The Big Analysis -- Wisconsin

When the Hawkeyes have the ball

Wisconsin's defense, led by coordinator Dave Doeren, did its part last week at Ohio State. OSU had eight first downs, 184 yards and bottled up quarterback Terrelle Pryor, holding the sophomore to 5-of-13 (38.5 percent) for 87 yards, with an interception to go along with a TD pass. He also was sacked twice and ran 10 times for 35 yards.

O'Brien Schofield has made his move to the top of the class of Big Ten D-linemen. The 6-foot-3, 248-pound end leads the conference with 6.5 sacks and 14.5 tackles for loss, including two sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss against Ohio State last week. He has a similar build to Michigan DE Brandon Graham, who gave Iowa tackles Bryan Bulaga and Kyle Calloway fits last week. He's a thicker, shorter D-end who can play with leverage. Bulaga won't just be able to smother him.

The other star of UW's defense is turnovers. The Badgers have 16 take-aways (nine interceptions, seven fumbles) this season, third in the Big Ten. Nine players have accounted for the turnovers, so this unit has the same “get to the ball” mentality the Hawkeyes (19 take-aways) have. Safety Chris Maragos, a former walk-on, has three interceptions. Schofield leads with two forced fumbles.

The Badgers' defense is relatively young, with four sophomores in the lineup. Age hasn't seemed to matter for a pair of freshman linebackers, Mike Taylor and Kyle Borland. Taylor, a Green Bay native, leads the Badgers with 43 tackles and has 6.5 tackles for loss. Borland, who specializes as pass rusher, has 1.5 sacks and four QB hurries.

The Badgers (122.8 rush yards allowed per game, fifth in the Big Ten) know, everyone in the Big Ten knows, Iowa quarterback Ricky Stanzi is a better thrower on the move than his is sitting in the pocket. The Badgers, fifth in the conference in total defense (333.2 yards), will concentrate on contain and probably won't be shy about sending a linebacker or safety (5.5 of Wisconsin's 16 sacks have come from linebackers and D-backs).

The Iowa headline is stuck on Stanzi and his pick sixes, but take a longer look at what's happening (or has happened) with the O-line.

All but center Rafael Eubanks and guard Dace Richardson have missed time due to injury or illness. Tackle Bryan Bulaga had the thyroid illness and missed three games. Tackle Kyle Calloway missed a big chunk of camp with an IT band strain and is behind. Guard Julian Vandervelde missed all of camp while recovering from a torn pectoral tendon.

Beyond the injuries, Eubanks didn't play much last season after being unseated. Richardson is back after missing two seasons with knee surgeries.

The Hawkeyes are eighth in the Big Ten with 130.2 rushing yards a game. Their 3.7 yards a carry is tied for ninth and their lowest since 2007 (3.46).

The missed time has left lapses in technique, pass and run blocking. Ferentz says better days are ahead for this group, but is that today? Red-shirt freshman Riley Reiff is scheduled to get the start today, rotating with Vandervelde and Richardson.

The puts pressure on Stanzi to make more plays and, for the most part, carry the Hawkeyes' offense. His mistakes have come within the offense. Quick and bad reads have come back to haunt him, as they would any quarterback. All three of his pick sixes have come on the short flat route to the right, a throw Iowa stayed with even after it went the other way last week against Michigan.

Senior tight end Tony Moeaki (ankle/foot) returned to the lineup last week and showed why he might be the best player in the Big Ten no one has every heard of, catching six for 105 and two TDs.

Freshman running backs Adam Robinson (71.5 yards a game) and Brandon Wegher (48.3 yards) continue to run through Iowa's schedule without any major bobbles. These two are playing beyond their years.

“I don't say it often, but I have been impressed,” Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said. “I usually don't say that, but I have been impressed with both those guys. I hope that's not the kiss of death. Both of them have acted like they belong on the field. I haven't seen either one of them look overwhelmed once. It's pretty impressive to see guys as young as they are to be that way. Maybe they are just oblivious, which is good. That's a good trait.”

Advantage: Wisconsin

When the Badgers have the ball

Kirk Ferentz really likes Wisconsin quarterback Scott Tolzien, whose 64.1 completion percentage is second in the Big Ten. Tolzien has nine TD passes to just five interceptions. He's third in the conference in efficiency with 139.6.

“I don't want to speak for (Wisconsin), but I would think that they're very comfortable with him,” Ferentz said. “He seems to be a great fit and I'm not sure they ever got comfortable last year. I think right now they are clipping right along offensively and doing a nice job. He's a guy who can throw and runs the offense really well. He looks like he's in charge out there and that's how they've been offensively when they are at their best.”

Tolzien is tough. He was beat around at Ohio State last week and did throw two pick sixes, but he continued to hang in and try to make plays for his team, finishing 27 of 45 for 250 yards in a 31-13 loss. He was sacked an unbelievable six times against the Buckeyes. Iowa's front four is capable, but likely won't put that much pressure on the 6-3, 205-pounder.

Wisconsin's O-line was effective in spurts at Columbus, rushing for 118 yards, only the third time this season OSU allowed more than 100. But all six of the sacks allowed came from the Buckeyes' front seven, including four from D-linemen.

Two UW O-linemen certainly seemed on notice this week. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, UW coach Bret Bielema declared junior guard John Moffitt off limits this week until his play improves. When asked about the play of right tackle Josh Oglesby, Bielema said, “I'm going to refrain from calling out one guy.”

Sophomore running back John Clay leads the Big Ten in rushing, averaging 106.8 yards a game. He fits UW's mold of bruising backs at 6-1, 248 pounds. In Iowa's 38-16 win over Wisconsin last year, Clay rushed 16 times for 89 yards.

Iowa's defense explains its success with turnovers (a league-high 19 take-aways) with a simple “we get to the ball.” If they swarm, that'll go a long way in stopping Clay, who the Hawkeyes want to get moving side to side rather than downhill.

Wisconsin makes excellent use of its tight ends, Garrett Graham and Lance Kendricks. UW offensive coordinator Paul Chryst uses tight ends and fullbacks to blow holes in defenses, which is a lot like Iowa uses its. Wide receiver Nick Toon has emerged as UW's top receiving threat with 26 catches for 322 yards and two TDs.

No one is waving red flags - at least not yet - but Iowa's run defense took one in the chops against Michigan last week.

Iowa gave up 195 rushing yards against Michigan, a season-high and most since Penn State piled on 256 on Oct. 6, 2007. Right now, Iowa allows 4.2 yards a carry, the most since 2000 when it allowed 4.5 yards. Having allowed 892 rushing yards at the halfway point, Iowa is on pace to allow its most since 2000 (2,331).

The front four was out of position on a few runs. Iowa also was poor getting off blocks. Middle linebacker Pat Angerer shouldered the blame. “That was me, just getting the D-line in the right schemes. I need to play better. I need to get them lined up better, definitely my fault.”

The Hawkeyes' 19 take-aways are tied for second in the nation, behind Air Force's 20. The Hawkeyes' 12 interceptions lead the Big Ten and the seven fumble recoveries are tied for second.

This is a disciplined unit that doesn't freelance. Iowa plays smart, positional defense. This sets up for a grind of a Saturday.

Advantage: Iowa

Special teams

It's good news, bad news for Wisconsin kicker Philip Welch. He's got a strong enough leg for UW coaches to feel good about him booting 50-yard field goals, with his 2 of 4 from 50-59 yards. But he's also just 2 of 4 from 40-49, including a missed 33-yarder against Ohio State. Punter Brad Nortman is third in the Big Ten with 44.4 yards a punt. UW's punt coverage unit covers, with a 40.9 net punting stat. Last week, the Badgers hung with Ohio State's outstanding kick returner Ray Small until a third-quarter bust led to 96-yarder untouched for a TD.

Junior David Gilreath is among Big Ten leaders in punt (4.1 yards) and kick (21.5 yards) returns. Wisconsin toyed with junior Maurice Moore at kick return last week.

Major special teams gaffe happened last week when the Hawkeyes were whistled for a delay-of-game penalty as kicker Daniel Murray lined up a 48-yard field goal just before halftime. That stretched it to 53 yards and Murray's kick fell short and left. Murray hit three of four against Michigan (28, 41, and 43), rebounding nicely from missing a 28-yarder against Arkansas State the previous week.

Iowa's kick coverage was outstanding against UM's Darryl Stonum last week. He entered the game averaging 30.5 yards a return and was held to 18.5.

Advantage: Iowa

The Scoreboard

Move on from Stanzi and start checking out Iowa's offensive and defensive lines. The game lies on those units. The D-line had an off week against Michigan and needs a rebound. The one that showed up at Penn State needs to be in Camp Randall. Iowa's O-line has missed a lot of practice and is playing catch up. It can't be a step behind today.

Iowa 20, Wisconsin 17