Hawkeyes Mic: Hawkeyes — Wildcats Predictions (09/29/16)
The Hawkeyes Mic picks are in for the Iowa-Northwestern Big Ten Conference West Division game this Saturday in Iowa City. It’s unanimous again but there is a sense of nervousness about the Hawkeyes — four games into the 2016 season. Check them out — see if you agree or disagree.
Scott Dochterman — Iowa 27–17: I’m almost fearful in this series to trust my gut. Every time I felt sure about picking Iowa, Northwestern comes up with a soul-crushing upset. The last two years appeared to be even match-ups, yet the Hawkeyes smacked the daylights out of the Wildcats. So the only predictability about this rivalry is its unpredictability. You’ve got a desperate team on one side and another one wandering somewhat aimlessly the last two weeks. Iowa knows what it is and what it has to do to win. I’ll take the team that knows how to win over the one that has found three different ways to lose. (LandOfTen.com; @ScottDochterman on Twitter)
Steve Batterson — Iowa 24–14: Two teams searching for consistency. Iowa should benefit from the experience of C.J. Beathard against a Northwestern team that faces a must-win scenario. Don’t expect this to be the blowout it has been the past two years, but expect a solid ground game to lead Iowa to a win that will be secured in the second half. (The Quad City Times; @SBatt79 on Twitter)
Tyler Tjelmeland — Iowa 37–20: Pat Fitzgerald loves beating Iowa. It’s probably his least favorite team in the B1G & until recently it’s shown that by how the Wildcats have played The Hawkeyes. The Hawks haven’t looked great the past two weeks and Northwestern is improving. A dinged up Iowa squad & a chip on Northwestern’s shoulder prime this one to potentially be a great game. There are two offensive keys for Iowa. The transition for the WR core of Iowa with the loss of Matt Vandeberg in relation to how well Beathard can run with the rock, and the game plan to ground and pound with Daniels/Wadley. Wadley torched NW on a cool day in Evanston last year. He’ll need to do so again on Saturday. (HawkeyesMic.com; @TylerTjemeland on Twitter)
Jack Brandsgard — Iowa 21–10: The matchup to watch will be Desmond King/Greg Mabin against Northwestern’s WR Austin Carr. Carr has caught 26 passes for 392 yards and three touchdowns, making him the clear-cut number one offensive option for Northwestern (for reference, the next leading Wildcat in those categories is 10 catches, 125 yards, and one touchdown). On the other side of the ball, Northwestern’s run defense has struggled this year, surrendering 177.5 yards per game and conceding six total touchdowns on the ground. In two career games against the Wildcats, Akrum Wadley’s stat lines are as follows: 15 rushes for 106 yards (7.1 average) and a touchdown in 2014, and a monstrous 26 carries for 204 yards (7.8 average) and four touchdowns last year. With the current Northwestern defense struggling to contain the run and given Wadley’s history of success, the junior from New Jersey should run wild against the Cats. (HawkeyesMic.com; @JackBrandsgard on Twitter)
John Patchett — Iowa 31–24: Oh, boy — I wish my confidence level were a bit higher right now. Iowa’s run defense — normally stout — has been way too leaky. On top of that, the Hawkeyes have lost their best receiver for the season with no obvious replacement clearly on the horizon. On the other hand, the Wildcats haven’t been too hot either. Coming off an excellent 10–2 regular season in 2015, they’ve lost three of their first four games and all at home and have already reached semi-desperation mode. So where does that leave us? Oh, well — who needs a team identity — since it’s unclear either of these two squads have clearly established one yet this year. Statistically, Iowa clearly has an advantage in turnover margin and seemingly in their ability to put points on the board. Northwestern has a fairly stout defense with good linebackers and a terrific safety in Godwin Igwebuike (good luck saying that quickly 10 times in a row). The Wildcats have two outstanding offensive players in RB Justin Jackson and WR Austin Carr — but they have an average QB prone to making turnovers. It’s also Iowa’s Homecoming. I think Iowa will try to contain Carr the same way it did Iowa State’s outstanding WR Allen Lazard, switching up Desmond King, Greg Mabin, and linebackers, resulting in making him a non-factor when it counted. And I think Iowa’s running game is back on track with the starting O-Line intact. The Hawkeyes are 8–0 in games where RB Akrum Wadley scores at least one TD. I definitely like the chances of that happening on Saturday. So I’m going with the Hawkeyes again. (HawkeyesMic.com; @HawkeyesMic on Twitter)
Note: You can access the PDF version of our predictions here.
Podcasting 10 Years Of Original Programming On Iowa Athletics
