Wisconsin and Iowa collide on Saturday in the second of two potentially season-defining matchups as far as the Big Ten is concerned.
The Badgers and the Hawkeyes debuted at No.13 and No.18 respectively in the first College Football Playoff ranking of the season and both sit at 6-2, two games behind Minnesota in the Big Ten West.
With the 17th-ranked Golden Gophers hosting No.4 Penn State at 12 p.m. ET, Wisconsin and Iowa could have the chance of closing the gap from the divisional leaders to one game by the time they take the field in Madison, Wisconsin, four hours later.
Wisconsin is a 9.5-point favorite, largely by virtue of having a better record against ranked programs than Iowa. The Badgers defeated No.14 Michigan 35-14 at home and were humbled 38-7 on the road by No.1 Ohio State, while Iowa lost 10-3 to Michigan on the road and 17-12 at home to Penn State.
The Hawkeyes have bounced back from the latter with two straight wins over Purdue and Iowa, while the loss to Ohio State was Wisconsin's second in a row after its unexpected reverse to Illinois.
It is therefore not surprising that Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst explained the bye week came at an opportune time for his team.
"I think that anytime you get a change in the schedule there's a chance to pause," he said in his press conference on Monday.
"Take a look at where you've been and the lessons you can learn and how you can apply it going forward and to get guys healthy. To take advantage of the bye week you have to do that."
Chryst added having a week off could also help his coaching staff fine-tune an offense that badly misfired against Illinois and Ohio State.
After averaging 42.5 points in the first six weeks of the season, Wisconsin scored just 30 points combined in its last two games, failing to run the ball efficiently on both occasions.
"One of the things I enjoy about the bye week with the chance to go back and watch it and maybe you're watching it with different eyes too and figuring whats the bigger picture," he explained.
"You can break it down a few different ways to figure out how we can get better [...] another part is are we doing too much or not doing enough, you try to assess that."
Iowa also comes off a bye but the week off did not deliver good news on the injury front.
Several notable names—chief among them tight-end Nate Wieting, linebacker Kristian Welch and wide receiver Brandon Smith—were absent when the Hawkeyes released their depth chart on Monday afternoon.
The trio are not expected to be in contention to feature on Saturday afternoon, when the Hawkeyes look for a first win in Madison in four years.
When and where is the game?
The Wisconsin Badgers host the Iowa Hawkeyes at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin, on Saturday, November 9.
Kick-off is scheduled for 4 p.m. ET.
TV coverage
The game will be broadcast nationally on FOX.
Live stream
A live stream will be available via FOX's digital platforms and via the FOX Sports GO app as well as via fuboTV.
Series record
The two programs have crossed paths 92 times, with Wisconsin winning 47 times and Iowa prevailing on 43 occasions.
The Badgers are on a three-game winning streak against the Hawkeyes and outscored them by a combined 83-40 scoreline over those games.
Odds
According to Oddschecker, Wisconsin is a 9.5-point favorite and is 22/25 to cover the spread, while Iowa is a 57/20 underdog.
The over/under line in terms of total points scored is set at 38.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Dan Cancian is currently a reporter for Newsweek based in London, England. Prior to joining Newsweek in January 2018, he ... Read more
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