One Glaring Issue Wisconsin Must fix to Knock off Iowa on Halloween

The Badgers need to capitalize on every last Hawkeyes mistake.

Wisconsin Badgers head coach Luke Fickell. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Wisconsin wasn't perfect in its monumental upset over No. 16 USC. Far from it.

The Badgers only gained 200 total yards of offense and only passed for 58 yards. They had a handful of avoidable penalties, including two face-mask calls on the same goal-line stand. They only averaged 3.3 yards per carry when all was said and done despite winning the battle in the trenches.

But their biggest mishap? Only turning two extremely rare Jayden Maiava interceptions (he had thrown just three over his previous 224 pass attempts this season) into three points. Off the first interception, Wisconsin gained two yards across three plays before settling for a 33-yard field goal. Off the second interception, it also only gained two yards across three plays before missing a 51-yard field goal attempt.

Early in the night, with the game still within a score or two, the Badgers' failure to properly capitalize on those turnovers looked like it could come back to bite them.

It never did, because Wisconsin's defense was absolutely lights out all night and didn't let USC score again after the 9:44 mark in the second quarter. But this week against Iowa, with the Heartland Trophy on the line, the Badgers are going to need to capitalize on any and all mistakes made by the Hawkeyes, as points figure to be at a premium.

Wny Wisconsin must capitalize on Iowa turnovers

Iowa Hawkeyes wide receiver Reece Vander Zee (2) reacts after a pass meant for him is intercepted. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

It's important for any football team to turn their stolen possessions into points against any opponent. But it's particularly important for Wisconsin to do so in Kinnick Stadium on Halloween.

First of all, as mentioned, points will be at a premium. These are two elite defenses and two struggling offenses, particularly when it comes to throwing the ball.

Iowa has lost seven turnovers this season to Wisconsin's six. The Hawkeyes were one of the better teams in the nation at protecting the ball until they couldn't stop coughing it up in the loss to Minnesota last week, handing the ball to the Gophers four times; three interceptions and one fumble. However, Minnesota didn't score off of any of those turnovers, which kept Iowa in the game.

What's more, the Badgers have struggled with turnovers against Iowa under Fickell. They've coughed up seven turnovers against the Hawkeyes — while creating just one — in Fickell's three games against Iowa. That disparity alone doesn't account for the recent terrible losses to head coach Kirk Ferentz' sqaud, but they help paint the picture of how poor Wisconsin has been in this game situationally as of late.

“We were disappointed we didn’t finish with more points. Two interceptions, and we only got three out of that. We felt a little bad about it, but that’s what I’m talking about, that fight. No one sat there and said, ‘oh, the game’s over because we didn’t capitalize on those interceptions,'" wideout Chris Brooks Jr said after the win over USC.

Saturday is going to be about two physical teams with stingy defenses trying to bludgeon one another into submission. The score will be low, the possessions may be few and far between. If Wisconsin can force Iowa into mistakes, particularly turnovers that set up a short field, it needs to capitalize on them to exorcise the Badgers' demons against the Hawkeyes.