Whats up Hawk fans it has been a whole 3 years since the Hawks have played the Wisconsin Badgers. That will all come to an end this weekend as the Badgers are in town for a critical conference match-up. Wisconsin is coming off a bye week and they are 5-2 with a 3-1 record in the conference. Iowa comes into this game coming off probably their biggest win so far this year over Northwestern 17 to 10 in OT to bring their record to 5-3 2-2 in the conference. I expect to see a fight on Saturday these teams both are known for being the more physical team and the team that wins the line of scrimmage will likely win the football game. Both teams are very similar in style that they are run first teams they both played Ohio State very strong at the Shoe with Wisconsin losing 31 to 24 and Iowa 34 to 24. The last time we played Wisconsin was the heartbreaking 31 to 30 loss back in 2010 and a lot of people point to this game as the starting point for the program decline. Is this going to be the game we say the Hawks are back to rising as a program. I feel this is a very important game not only for bowl position but Iowa is coming off a big win can they put another good game together to beat a very good Wisconsin team. So lets take a look at Iowa's offense against the Badgers defense.
Iowa is known for running the football which is what they will try to do on Saturday afternoon vs Wisconsin. The winds could play a factor in this game as they are going to be pretty strong out of the Northwest which could effect both passing offenses. The Hawkeyes come into this game rushing for 188.9 yards per game and they have thrown for 208 yards per game. Iowa is scoring 27.4 points per game while allowing 18 points per game. Wisconsin is number 4 in the nation stopping the run only allowing 87.6 yards per game so they will definitely be trying to shut down the run making Iowa one dimensional. Wisconsin on the season is only allowing 197.4 passing yards per game so they have a complete defense good against the pass and running game. The Badgers only allow 15.9 points per game so we could be in for a defensive battle on Saturday in Kinnick Stadium. Wisconsin brings a different dimension the Hawks haven't seen much this year as they play a 3-4 defense which means pass blocking is going to be extra important on Saturday.
They will have a lot of linebackers on the field, we need to take advantage of this matching up our running backs and tight ends on linebackers. I think you will see Iowa spread the field a lot against Wisconsin trying to take advantage of these one on one match ups. Obviously Iowa needs to be able to run the ball to set up the playaction passing game so that will be a major factor. Turnovers will play a major factor Iowa has forced 14 turnovers while turning it over 12 times and Wisconsin has forced 10 turnovers while giving it away 8 times. Even though Iowa may not have the most skilled wide receivers I believe the Hawks will have a chance to make some plays down the field in the only 2 games I saw Wisconsin play they struggled finding the football on deep passes. The Hawks need a good game from the wide receivers I believe that the Badgers will focus on the tight ends in the passing game so the receivers should have some one on one match ups on the perimeter. This is going to be the game Damond Powell makes an impact, expect Jake Duzey to also get targeted a lot he has the speed to run away from linebackers in coverage. Tight ends and running backs will be targeted a lot this weekend with the way Wisconsin likes to blitz I think the screen pass could be a very effective weapon for the offense. The one thing that doesn't worry me is that Rudock will not be scared to stand in and take a shot to complete a pass. I also think his scrambling ability will come into play this weekend Wisconsin likes to blitz so if Rudock can escape the pocket he could have some room to run. The 3-4 defense could cause a lot of problems for the zone blocking scheme Iowa runs so I think we will see Iowa focusing on running the ball in the middle of the defense more than the stretch play. If they can outnumber the defense on the outside they should still be able to run the football and if Iowa is going to win they need to at least run for over 100 yards. Now lets look at the Wisconsin offense against the Hawks defense.
Wisconsin wants to run the football and be the most physical team on the field they have rushed for 296 yards per game good enough for 8th in the nation. They have thrown the ball for 216 yards per game on the season while scoring 39.9 points per game. Iowa is number 14 in the nation in pass defense allowing just under 115 yards per game while their run defense is 24th allowing 128.6 yards rushing per game. The two main guys Iowa will need to contain Melvin Gordon he is a home run threat every time he touches the football, watch for Wisconsin to run some jet sweeps to him. James white is the other running back he has more power than Gordon so he will be running between the tackles more. Wisconsin has a big offensive line and they will just line up to run the ball right at the Iowa defense. The one thing that gives me hope is if Iowa can pressure Stave he hasn't looked all that great. Really the only receiving target Iowa has to worry about is Jared Abbrederis who has 43 catches for 725 yards and 5 touchdowns. If Iowa can slow down the running game they have a great shot to win. I expect we see Iowa run blitz a lot this weekend as the Badgers will be trying to run the football. The defensive line will be without Dominic Alvis again so Mike Hardy will have to step up like last weekend. Stave will make mistakes if Iowa can get pressure on him he has thrown 13 touchdowns with 6 interceptions. Wisconsin's second leading receiver is running back James White and 3rd is tight end Jacob Peterson. Wisconsin's passing game besides Abbrederis doesn't worry me I think we can shut him down the question will be can we slow down the Badgers high powered rushing attack.
Special teams can be a complete game changer in a close game which is what I expect to see this weekend. The Badgers kickoff return unit is averaging almost 25.6 yards per return so the poor kickoff coverage Iowa has had this season could be exploited if they aren't careful. On punt returns Iowa has the upper hand averaging over 20 yards per return could a big return be the game changing moment? Konnor Cornbraith on the season is averaging only 37.2 yards per punt but he has been better as of late and seems to be improving. Wisconsin's punter is only averaging 36.2 yards per punt so field position will be very critical with two punters who aren't great at completely turning the field over with a long punt. Field goals I would give the advantage to Iowa with Meyer being 10 of 14 on the season Wisconsin has scored so many points in most games that kicking hasn't been that important with Kyle French going 5-8 on field goals. French is 3 for 6 on 30 yard plus field goals so if Iowa can hold the Badgers to field goal attempts he could miss a couple.
My prediction is a very close game coming down to the final drive I believe last weeks win helped the Hawks turn the corner Iowa upsets Wisconsin 24 to 21. I believe Iowa will be able to run the ball enough to keep the Badgers off balance. I think this team is ready to get on a roll they won a close game last weekend and I see another close game where the theme of Rudock making big plays continues. I think Jake Rudock will be the difference in the game as the Badgers will be focused on the run I think the quarterback that plays better will lead his team to a victory. The one thing we haven't seen from Jake in a while is a turnover free football game I think we see that this weekend. I also believe Damon Bullock will come up with some big plays in the passing game coming out of the backfield. Also with the number of linebackers Wisconsin will play George Kittle one of the faster tight ends will probably get some more playing time this weekend. I have Iowa moving to 6-3 securing a bowl game with a chance to finish this season very strong. As always I will have the review coming up after the game so check back. Thanks for reading
Go Hawks
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