee surgery.

He was replaced by Albert Young who suffered a season-ending knee injury against Iowa State.

Graduated senior Jermelle Lewis started four games, also falling to injury. Marquis Simmons started one game but hurt his ankle, missing Iowa’s next three games.

Sophomore Sam Brownlee, a walk-on from Emmetsburg, was forced into the starting position, playing the final six games as Iowa’s No. 1 running back.

This season, the Hawkeyes are overflowing with running backs.Eight had carries in Iowa’s season opening win over Ball State.

Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz won’t use all those players against Iowa State, but does have options.

“We have four guys that we can trust,” Ferentz said. “It’s a situation that is still coming together. We’ll see how it shakes out.”

Iowa averaged just 72 yards rushing per game in 2004. The leading rusher was Brownlee with 227 yards.

Brownlee, Schnoor and Young are all in position to contribute, along with freshman Shonn Green who led the team with 116 yards on 18 carries against Ball State.

“It was great experience for him,” Ferentz said. “He is improving with each opportunity.”

Iowa moved to No. 8 in this week’s AP poll, jumping three spots after a win over Ball State. The Hawkeyes have finished at No. 8 the last three seasons. The Hawkeyes finished 2004 with a 10-2 record, capped by a victory over LSU in the Capital One Bowl.

Even though Iowa rolled to a 56-0 victory, Ferentz can’t gauge much from the win.

“It’s tough to get a thorough evaluation given the circumstances,” Ferentz said. “One thing we don’t know is how we will play in the fourth quarter. This week’s game is going to be a four-quarter contest, that’s for certain.”

After losing his first four meetings with the Cyclones, Ferentz has came out on top of the intrastate battle the last two years, winning 40-21 in 2003 and 17-10 last season.

Ferentz worked with ISU coach Dan McCarney as assistants under Hayden Fry at Iowa during the 1980s.

Both coaches moved on to bigger things, with McCarney coaching at Wisconsin while Ferentz spent time in the NFL.

“It’s fun to watch each other as we progress professionally,” Ferentz said. “Our [relationship] is a little different because we’re in the same state, but, regardless, it’s fun. We’re not going out to dinner with each other. Logistics don’t allow for that, but we enjoy each other’s company.”

— University of Iowa media relations contributed to this article