The Breakdown
Tom Kakert | Editor
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Kickoff: 11:01 a.m.
Tickets: Tickets remain available at hawkeyesports.com
TV: ESPNU – Eamon McAnanery and John Congemi
Last Meeting: Iowa defeated Northwestern 40-10 last year in Evanston
The Weather: Cloudy skies, possible showers in the morning. Temps in the mid 60’s.
The Line: Iowa is a 13.5 point favorite.
History: The Hawkeye have won the last three meetings between the two schools and four of the last five. Overall in this series, Iowa leads 50-24-3. Iowa holds a 26-9 advantage in the series in games played in Iowa City. Kirk Ferentz is 8-7 in his career against Northwestern. Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald is 5-5 against the Hawkeyes during his tenure with the Wildcats.
Will Akrum Wadley have another big day against Northwestern?
THE BREAKDOWN
Iowa rush offense vs. Northwestern rush defense
After a very disappointing rushing effort the previous week in the loss to North Dakota State, Iowa got starters James Daniels and Sean Welsh back in the line-up and the run game returned to form. Iowa ran for 193 yards and both LeShun Daniels and Akrum Wadley returned to form. Wadley led the way with 84 yards on the ground and Daniels chipped in with 77. Wadley had the game winning points on a 26 yard touchdown run in his home state. C.J. Beathard also got back into the running game with 37 yards on the ground, including a couple of planned runs that were effective. Iowa is averaging 159 yards on the ground per game, which is 11th in the Big Ten. That seems to be skewed a bit due to the poor performance against the Bison. In the other three games, they have rushed for at least 193 yards.
The Wildcats have been scuffling against the run this season. Last year the Hawkeyes ran all over the Wildcats in a 40-10. In that game, Wadley ran for 204 yards in about three quarters and Iowa dominated the game. This year, opponents have run for 177 yards per game and averaged 4.5 yards per carry against Northwestern. Opposing teams have also scored six touchdowns on the ground this season against the Wildcats. Star linebacker Anthony Walker has had a fairly quiet so far this year with 23 tackles. Their leading tackler is Jaylen Prater, also at linebacker, who has 38 tackles. This really seems to set up well for the Hawkeyes to have a good day on the ground. Trying to duplicate what they did last year is probably not realistic, but Iowa should win this battle.ADVANTAGE: IOWA
Iowa pass offense vs. Northwestern pass defense
After a hot start in the air, C.J. Beathard has cooled off in terms of yardage the past two weeks. Beathard hasn’t exceeded 162 yards in the past two contests. Overall, Beathard has completed 59% of his throws (55-93 passes) for 741 yards and 8 touchdowns. There will be a big adjustment for the Hawkeyes this weekend as leading receiver Matt VandeBerg, who broke his foot in practice on Monday and will be out indefinitely. That means other receivers will have to step up. Jerminic Smith and Riley McCarron will be the starters and they have combined for 13 receptions this season. Jay Scheel will be the third receiver and VandeBerg’s absence could lead to an opportunity for Ronald Nash and Devonte Young. The leading receiver for Iowa who will be on the field is tight end George Kittle, who has ten receptions in the past three games and scored a touchdown last weekend. Iowa is 12th in the Big Ten in passing offense this season with 197 yards per game in the air.
Northwestern is hurting in the secondary right now with three of their four starters out due to injury. As you would expect, teams are taking full advantage of the issues in the secondary. The Wildcats are last in the Big Ten, giving up 257 yards per game in the air. They are the only team in the Big Ten who have given up over 1000 yards passing so far this year and opponents are completing 65% of their throws against the pass coverage. Kind of an interesting stat, with giving up all those yards, Northwestern has only allowed two touchdowns through the air. Part of their issue is certainly a lack of pass rush. They have only six sacks this year and no one has more than one sack. Iowa will have concerns with their passing game based on VandeBerg being out and the lack of production the past two games, but it sure seems like the Wildcats defense is the perfect tonic to get them back on track. ADVANTAGE: IOWA
The Hawkeyes look to get after Clayton Thorson.
Northwestern rush offense vs. Iowa rush defense
The Wildcat rushing attack hasn’t been as strong as many thought it would be this season. Justin Jackson is their workhorse back and he has 377 yards rushing this season and is averaging 84 yards per game. Northwestern quarterback Clayton Thorson is their other running threat out of the read option and he has rushed for 41 yards. Beyond that, there’s not a lot to see from the Wildcat running game. Overall, they are averaging just 108 yards per game on the ground, which is 13th in the Big Ten.
As poor as the Northwestern running game has been this year, the same can be said for the Iowa rush defense. For the second straight week, the Hawkeyes struggled to stop the run, giving up 193 yards to Rutgers, who isn’t exactly a high powered running team. On the season, Iowa is giving up 179 yards per game on the ground, which is 12th in the Big Ten. This might be the ugliest of all the head to head match-up’s in this preview. Both units are struggling. ADVANTAGE: PUSH
Northwestern pass offense vs. Iowa pass defense
Clayton Thorson has improved a bit in terms of his numbers this year. He is averaging 239 yards passing and has completed 73 of 139 attempts for 956 yards with five touchdowns and four interceptions. His favorite target is Austin Carr, a senior wide receiver who currently leads the Big Ten in receiving. Carr has 26 receptions for 392 yards and three touchdowns. Flynn Nagel is the second top target with 10 receptions for 125 yards. Garrett Dickerson is the next most popular target in the passing game with 9 receptions.
Iowa’s pass defense was pretty solid last week against Rutgers, giving up just 190 yards. The Hawkeyes are fifth in the Big Ten, allowing just 186 yards per game. Opposing teams are completing 55% of their passes and the Hawkeyes have picked off a pair of passes. One of the positive developments of the Iowa defense has been their pass rush. Through four games, Iowa has 13 sacks, led by 3.5 from Anthony Nelson and Jaleel Johnson. Last week, Iowa showed their “Raider” package for the first time this year and it resulted in a pair of quarterback sacks. If Iowa can take away Carr, they should be in good shape. Given the leaky nature of their offensive line, Iowa should also be put pressure on a regular basis on Thorson. Probably safe to give the edge to Iowa.ADVANTAGE: IOWA
Special Teams
Each week we have been heaping praise on Ron Coluzzi. This week the Big Ten Conference recognized him as the player of the week. Coluzzi is averaging 43 yards per punt and hasn’t allowed return yards so far this season. He’s also has 18 of 22 kickoffs result in touchbacks. Keith Duncan has made his only field goal attempt this season and remains perfect on PAT’s. Desmond King has done a nice job in the return game, averaging 8.2 yards per return on punts and 30 yards on kickoff returns.
The Wildcats return game has been pretty decent this year with Flynn Nagel handling punt returns and averaging 6.7 yards per return. Solomon Vault is their main kickoff return option and he is averaging 25 yards per return. Their placekicker, Jack Mitchell, has been struggling, making just 1-4 attempts this season. A brighter spot for Northwestern has been their punter, Hunter Niswander, who is averaging 44 yards a kick. Fairly close between both groups with King giving Iowa a bit of a boost in the return game. ADVANTAGE: SLIGHT TO IOWA
Tom Kakert | Editor
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Kickoff: 11:01 a.m.
Tickets: Tickets remain available at hawkeyesports.com
TV: ESPNU – Eamon McAnanery and John Congemi
Last Meeting: Iowa defeated Northwestern 40-10 last year in Evanston
The Weather: Cloudy skies, possible showers in the morning. Temps in the mid 60’s.
The Line: Iowa is a 13.5 point favorite.
History: The Hawkeye have won the last three meetings between the two schools and four of the last five. Overall in this series, Iowa leads 50-24-3. Iowa holds a 26-9 advantage in the series in games played in Iowa City. Kirk Ferentz is 8-7 in his career against Northwestern. Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald is 5-5 against the Hawkeyes during his tenure with the Wildcats.
Will Akrum Wadley have another big day against Northwestern?
THE BREAKDOWN
Iowa rush offense vs. Northwestern rush defense
After a very disappointing rushing effort the previous week in the loss to North Dakota State, Iowa got starters James Daniels and Sean Welsh back in the line-up and the run game returned to form. Iowa ran for 193 yards and both LeShun Daniels and Akrum Wadley returned to form. Wadley led the way with 84 yards on the ground and Daniels chipped in with 77. Wadley had the game winning points on a 26 yard touchdown run in his home state. C.J. Beathard also got back into the running game with 37 yards on the ground, including a couple of planned runs that were effective. Iowa is averaging 159 yards on the ground per game, which is 11th in the Big Ten. That seems to be skewed a bit due to the poor performance against the Bison. In the other three games, they have rushed for at least 193 yards.
The Wildcats have been scuffling against the run this season. Last year the Hawkeyes ran all over the Wildcats in a 40-10. In that game, Wadley ran for 204 yards in about three quarters and Iowa dominated the game. This year, opponents have run for 177 yards per game and averaged 4.5 yards per carry against Northwestern. Opposing teams have also scored six touchdowns on the ground this season against the Wildcats. Star linebacker Anthony Walker has had a fairly quiet so far this year with 23 tackles. Their leading tackler is Jaylen Prater, also at linebacker, who has 38 tackles. This really seems to set up well for the Hawkeyes to have a good day on the ground. Trying to duplicate what they did last year is probably not realistic, but Iowa should win this battle.ADVANTAGE: IOWA
Iowa pass offense vs. Northwestern pass defense
After a hot start in the air, C.J. Beathard has cooled off in terms of yardage the past two weeks. Beathard hasn’t exceeded 162 yards in the past two contests. Overall, Beathard has completed 59% of his throws (55-93 passes) for 741 yards and 8 touchdowns. There will be a big adjustment for the Hawkeyes this weekend as leading receiver Matt VandeBerg, who broke his foot in practice on Monday and will be out indefinitely. That means other receivers will have to step up. Jerminic Smith and Riley McCarron will be the starters and they have combined for 13 receptions this season. Jay Scheel will be the third receiver and VandeBerg’s absence could lead to an opportunity for Ronald Nash and Devonte Young. The leading receiver for Iowa who will be on the field is tight end George Kittle, who has ten receptions in the past three games and scored a touchdown last weekend. Iowa is 12th in the Big Ten in passing offense this season with 197 yards per game in the air.
Northwestern is hurting in the secondary right now with three of their four starters out due to injury. As you would expect, teams are taking full advantage of the issues in the secondary. The Wildcats are last in the Big Ten, giving up 257 yards per game in the air. They are the only team in the Big Ten who have given up over 1000 yards passing so far this year and opponents are completing 65% of their throws against the pass coverage. Kind of an interesting stat, with giving up all those yards, Northwestern has only allowed two touchdowns through the air. Part of their issue is certainly a lack of pass rush. They have only six sacks this year and no one has more than one sack. Iowa will have concerns with their passing game based on VandeBerg being out and the lack of production the past two games, but it sure seems like the Wildcats defense is the perfect tonic to get them back on track. ADVANTAGE: IOWA
The Hawkeyes look to get after Clayton Thorson.
Northwestern rush offense vs. Iowa rush defense
The Wildcat rushing attack hasn’t been as strong as many thought it would be this season. Justin Jackson is their workhorse back and he has 377 yards rushing this season and is averaging 84 yards per game. Northwestern quarterback Clayton Thorson is their other running threat out of the read option and he has rushed for 41 yards. Beyond that, there’s not a lot to see from the Wildcat running game. Overall, they are averaging just 108 yards per game on the ground, which is 13th in the Big Ten.
As poor as the Northwestern running game has been this year, the same can be said for the Iowa rush defense. For the second straight week, the Hawkeyes struggled to stop the run, giving up 193 yards to Rutgers, who isn’t exactly a high powered running team. On the season, Iowa is giving up 179 yards per game on the ground, which is 12th in the Big Ten. This might be the ugliest of all the head to head match-up’s in this preview. Both units are struggling. ADVANTAGE: PUSH
Northwestern pass offense vs. Iowa pass defense
Clayton Thorson has improved a bit in terms of his numbers this year. He is averaging 239 yards passing and has completed 73 of 139 attempts for 956 yards with five touchdowns and four interceptions. His favorite target is Austin Carr, a senior wide receiver who currently leads the Big Ten in receiving. Carr has 26 receptions for 392 yards and three touchdowns. Flynn Nagel is the second top target with 10 receptions for 125 yards. Garrett Dickerson is the next most popular target in the passing game with 9 receptions.
Iowa’s pass defense was pretty solid last week against Rutgers, giving up just 190 yards. The Hawkeyes are fifth in the Big Ten, allowing just 186 yards per game. Opposing teams are completing 55% of their passes and the Hawkeyes have picked off a pair of passes. One of the positive developments of the Iowa defense has been their pass rush. Through four games, Iowa has 13 sacks, led by 3.5 from Anthony Nelson and Jaleel Johnson. Last week, Iowa showed their “Raider” package for the first time this year and it resulted in a pair of quarterback sacks. If Iowa can take away Carr, they should be in good shape. Given the leaky nature of their offensive line, Iowa should also be put pressure on a regular basis on Thorson. Probably safe to give the edge to Iowa.ADVANTAGE: IOWA
Special Teams
Each week we have been heaping praise on Ron Coluzzi. This week the Big Ten Conference recognized him as the player of the week. Coluzzi is averaging 43 yards per punt and hasn’t allowed return yards so far this season. He’s also has 18 of 22 kickoffs result in touchbacks. Keith Duncan has made his only field goal attempt this season and remains perfect on PAT’s. Desmond King has done a nice job in the return game, averaging 8.2 yards per return on punts and 30 yards on kickoff returns.
The Wildcats return game has been pretty decent this year with Flynn Nagel handling punt returns and averaging 6.7 yards per return. Solomon Vault is their main kickoff return option and he is averaging 25 yards per return. Their placekicker, Jack Mitchell, has been struggling, making just 1-4 attempts this season. A brighter spot for Northwestern has been their punter, Hunter Niswander, who is averaging 44 yards a kick. Fairly close between both groups with King giving Iowa a bit of a boost in the return game. ADVANTAGE: SLIGHT TO IOWA
