Three Bold Predictions for Oregon Ducks at Iowa Hawkeyes

The No. 9 Oregon' Ducks' (7-1, 4-1 Big Ten) road matchup at Kinnick Stadium against the No. 20 Iowa Hawkeyes (6-2, 4-1 Big Ten) looks to be the toughest test. It will be a challenging environment to play in, as it looks to be cloudy early with periods of light rain and snow in Iowa City.

Fox's Big Noon Kickoff will kick off the action with its pregame show at 7 a.m. PT, and the game on Saturday, Nov. 8, will start at 12:30 p.m. on CBS. Here are three bold thoughts to pay attention to while the two foes battle to remain in the hunt for a Big Ten Conference title.

Oregon Defensive Coordinator Tosh Lupoi runs a warmup drill with his team before the game against Oklahoma State at Autzen. | Chris Pietsch/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Oregon's defense will outplay Iowa's

The Iowa defense is No. 5 in passing defense (151.0 yards per game) and No. 8 in rushing defense (83.4 yards per game). That's scary numbers put up by defensive coordinator Phil Parker's special unit.

Despite all that, Oregon's defense under defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi, especially in the secondary, has been a frightful experience to line up with. All opposing quarterbacks are now aware that it's not an option to throw in the vicinity of either true freshman cornerback Brandon Finney Jr. or junior safety Dillon Thieneman.

Controlling the Hawkeyes' rushing attack is the name of the game in this battle on a slippery surface. This is where senior inside linebacker Bryce Boettcher and junior outside linebacker Matayo Uiagalelei will come into play. Boettcher leads the team with 63 total tackles, and Uiagalelei leads in sacks with four.

Through the first eight games, the Ducks are only one of three programs in FBS this season to rank top 10 in opponents' points per game (No. 6 at 13.5 points per game) and opponents' yards per game (No. 4 at 239.4 yards per game). The other two schools are the Indiana Hoosiers and Texas Tech Red Raiders.

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Oct 25, 2025; Iowa City, Iowa, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes quarterback Mark Gronowski (11) looks to throw a pass during the first quarter against the Minnesota Golden Gophers at Kinnick Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images | Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

Iowa quarterback Mark Gronowski will be the leading rusher

Redshirt senior Mark Gronowski is the only player in all of college football who has scored a touchdown in every game this season. He has also set the longest touchdown streak by any Big Ten quarterback in conference history.

Gronowski has rushed for 11 touchdowns (fifth-most in the country) and thrown for four. He's not an elite thrower by any means, but he's a hard man to bring down when he gets outside the pocket, which is pretty prototypical of an Iowa quarterback historically.

Passing success and points will be hard to come by in this one for both squads. If Oregon can somehow muster up 200+ passing yards, it could be the deciding factor on the offensive side of the ball.

True freshman running back Jordon Davison should be getting somewhere in the range of 15-20 carries and will have another opportunity for a productive afternoon thanks to the efforts of his offensive line, which ranks No. 13 in run blocking, according to PFF.

Oct 25, 2025; Iowa City, Iowa, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes wide receiver Kaden Wetjen (21) gets yards after the catch as Minnesota Golden Gophers defensive back Kerry Brown (14) attempts the tackle during the first quarter at Kinnick Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images | Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

The outcome of this matchup comes down to special teams

Iowa graduate wide receiver Kaden Wetjen is the most dangerous man on special teams in the sport.

He had a 95-yard punt return for a touchdown against the UMass Minutemen, a 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown at the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, and a 50-yard punt return touchdown against the Minnesota Golden Gophers.

Wetjen is the only player in the country to score via a punt, kickoff, rushing, and passing touchdown. Oregon must eliminate the explosive plays from the utility man whenever he's on the field.