Iowa Football Keys to Victory vs Iowa State: Time for Veterans to Step Up

Rivalry games bring out a different edge in teams. They create more intensity and have players more amped up than normal. Being able to harness that energy is just as important as playing well.

Get too excited, and you can play outside of yourself or miss assignments. And for a team like the Iowa Hawkeyes, success is built on each individual winning their own battle and handling their own assignments.

With the Cy-Hawk game coming up, this ties right into one of Iowa's biggest keys to victory over Iowa State.

Rivalry games need veteran leadership

Being at night in primetime is only going to add a layer of energy to this game. That's good. To a point.

The Hawkeyes are a younger team than normal, with many starters getting their first taste of playing time in front of a raucous crowd. The Hawkeyes have to rely on veterans to calm them down and keep them level-headed.

The likes of Zach Lutmer, Addison Ostrenga, Jayden Montgomery, and Kade Pieper have become more important than ever in this game. They are obviously some of Iowa's top talents, but their leadership has to come into play to avoid letting Iowa make dumb mistakes early or commit penalties.

Apply pressure from the start

There is more than one type of pressure Iowa can apply in this game. But the most obvious is the pass rush. If Iowa can heat up Jaylen Raynor early in this game and make him uncomfortable, it could be a long night.

Iowa needs to get him into passing downs, send pressure, and come down with an interception or two. It gets Kinnick Stadium involved, it flusters Iowa State, and it keeps them on their heels all game.

This game is an opportunity for Kenneth Merriweather, a veteran on this defense, and Iose Epenesa, a former five-star recruit, to make a statement and be destructive forces. Expect Phil Parker to send pressure as well to keep Iowa State's offense from getting comfortable.

Be selectively aggressive on offense

This doesn't mean that Iowa should start going for it on fourth downs all over the field, but given the opportunity, Iowa could deliver some back-breaking blows to the defense if it can convert a handful of fourth downs to extend drives.

It keeps the defense fresh, energizes the crowd, and continues to build confidence in an offense that is entering Week 2 on a high.

This also means looking for an early shot or two to take the top off the defense. Iowa has not taken, nor completed, many shot plays in recent memory. A home-run ball to Tony Diaz or Reece Vander Zee early could send Kinnick into a frenzy, which is exactly what Iowa's offense wants to give its defense.

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