There were so many factors that contributed to barf that was the Wisconsin game last year. However, despite perceived "gaps" ... the game was a one-score affair well into the 3rd quarter ... and the Hawks were only down 10 early in the 4th quarter. A few self-inflicted wounds later ... Wisconsin ends up winning in a laugher.
However, your point is well made that Iowa's O didn't do a darn thing against the Badgers last year. Why was that ... what were factors that contributed to the historic dismantling of the Hawk O?
- Oddly enough, football is a game that can get swayed A LOT by both momentum, emotion, and motivation. The Hawks were exiting a historic beat-down of Ohio State ... a team that was also supposed to have a mighty D. Furthermore, the Badgers were ridiculed the whole season for tearing apart lesser opponents ... the Iowa game was featured by many as being the Badger's first true "test" of the season. I cannot imagine a better set-up for the Badgers in terms of motivation heading into the game against the Hawks.
- Badger fans like to report how their DC, Leonhard, is a football genius. While I think that Badger players deserve a ton of credit too ... without a doubt, the Badgers have a good one in Leonhard. The defensive side of the football staff really didn't have much turnover ... apart from having him as the new DC. I think that Brian may have had the tougher situation insofar that Iowa's offensive staff was still coming together as a group throughout the whole season. Furthermore, Brian was a newbie at OC ... and, without question, he was schooled in the game against Wisconsin.
- The game was at Camp Randall ... and the Badgers had been away from home for consecutive weeks. While the Hawks are one of the few programs to pull out victories at Camp Randall with some frequency ... it's still an incredibly tough environment for an opposing team to play at. They call it "home field advantage" for a reason.
- Given that the game was AT Madison and the fact that Nate Stanley is a Wisconsin native ... I think that there is reason to believe that Nate wasn't entirely himself in that game. I'm willing to bet that the game holds a little higher importance in his mind ... and it was a little harder than usual for him to approach the game like every other. This factor also perhaps helped the Badger D to shake him even more ... once they were able to get into his head.
I anticipate that the Iowa coaching staff on O has really been continuing to improve and come together as a unit. This can and should reap rewards. Furthermore, Stanley's increased experience should help him in dealing with the adversity of facing off against his home-state team. Lastly, in '18, we get the Badgers at Kinnick!
