Iowa 15, Wisconsin 6: RECAP

Iowa put Wisconsin in a headlock for three hours on Saturday, locking up a classically Iowa 15-6 win. The victory was Iowa's first in Madison since 2015. The win also gave Iowa consecutive victories over Wisconsin for the first time since 2008 and 2009 -- and gave the Hawkeyes firm control of the Big Ten West.

Iowa is 6-1 overall now and 3-1 in the Big Ten, with the head-to-head tiebreaker over Wisconsin (4-2, 2-1 Big Ten). No other Big Ten West team has fewer than two losses in the league.

This 15-6 win was one of the most quintessentially Kirk Ferentz wins in his 25 years years in charge of the Hawkeyes. The Hawkeyes won by two scores on one of their fiercest rivals' home field, despite passing the ball for fewer than 40 yards -- and punting the ball for over 500 yards. How? Smothering defense, strong special teams play, and a monster game from Leshon Williams.

Iowa's best drives of the game -- at least in terms of plays ran and first downs gained -- came on the Hawkeyes' first two drives. On the opening drive, Iowa gained 32 yards on eight plays before punting from the Wisconsin 43-yard line. On their next drive, the Hawkeyes had even more success, gaining 48 yards on 12 plays before the drive was halted by a turnover on downs after a very ill-fated fourth down attempt.

The Hawkeyes went three-and-out on seven of their next eight drives -- and actually only ran three offensive plays on the other drive in that stretch as well. But that three-play drive featured this spectacular run by Leshon Williams:

Williams' 82-yard run was Iowa's longest touchdown run of the Kirk Ferentz Era (dating back to 1999) and the longest overall since Tavian Banks ran for an 82-yard touchdown against Iowa State in 1997. That touchdown was the highlight, but Williams had a terrific game overall, too, finishing with 174 yards on 25 carries.

That touchdown was enough to give Iowa a 7-0 lead at halftime, despite the Hawkeyes gaining just -2 yards total on the 12 plays they ran on their other four drives in the second quarter. That 7-0 lead held up because the Iowa defense was putting the squeeze on Wisconsin as well.

The Badgers opened the game with a drive that ended up being their longest of the entire game -- 11 plays for 81 yards. Tanner Mordecai was slinging the ball well, going 5/6 for 70 yards, and Braelon Allen looked menacing, despite only gaining nine yards on three carries. But that drive ended on a critical stop by the Iowa defense, with Cooper DeJean strafing in from the edge of the line to tackle Allen for a two-yard loss on fourth down.

Wisconsin gained only 50 yards on seven first-half drives after that, with five of those drives ending in three-and-outs. After allowing Wisconsin to move the ball with ease for most of that first drive, the Iowa defense locked down the Badgers for the remainder of the half, swallowing up Allen on the ground and beginning to pressure Mordecai into some errant passes as well.

The first half was also notable for featuring injuries to key offensive players on both sides. Iowa suffered a devastating loss in the passing game when Erick All's leg bent awkwardly on a tackle in the first quarter. All had to be helped off the field and did not return to the game. We'll have to wait for an official diagnosis on All, but it did not look like the type of injury that would involve a speedy recovery.

Injuries also hit Wisconsin in the first half. Braelon Allen missed time after being taken to the back to examine an upper body injury (arm) and while he did eventually return to the game and had some effective runs, he wasn't able to take control of the game and did seem to favor his arm at times. The Badgers also lost their starting quarterback when Tanner Mordecai exited the game late in the second quarter. On a pass attempt, Mordecai's hand ended up smashing into Jay Higgins' helmet; he exited the game shortly after that play and did not return.

Behind backup quarterback Braedyn Locke (6/10, 58 yards) and some solid running from Allen (8 carries, 47 yards), Wisconsin put together back-to-back scoring drives to open the second half. After opening the half with a 13-play, 60-yard drive, Wisconsin followed that up (after a quick Iowa three-and-out) with a 10-play, 60-yard drive.

Still, while those drives put the Badgers on the scoreboard, they didn't end in the end zone -- just as it had in the first half, the Iowa defense stiffened as Wisconsin got closer to the end zone, holding the Badgers to a 36-yard field goal and a 52-yard field goal by Nathanial Vakos. More bending without fully breaking by the Iowa defense and the Hawkeyes still had a narrow 7-6 lead.

Iowa finally added to its lead after playing effective field position football. Tory Taylor boomed punts all day long for the Hawkeyes -- he finished with 10 punts for 506 (!) yards, and while his kicks had plenty of distance (an average of 50.6 yards per kick, two kicks of 60+ yards), their placement was also excellent. He placed six of 10 kicks inside the 20-yard line and three inside the Wisconsin 6-yard line. It was a superlative-defying effort for the reigning Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week.

After Taylor's second-straight punt downed at the Wisconsin 6-yard line, the defense forced a key three-and-out that forced a Wisconsin punt that gave Iowa the ball near midfield. After three-and-outs on the previous six drives, the Iowa offense finally found a spark behind a pair of big runs for 19 yards by Leshon Williams to start the drive. Williams added nine more yards on three runs to get Iowa to the Wisconsin 31. Kirk Ferentz opted for a field goal and Drew Stevens drilled the ensuing 48-yard field goal try to push Iowa's lead to 10-6.

After two Wisconsin scoring drives to open the half, the Iowa defense regained its mastery over the Badgers. Wisconsin's next three drives gained a total of -4 yards and featured two three-and-outs. The other drive ended with Yahya Black and Sebastian Castro combining to flatten Braedyn Locke in the end zone and force a fumble. The ball was recovered by Wisconsin, but the safety still pushed Iowa's lead to 12-6.

Wisconsin had three drives after the safety; those drives ended:

* punt
* fumble
* interception

After putting the ball on the ground twice but recovering the fumbles, Wisconsin's luck finally ran out on the third fumble. A bone-jarring hit by Aaron Graves on Locke (one play after Kyler Fisher and Castro had combined to force a fumble by Braelon Allen) was scooped up by Jay Higgins. Four runs and a Deacon Hill fumbled snap later, Drew Stevens nailed a 40-yard field goal to ice the victory.

Wisconsin's final drive ended on an easy Sebastian Castro interception, after he plucked a floated pass by Locke out of the air. It was fitting that the the final defensive play came from Castro, who had an absolutely electric game. His final stat line was good -- 7 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, an interception, a pass break-up -- but it doesn't really tell the full story of his performance.

He was also involved in the hit that led to the safety and the hit that produced a fumble on the play that preceded another Wisconsin fumble (the one recovered by Jay Higgins). Castro flew around the field today and was a constant menace to anyone in a Wisconsin jersey.

With the victory, Iowa is now 6-1 overall and 3-1 in the Big Ten. No other Big Ten team has fewer than two losses overall and Wisconsin is the only other Big Ten West team with two or fewer losses -- and Iowa now owns the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Badgers. Wisconsin also hosts Ohio State in two weeks; a Buckeye win would give Iowa even more breathing room in the Big Ten West title race.

With five games remaining, Iowa is firmly in control of the Big Ten West. They've gained that control despite a passing game that has continued to regress in effectiveness -- Deacon Hill finished 6/14 for 37 yards, completed one pass after the 15:00 mark of the second quarter (a third-quarter pass to Johnny Pascuzzi for one yard), and didn't even attempt a pass in the fourth quarter. Erick All left the game in the first quarter -- and still finished as Iowa's leading receiver (2 receptions, 19 yards).

There's no immediate help coming for the Iowa passing game, either, not with Cade McNamara and Luke Lachey sidelined for the season and Erick All potentially joining them. Third-string tight end Addison Ostrenga is also injured. Winning without a passing game in the year 2023 is going to be a high-wire act, but if any team is comfortable winning in unconventional ways, it's certainly Iowa. The Hawkeyes continue to lean heavily on defense and special teams for critical contributions -- and it continues to work.