No. 25 Wisconsin heads to Kinnick Stadium on Saturday with a real chance to turn last week’s statement win into something even bigger. The Badgers knocked off No. 16 USC at home, moved back into the Top 25 College Football Poll at No. 25, and now visit Iowa at 11 a.m. on FOX with the Heartland Trophy on the line.
For Wisconsin, the timing matters. The Badgers are 5-2 overall and 3-1 in the Big Ten, and the win over USC gave the program the kind of ranked victory it has been chasing. Sebastian Cheeks was a big part of that performance, finishing with four solo tackles, five total stops and 2.5 sacks. He was named both Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week and the Bednarik Award Player of the Week after helping Wisconsin hold USC to -18 rushing yards, the fewest the Badgers have allowed on the ground in a game since 1951.
Iowa brings its own challenge
Wisconsin should not expect an easy follow-up. Iowa enters at 5-2 and has already beaten No. 18 Michigan and Washington this season, even after last Saturday’s 13-10 loss to Minnesota at Huntington Bank Stadium. The Hawkeyes have shown they can win tight games and make life difficult on both sides of the ball, especially at home in Iowa City.
This rivalry also carries extra weight. Wisconsin and Iowa have more than 100 years of history, and the Heartland Trophy, added in 2004, gives this meeting another layer. The teams did not play for the trophy last year, when Iowa beat Wisconsin 37-0 in Madison. The last time Wisconsin won the series was Oct. 30, 2021, when the Badgers won 27-7 at Camp Randall.
What to watch
The biggest question is whether Wisconsin can bring the same defensive standard from last week onto the road. Cheeks said the Badgers feel they can be one of the best defenses in the nation, and that last Saturday’s performance was closer to what Wisconsin expects from itself. Iowa, meanwhile, has already shown it can grind out wins against quality opponents, so the margin for error should be slim.
That makes this a simple prediction spot in one sense and a tricky one in another. Wisconsin has the better recent momentum after beating USC, but Iowa’s home-field edge and proven ability to control games make Kinnick Stadium a tough place for any ranked team. The Badgers have a chance to keep stacking wins and make their ranking stick. They will need another disciplined, physical effort to do it.
