IOWA CITY – Someone will inch ahead Saturday in the Iowa-Wisconsin football series.
Iowa and Wisconsin are all knotted up up at 42 wins apiece in the long-running series. The teams have not met since 2010 when the #24 Badgers beat Iowa 31-30 in Iowa City.
Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz knows he has his hands full again against a team that has a tough running game and a new coach.
“We got a big challenge on our hands getting ready for Wisconsin,” coach Ferentz said. “Offensively they look very similar, not identical but very similar to what they’ve been doing, and for a good reason. They’re very disciplined as a football team.”
Speaking of the Wisconsin running game and their stars, James White – who Iowa recruited- and Melvin Gordon, Ferentz said it will be a challenge to stop them.
“James White has been an outstanding player,” he said. “I don’t know if you want to call it in a quiet way, but they’ve had a good 1‑2 punch for quite a while now. They always have good backs. Boy, those guys are a good pair.”
Iowa will rely on three senior linebackers to stop the Wisconsin ground game.
“It’s nice having three seniors that are good players, for sure, against any attack,” Ferentz said, referring to Christian Kirksey, James Morris and Anthony Hitchens.
Iowa and Wisconsin will play for the Heartland Trophy. Iowa and Wisconsin have battled for the Heartland Trophy since 2004. Iowa holds a 4-3 advantage.
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