Hlas: Iowa is a Hunger Game for Hoosiers

Much has been made about Iowa's football schedule, and much will continue to be made of it should the Hawkeyes defeat Indiana Saturday.

But here's something the great unwashed either won't or can't recognize: Beating Indiana in Bloomington would be a big deal.

How can anyone say that with a straight face? Easily, that's how. This is an Indiana team that drove to the Ohio State 5-yard line on the game's last possession before being stopped, and lost, 34-27.

This is an Indiana team that trailed at Michigan State by just 31-26 before the Spartans scored with five minutes left and went on to win by the deceiving score of 52-26.

Is that not evidence enough?

The Hoosiers are 0-4 in the Big Ten. That's harsh reality. They coughed up a 52-27 lead against Rutgers three weeks ago and lost 55-52. That's cold truth.

But they score 33 points a game. They have Nate Sudfeld, who leads the Big Ten with 292.7 passing yards a game. They have Jordan Howard, second in the league with 131.2 rushing yards per game.

They're dangerous, and they should have every reason to be motivated Saturday.

At 4-4 overall, Indiana is two wins from bowl-eligibility. That wouldn't mean much in many places, but this is a program with only one winning season since 1995, and a lone postseason berth (the 2007 Insight Bowl) in that time.

The other 13 Big Ten teams have all been to at least two bowls since 2011.

This is Kevin Wilson's fifth IU team. It plays Michigan at home next week, then closes at Maryland and Purdue. It's capable of beating those last two teams and reaching a bowl, but Saturday it has the chance to topple a Top Ten, unbeaten opponent.

If the Hawkeyes aren't facing a team that isn't inspired and hungry, something has gone badly wrong for Wilson.

But here's another of those cold, harsh facts: The Hoosiers still play lousy defense. They surrender 37.3 points and 508.6 yards per game.

The Big Ten sells itself as a league that still plays defense in a college football world gone mad. But five of its teams are ranked 90th or worst nationally in total defense, with Indiana the worst at 119th.

Iowa, on the other hand, is seventh nationally with its average of 287.6 yards allowed per game. (The Big Ten also has five of the nation's top 14 defenses.) That defense will probably be stretched and bent Saturday because based on statistics, this will be the best offense Iowa sees this season.

So no matter what the image is of Indiana in the national consciousness or the minds of the dozen College Football Playoff committee members, ask Ohio State or Michigan State if the Hoosiers are to be taken seriously.

If Iowa really is something special this season, it manhandles Indiana's defense the way it did to Northwestern's in the second half and Maryland's in the first half. The Hawkeyes had a total of 536 yards in those two halves. A 536 would certainly suffice Saturday. That would also indicate Iowa quarterback C.J. Beathard survived nicely, again.

But any kind of win would be a good one in this game. If anyone tells you otherwise, they're in dire need of a clue.