(Photo: USA TODAY Sports)
David Eickholt’s Prediction (Record: 1-0)
Whenever the Hawkeyes defeat Iowa State, the odds of them having a special season increase significantly. The in-state rivals will be the epicenter of college football on Saturday, alongside the Michigan-Oklahoma game. Mark Gronowski is looking to have a strong bounce-back performance after a less-than-desirable Hawkeye debut.
Iowa has the advantage on both sides of the line of scrimmage. Logan Jones and Gennings Dunker are two of the best linemen in the Big Ten Conference, and the newcomers seem to fit in well. Iowa will be without Kamari Moulton, but Xavier Williams looks like he could be the next standout in the running back room.
This is a game that Tim Lester desperately wants to win, and I think it could go over the total points. Gronowski should respond well, but there are too many question marks at the linebacker position. Iowa State’s tight ends pose a significant mismatch based on what I’ve seen so far.
I won’t be surprised if I end up flipping my pick to Iowa. This is the true definition of a toss-up game, and the rivalry aspect makes it even harder to predict. After Becht led a comeback against Iowa last season, I became a believer in him. He’s been really good since then.
Iowa State 24, Iowa 23
Sean Bock’s Prediction (Record: 1-0)
Iowa has the advantage in the trenches and in the run game, but Iowa State has the advantage through the air, and the passing game could make things interesting.
It’s the Cy-Hawk Game, and almost everything goes out the window in terms of who has the edge where. This game is always close, and no one is ever really out of it until the game is over, and I expect that to be the case this year.
Iowa having the advantage at the line of scrimmage on both ends is going to be a difference maker. Iowa State’s pass game scares me against Iowa’s defense. Still, I see the Hawkeyes being able to run the football effectively and also see Mark Gronowski making a play or two that puts Iowa in a position to win the game.
I have the Hawkeyes pulling it out in Ames.
Iowa 21, Iowa State 17
Eliot Clough’s Prediction (Record: 1-0)
Rocco Becht is no longer an unknown commodity in college football after leading ISU to the winningest season in program history. Through two games, he now ranks top five nationally in both passing yards and passing touchdowns with two high-caliber tight ends in Benjamin Brahmer and Gabe Burkle, as well as leading receiver Brett Eskildsen at his disposal. Given that ISU has run just four out of 144 plays with fewer than two tight ends on the field at once, Iowa will face matchup trouble between running its 4-3 base defense and 4-2-5 with the CASH on the field. Iowa’s new-look secondary and linebacking corps just aren’t good enough to keep up with the passing of one of the best quarterbacks in all of college football.
Becht is just too good and make the winning plays at the end for Iowa State to get its first win over Iowa in Jack Trice Stadium since 2011.
Iowa State 24, Iowa 21