Iowa vs. Wisconsin: 3 Keys to Victory for the Hawkeyes in the Battle for the Heartland

It's time for the Iowa Hawkeyes to go back to what works. This game against the Wisconsin Badgers is a vintage Big Ten rivalry for the Battle of the Heartland - between two teams that have consistently used each other as a measuring stick for success each season.

This year, both Iowa and Wisconsin enter the matchup 5-2, looking to prove a point in this rivalry and get the spotlight of the college football world, as it is the FOX Big Noon Kickoff game. The recipe for Iowa is straightforward, so let's get into what the Hawkeyes must do to get a win.

Run behind your future NFL linemen

There's no reason to get cute or overthink things here if you are the Hawkeyes. You have Trevor Lauck and Kade Pieper, two future NFL draft picks, on the offensive line. Get behind them. Get hard yards. Get the ugly first downs. Whatever you have to do, get behind these two and go.

Iowa is without Kamari Moulton. Iowa needs to get behind Pieper and Lauck with its other backs, a few of whom are still young in their careers, to make things easier. Put this game on their shoulders offensively, as Iowa has so often done with the offensive line, and grind out ugly, hard yards.

Generate 2 short fields for the offense

Wisconsin's defense is good. Let's face the facts on that one. The Badgers are stout against the run, don't let teams sling it a ton on them, and won't give up long, sustained drives. Iowa, after last week's showing, isn't the beacon of offensive firepower, either.

I think Iowa's defense and special teams need to find two short fields in this game that set the offense up in field-goal position, at least. Be it turnovers, good returns, or what have you, creating points in these phases is going to be the difference for Iowa scoring and gaining confidence on offense.

Keep Colton Joseph in the pocket

Iowa shut down Minnesota's passing game last week, and now faces a passing attack that, on paper, is lacking comparatively. Of course, things can happen, but Iowa's secondary has to like this matchup against Colton Joseph, who completes just 57.2% of his passes.

The worry for Iowa is if he breaks contain and hurts them with his legs, which he is more than capable of. Iowa's overall discipline on defense comes into play here. The defensive ends have to avoid getting upfield and creating lanes, while Bryce Hawthorne and others collapse the pocket.

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