Iowa football is 6-0 for the first time since 2009. That season they started 9-0, and what team was the first to knock them off? That’s right- Northwestern, this week’s opponent. That game marked the first meaningful action that we ever really saw of former Wildcats QB Dan Persa, as the NU QB1 at the time Mike Kafka was knocked out with an injury.
Persa would go on to be a very elite quarterback himself until injuring his achilles in 2010 at home versus….yes, Iowa.
Persa was never the same player after that.
It doesn’t seem fair that the Iowa Hawkeyes three “no plays” this year are Ohio State, Michigan State and Michigan. You cannot possibly ask for a bigger break than that. Not to mention that Iowa gets to play Maryland, Purdue and Indiana. Unless Nebraska has some kind of miraculous turnaround this season, Saturday marks the final time that Iowa Football will face a ranked team in 2015.
Unless of course they reach the Big Ten Championship game.
TV: ABC 11 AM CST
SPREAD: Iowa Football -1, but this is essentially a pick’em. No clear favorite in this one.
Iowa football preview:
Want to know why the Iowa Hawkeyes are the “quietest” 6-0 team in the country? It’s the schedule. Ohio State receives all the criticism for having a soft schedule, but look at the easy road Iowa has to Indianapolis if they win at Ryan Field on Saturday. This contest certainly has the feel of being a de facto Big Ten West Division Title game. Sure, it’s way too early to say that, but take a look at Wisconsin and Nebraska right now.
The Huskers and the Badgers were everyone’s preseason pick to win the division. They’re currently nobody’s pick to win the division now. Iowa football is definitely for real though. Or as Snoop Dogg would say they’re rizeal.
Jordan Canzeri won Big Ten Player of the week as he led Iowa’s offense in the win over Illinois with 256 rushing yards on 43 attempts. He also had two receptions for 15 yards. He scored twice, including a 17-yard reception in the second quarter and a 75-yard run in the third period.
My weekly Northwestern, and Illini segment on KOZN Omaha 1620 The Zone:
You should probably hear Ron Johnson’s segment talking smack about the state of Nebraska too. That’s what led to joke in the intro:
Back to Canzeri, he established an Iowa record for rushing attempts in a game, passing the previous mark of 42, which was held by Sedrick Shaw (at Michigan State, 1995). The 256 rushing yards ranks third best for a single game at Iowa. It wasn’t all good news last week though, as DE Drew Ott was lost for the season with a torn ACL.
C.J. Beathard provides the Hawkeyes with an added dimension they haven’t had at the signal caller position in awhile. His offense will need to step it up versus a NU defense that had been yielding just 7 points per game prior to the Michigan debacle.
Northwestern football preview:
For much of 2015, watching Northwestern’s offense, especially the passing game has inspired this….
That’s because NU is 116th (out of 128) in yards per play nationally. They average just 4.3, as QB Clayton Thorson hasn’t developed into much of a passer. Eventually he will, you just got to remember that he’s still only played six games in his entire career. As much of an abomination was for the entire team last week, by no means does that game “expose” Northwestern as “a fraud” or “overrated.”
Take a look at what Stanford has done, especially offensively, since their season opening loss at NU. Take a look at what Duke has done in every game this year other than when they hosted the Wildcats. Of course, we have to bring up Northwestern’s ownership of Iowa during the Pat Fitzgerald regime too. That narrative died a painful death in 2014, when NU turned in what might have been the most lackluster effort in any single game under Fitzgerald.
Also, Fitzgerald’s career record in October is…..worse than it is in November, and a whole lot worse than it is in September. Fitzgerald was a middle linebacker when he played, and I would argue that this team’s best player is also at the Mike position. Anthony Walker is developing quickly, and I would expect Kirk Ferentz and his staff to formulate their offensive game plan with him and also Dean Lowry near top of mind.
Prediction: Northwestern 21, Iowa football 20
This game, this Wildcats team, this Big Ten West division (“this Earth, this realm, this England” as Shakespeare said) is extremely unpredictable. No one expected last week’s NU game at Michigan to be essentially over with before the national anthem. One thing that is predictable:
photos of tuxedo cats will always be adorable!
Picking the Cats in this one. Take that prediction with a grain of kitty litter though.
Paul M. Banks owns, operates and sometimes writes The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with FOX Sports Engage Network. The website is also featured on News Now.
Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, currently contributes to the Chicago Tribune RedEye. He also appears regularly on numerous talk shows all across the country. Catch him Tuesdays on KOZN 1620 The Zone.
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