Wisconsin Football: 5 Questions with Dear Old Gold on Iowa
Question 4: Give me a primer on Iowa special teams since field position figures to be a major factor on Saturday?
Dear Old Gold:
The punting game which has been a key part of this rivalry in different respects over the years isn’t a strength for Iowa this season.
Colten Rastetter and freshmen Ryan Gersonde have had issues with punting. Iowa has had a penchant for fakes this season in both field goals and punts which is something to monitor.
Miguel Recinos has been very solid on field goals, and has shown he can hit long ones under pressure.
Badger of Honor:
Given the series history here with a tight defensive battle, field position is going to be really important. Thus far, Wisconsin has gotten little off kick returns or punt returns beyond some fumble scares. So ball security also always critical.
Iowa’s punter ranks 10th in the Big Ten in punting average. But nobody on Wisconsin is even in the top ten. So I guess advantage Iowa by default there.
Wisconsin burned Iowa with a killer fake punt in the 2010 rally. But good point from Dear Old Gold here to watch for. If Iowa is near midfield or even plus territory facing a 4th and medium to short, watch for something tricky.
That may be the spark needed to lift a struggling offense and could swing the outcome.