As Iowa and Northwestern take the field Saturday, both teams will be aware of the importance of their late-season matchup.
Beyond the bowl implications, the Hawkeyes return to Ryan Field for the first time since squandering a 13-point lead in the final three minutes, two seasons ago.
With the leading passing attack in the Big Ten, NU’s offense might be expected to rip apart a 10th-ranked aerial game on paper.
But one factor has plagued the Cats’ offense from getting off the ground on a consistent basis: turnovers.
Enter Iowa – a team that has prided itself this season in stopping opposing offenses with takeaways.
“This is as good of a defense as we’ve played all year,” NU coach Pat Fitzgerald said. “They play extremely hard and physical. It’s going to be a great challenge.”
Iowa (4-5, 2-4 Big Ten) stands in the middle of the pack in the conference in several defensive categories: passing defense (sixth), rushing defense (fourth) and total defense (fifth).
Yet turnover margin is where the Hawkeyes excel – 11th in the nation with a +9 rating. NU (5-4, 2-3 Big Ten) is 0-4 this season when committing more turnovers than its opponents.
While Iowa’s defense has remained strong, its offense has struggled to score, averaging just more than 17 points per game. Sophomore starting quarterback Jake Christensen has struggled with his accuracy, completing 52 percent of his passes. But the Lockport, Ill., native makes few mistakes, with 12 touchdowns and three interceptions in nine starts this season. Fitzgerald knows Christensen’s character well, from living in neighboring Orland Park, to watching him during the recruiting process.
“Iowa does a great job complementing their run game with moving the pocket, throwing the ball down the field off of play action,” Fitzgerald said. “He’s a lot like Drew (Tate), as far as his competitive nature from the past. I’ve seen in him a player that has improved and improved each week.”
As the Cats’ offense sputtered down the stretch last week, Iowa found its stride, scoring 31 points after halftime in a double-overtime victory at Michigan State.
It has lead to a clear game plan for the Cats, and that is forcing Christensen to throw the ball. That task will be easier said than done, as Iowa’s tandem of senior running backs, Albert Young and Damian Sims, enter Saturday with a combined 1125 yards on the ground.
“They just try to out-physical you,” Kadela said. “We were really disappointed in how we didn’t stop the run last week, and that’s what we really focused on this week. It makes it a lot easier forcing them on their heels to pass the ball.”
But as history tells it, Iowa has struggled not only in finishing games, but finishing seasons. The Hawkeyes were 0-3 in the month of November last season, and have lost two straight to NU in the final month of the regular season.
It is enough of a concern for coach Kirk Ferentz to emphasize not taking the Cats for granted.
“For us it’s as simple as this,” Ferentz said. “The last two years, they’ve been prepared to play. They’ve played the full 60 (minutes) and we haven’t.”
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