Iowa football: 5 things I want to see from the Hawkeyes against Nebraska this weekend

Iowa wraps up its regular season with a Friday game against Nebraska in Iowa City (Noon ET; TV: Fox), and even though there is no division title on the line, there’s still plenty to play for. Iowa enters the game with a 7-4 record, and eight wins sounds much better than seven.

There’s also the matter of the nastiness of this rivalry. Any time you have a chance to beat Nebraska, you take it. The Hawkeyes are favored by 9.5 against the Cornhuskers, who are 4-7 on the year but have won four of their last five games. This one should be good.

Here are five things I want to see from the Hawkeyes this weekend against Nebraska:

1. Iowa’s strong defense keeps Nebraska in check

This is asking a lot, too. Nebraska, behind true freshman quarterback Adrian Martinez, has been on a roll lately on offense. Tossing out last week’s 9-6 win over Michigan State in the snow and cold, the Cornhuskers had topped 450 yards of total offense in seven straight games, which was a school record. They can be explosive, so this will be a good test for an Iowa defense that’s been mostly good all year, pitching two shutouts.

2. The pass rush will be the key there

Parker Hesse and A.J. Epenesa have to have big games for the Hawkeyes on Friday. Getting some heat on Martinez is going to be critical, because if not, those young Iowa cornerbacks might get exposed a bit too much. This is the strength of the Iowa defense, and the Nebraska offensive line can be beaten. It’s a must-win war here.

3. Get the best out of QB Nate Stanley

Iowa’s offense struggled a bit during that three-game losing streak to Penn State, Purdue and Northwestern, and quarterback Nate Stanley was part of those struggles, too. A few untimely turnovers have hurt this year, but for the most part, Stanley has had a good season. It would be nice to go out with a bang on Friday and have a huge night against a Nebraska defense that’s not very good. Earlier this year, Stanley had a stretch of three 300-yard games in four weeks (Northern Iowa, Minnesota, Indiana), so it would be nice to finish off the season with another one.

4. Continue to show improvement in the running game

It’s hard to take a lot from last week’s 63-0 whitewash at Illinois, their worst loss in school history. Iowa really played well offensively, rushing the ball for 203 yards and averaging 5.5 yards per carry. The running game has been an issue all season, so it was nice to have a bit of a breakout game there. Continue that momentum and run the ball well against the Cornhuskers. It’s going to be important, because you need to keep that Nebraska offense off the field.

5. Enjoy one final wave to the kids after the first quarter

The final home game of the year is always emotional, and there’s no doubt that will be true of that new tradition of waving to the kids with cancer at the hospital next to the stadium. Keep up the good fight, kids, and we’ll see all of you next season. Happy Thanksgiving.

Tom Brew

Tom Brew has been a recognized reporter in Big Ten sports for decades. Among other projects, he writes about Big Ten football for Saturday Tradition.