To continue our buildup to the biggest game in Iowa City in nearly 40 years between two top five teams. We go on our weekly visit Behind Enemy Lines with our friend Nate Bauer from Blue White Illustrated to get the latest scoop on the undefeated Nittany Lions football team.

1. Last year Iowa beat Penn State 41-21 in Happy Valley, handing the Nittany Lions their fifth straight loss. Since then, Penn State has won its last four in 2020 and the first five contests in 2021. What changed last year to flip the script and how have they kept this win streak going?

BAUER: Coming off of Penn State’s game against Indiana last week, when the storyline was loaded with “revenge factor” undertones from fans and the media, it’s curious to me that this Iowa game hasn’t elicited the same type of response. Because, believe me, for as much as the season-opening, 36-35 overtime loss at Indiana set the wheels in motion for Penn State’s slide into an 0-5 start, it was the 41-21 game against Iowa that was probably the most humbling point of the downward spiral for the program.

At its most basic level, “what changed” for Penn State is that Penn State stopped handing possession of the football to its opponents every game. Iowa had two interceptions and two fumble recoveries in that game, building on the nine turnovers that had preceded it. Thirteen turnovers in five games aren’t going to produce many wins, but like a flipped switch, Penn State’s offensive performance in the time since has been considerably more respectful of maintaining possession. Penn State had four more turnovers the rest of the way in 2020 and has lost only another three through its first five games this season while generating nine takeaways.

But the broader perspective on Penn State’s turnaround is that the nature in which Iowa came to Beaver Stadium and just pummeled that team served as something of an inflection point. Not that they weren’t trying before, but some of the distractions and elements that had led them into that low point were reduced and eliminated, and once a smidgen of momentum was established winning the next week at Michigan, everything since - including the entirety of the offseason - has been about incremental improvement more focused and bought-in than anything I’ve seen previously during James Franklin’s tenure.

2. Sean Clifford has really come along as a quarterback since Iowa last saw him in 2020. How has he improved under center since last year and in what areas?

BAUER: The turnovers are the most notable element, but two specific areas have manifested themselves as marked improvements this season for Clifford.

The first is his pocket awareness. He just has felt pressure much better this season as opposed to last, with the helm of a pass-blocking improved offensive line, tight ends, and running backs, and that has helped reduce the sacks he has taken and the turnovers he’s given up, both of which fumbles and interceptions were a problem last year.

The second improvement has been in connection with the first, but that has been his ability to extend plays and find his outlets downfield. Last season, when Penn State’s top two rushing options were lost in Journey Brown and Noah Cain, Clifford became, by default or design, Penn State’s biggest threat on the ground for a stretch of the season marked by losing. He’s still capable and a threat to run, but the conflict that he puts defenders in is something that has proven effective time and again this season, most recently leading to two of his three touchdown passes last weekend against the Hoosiers.

3. Who are some of the key players on offense and have you noticed much difference under the new OC in terms of the scheme?

BAUER: Receiver Jahan Dotson is the star of the group, his stock rising last year with a third-team All-Big Ten performance that probably should have been even better if it was not for the depth in the conference at his position, and it has only continued into this year. He catches just about everything thrown his way and has developed such a nice rapport with Clifford that Penn State has the potential for an explosive play every time he touches the ball.

Beyond him, and maybe more important to this game, second and third options at receiver in Parker Washington and KeAndre Lambert-Smith have been important barometers of whether Penn State is going to reach its best numbers for the day or not. And at running back, Penn State is in a little bit of purgatory with Noah Cain nursing some bumps and bruises and no one of a group of Keyvone Lee, John Lovett, or Devyn Ford asserting themselves to take the bulk of the carries. Any or none can go off on any given day, and so far this season, it has trended more toward the none side.

As far as Mike Yurcich is concerned, I think from the outside it’s sometimes hard to appreciate how impactful some of the more subtle changes can be on how an offense runs. But, from my vantage point at least, his tempo offense has kept defenses off balance, and, maybe more than anything, he just has a knack for the right call at the right time.

4. Who are some of the key players on the defensive side of the ball and how have they improved since last year?

BAUER: Safety Jaquan Brisker is probably the star of that side of the ball, but this season, it’s been a collective effort that has been the biggest key to its success. Accountability and staying within the framework of the defense have been two major turning points from last season, the absence of those elements dictating the losses and the recommitment to them helping to create the wins, and so what you’re seeing is less about the individual playmakers than it is the concept of 11 playing as one and sharing in the benefit of that.

At defensive end, Arnold Ebiketie and Jesse Luketa have both been very good, as has P.J. Mustipher at nose tackle. The linebackers are a little bit of a work-in-progress this season, though there are flashes of potential from that group and something of an anchor in veteran middle linebacker Ellis Brooks. And in the secondary, Joey Porter Jr. and Ji’Ayir Brown have both had solid seasons.

5. This game could come down to a special teams play. How have the Nittany Lions performed in the kicking and return game and who are the players know?

BAUER: Field goal is a little bit inconsistent right now but Jordan Stout, who handles all three responsibilities on field goal, kickoff, and punt, has been an absolute weapon for Penn State this season. It’s never as simple as yards per punt, and with Stout (7th nationally at 48.5 yards per attempt) the result is a virtually eliminated punt and kick return element for opponents and huge swings in field position. In conjunction with a defense that has been so effective at preventing opponents from spanning the length of the field for scoring possessions, the results have spoken for themselves.

The return game is a little bit less of a factor for Penn State than Franklin probably anticipated with Dotson failing to get much traction in punt return. He’s 31st at 7.9 yards per return but I think that special teams coordinator Joe Lorig probably expected a little more production there. Again, though, he’s a dynamic guy so that possibility of a big one always is there even if it hasn’t necessarily taken shape yet this season.

6. What are the keys to the game from the Penn State perspective and how do you see the game playing out?

BAUER: Franklin talks extensively about explosive plays and turnovers dictating the outcome of a game and given what both of these programs have shown so far this season, I don’t see how any other conclusion could be reached specific to this game.

Iowa creates turnovers. Penn State does too, to a lesser extent. Either way, both defenses are going to keep everything in front of them.

I have some questions about Iowa’s offense needing to move the ball on a long field, but you can’t fault that group for constantly getting the ball with a short field and maximizing it, which is why that 119th-ranked yards per game number is so meaningless for the Hawkeyes. The question is always: are they scoring points, are they preventing points from being scored, and are they maintaining possession and creating extra possessions through turnovers.

The answers for both of these teams are yes across the board.

Asked to make a pick, I went with Penn State 20-17, only because I’m calling this one a virtual coin flip with a slight edge for having already experienced a road win at Wisconsin in the first week of the season against a program that has some shared characteristics with what Iowa does. I’m not sure I see a blowout as a realistic possibility for either one of these teams unless they break everything they’ve shown so far this season and cough up a bunch of turnovers in either direction.

Beyond that, I’m expecting another captivating, compelling game between these two teams in one of my favorite spots to watch a game in the Big Ten.