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Iowa vs. Wisconsin (What to expect)

Posted on 22. Oct, 2010 by in Iowa Football

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By Brendan Stiles

HawkeyeDrive.com

To get you all ready for Saturday’s game between No. 13 Iowa and No. 10 Wisconsin, I put together a list of things you ought to know before these two face off inside Kinnick Stadium.

At the end, I’ll provide what I think are three keys to an Iowa victory.

No. 13 Iowa Hawkeyes (5-1, 2-0) vs. No. 10 Wisconsin Badgers (6-1, 2-1)

Kinnick Stadium; Iowa City, Iowa

Oct. 23, 2010

2:30 p.m. Central

TV: ABC/ESPN (Sean McDonough, Matt Millen)

Radio: Hawkeye Radio Network (Gary Dolphin, Ed Podolak, Rob Brooks)

Weather: 69 degrees

Brendan’s Three Keys to the Game:

1. Contain Wisconsin ground game

The scheme is different from what Iowa saw last week at Michigan, but stopping the run is going to be essential. The battle in the trenches between Wisconsin’s offensive line and Iowa’s defensive line has been well-documented. If the Hawkeyes are going to win, keeping both John Clay and James White in check is going to be important.

2. Fast start

I really believe Iowa needs to punch Wisconsin in the mouth right away, and here’s why: The Badgers are coming off a monumental victory at home last weekend. Human nature suggests there might still be a bit of an emotional high. Everyone associated with the Wisconsin program says their eyes are on this weekend’s game, so make them prove it. The one way I could see the Hawkeyes run away with this game is if they jump out to a big lead early, much like the Badgers did a week ago against Ohio State.

3. Open up the playbook offensively

The weather forecast suggests rain, but the elements shouldn’t make Iowa (or Wisconsin for that matter) one-dimensional on offense. Albeit against Ball State, the Hawkeyes showed in that game (which had a downpour) that they could move the ball through the air. Throw in there that wide receiver Marvin McNutt didn’t even play against Wisconsin a year ago due to injury, and he’s a guy I think the Hawkeyes should attempt to get involved as much as possible, especially if the Badgers’ secondary attempts to take away Derrell Johnson-Koulianos.

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