PLAYERS TO WATCH
–RB Isaiah Bowser has emerged as the answer to Northwestern’s mid-season woes in the run game following the loss of running back Jeremy Larkin to medical retirement. Larkin still ranks as the Wildcats leading rushing with 346 yards in the four games prior to his retirement after being diagnosed with cervical stenosis, but Bowser is poised to overtake him Saturday. Bowser has rushed for 318 yards in his last three games to go with three touchdowns and will look to build on that consistency against Iowa.
–LB Nate Hall returned from a three-game absence due to injury in a 31-17 win against Wisconsin on Oct. 27, and looked to be fully recovered against Notre Dame, tallying nine tackles, including one for a loss, and one quarterback hurry. Hall will likely play a pivotal role against the Hawkeyes Saturday, as his versatility and frame enable him to impact games via the pass rush, in run gaps, and in pass coverage.
–WR Riley Lees caught two passes for 31 yards and a touchdown against Notre Dame, accounting for Northwestern’s only score through the air. Lees had not found the end zone all season but will likely see an increase in targets against Iowa following his performance last Saturday.
–LB Paddy Fisher had eight tackles against Notre Dame. While he hasn’t been able to replicate the statistical success of his freshman season when he led the FBS in tackles among first-year players, Fisher will benefit from Hall’s return to full health, as well the success of sophomore linebacker Blake Gallagher, who ranks second in the Big Ten in tackles, as teams will not be able to key in on him as much as they did earlier in the season.
SERIES HISTORY: Iowa leads Northwestern 50-26-3 but has dropped its last two to the Wildcats, including last year’s 17-10 overtime loss in Evanston.
QUOTE TO NOTE: “That’ll be something in my team meeting that I talk about. I think one of the coolest, neatest, heartfelt traditions that have now been created in college football. To see the Kinnick Wave, and obviously we haven’t participated in it yet, but to have that opportunity to have our team be a part of that will be something that we really, truly look forward to having a very small piece of, I think, a really special tradition … It’s something that we will be honored to be a part of.” — Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald on Iowa’s newly-created tradition known as the Kinnick Wave, where spectators, players and coaches turn to waive to patients in the adjacent University of Iowa Children’s Hospital at the end of the first quarter.
