Morehouse: The analysis

Marc Morhouse shares his weekly analysis of what happens in certain situations and what to look for throughout Saturday's game.

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.

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.

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 Iowa headline is stuck on QB Ricki 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.

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).

Advantage: Wisconsin

When the Badgers have the ball

Iowa Coach Kirk Ferentz really likes Wisconsin QB Scott Tolzien, whose 64.1 completion percentage is second in the Big Ten. He's third in the conference in efficiency with 139.6.

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.

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.

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.

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