The Hawkeyes beat Michigan 24-21 at Kinnick Stadium.

The Hawkeyes desperately needed a spark after a rough first half -- and Tevaun Smith gave it to them with a brilliant 55-yard touchdown catch.

Smith beat four defenders after grabbing a short slant to pull Iowa within 21-14 with 13:35 left in the third quarter.

Iowa's defense kept Michigan from putting together any sort of rally. Meyer's field goal, which was into a stiff wind, wound up being the game winner.

Smith made a one-handed grab of a Jake Rudock pass, spun and sprinted 55 yards to the end zone and Iowa never looked back.

"I overran it a bit, but I put my hand up there to try to snag it and somehow the ball stuck to my glove,'' Smith said. "Then I just took off because we needed something good to happen.''

Something. Anything.

"He made a great play, just what we needed,'' Rudock said. "We got it done and gave the seniors a win in their last home game that they deserved.''

It was believed to be the coldest start in the 84-year history of Kinnick Stadium, with a temperature of 18 degrees and a wind chill near zero. The frigid conditions were in stark contrast to the Aug. 31 opener, when the university set up cooling stations because of a heat index that approached triple digits.

Iowa capped a sloppy half by botching the snap on a 36-yard field goal attempt.

Smith and the Hawkeyes defense kept Iowa in the game long enough to push past the Wolverines, who eventually committed the game-deciding turnover.

Coach Kirk Ferentz liked what he saw.

"I think we grew up a little bit today,'' Ferentz said. "I don't want to say that we were embarrassed, but I think we knew we could play better offensively certainly in the second half. We knew we were going to have to, but the guys really put their foot on the gas. A lot of guys made really good efforts to help us.''

Rudock completed 10-of-12 passes for 147 yards in the final two quarters, shaking off his own 9-for-18 start which included a pair of interceptions that led Michigan to touchdowns.

The first came on Iowa's first snap of the game, an interception that Brennan Beyer returned seven yards for a score.

Blake Countess recorded the second, leading to the first of two second-quarter touchdown passes by Gardner which provided Michigan (7-4, 3-4) with its final points of the day.

"It wasn't anywhere close to the type of start we wanted to get off to, but those things happen,'' Rudock said. "When they do, the important thing is to learn from it, move on and keep fighting. We came out after the half with a never-quit mentality and that gave us a chance. It was our only chance.''