It's almost time for one of the best Big Ten rivalries to be on display once again for everyone to enjoy. We're talking about the upcoming showdown between Wisconsin and Iowa, with this game being played in Iowa City. Who will come out on top?
The Badgers are coming off a rough loss to No. 3 Penn State, a game they were leading at halftime. Now, Luke Fickell is going to need his guys to step up and deliver. In order for a win to be posted, though, there's no question that these four players must up their game vs. the Hawkeyes:
4. WR Will Pauling
Through eight games this campaign, Will Pauling leads the Badgers with his 38 receptions and he's No. 2 on the roster with 381 receiving yards - he's right behind fellow pass-catcher Vinny Anthony. Pauling looked sharp against the Nittany Lions, hauling in eight receptions for 79 yards. It was his second-best game of the season. More production will be needed vs. Iowa, but it will depend on how the next person on our list is throwing the ball.
3. Braedyn Locke
It goes without saying, but we need to see an improvement from quarterback Braedyn Locke. Thus far this season, he has proven that he's not the quarterback of the future for this team. Since taking over for Tyler Van Dyke (torn ACL), Locke has been way too inconsistent with the ball in his hands. His pick-six against Penn State still gives fans nightmares. He needs to take care of the ball vs. Iowa and throw the ball around with confidence.
2. LB Jaheim Thomas
Over on defense, the defense is going to have its hands full taking on Iowa. While Cade McNamara is going to miss this game due to a concussion, the Hawkeyes aren't a pass-heavy team. Nope, they focus on the ground game and Kaleb Johnson leads those efforts. Johnson has rushed for 1,144 yards and 16 touchdowns this campaign, averaging nearly eight yards per carry.
Yeah, Thomas is a beast, so it's going to be on the Wisconsin D to prevent him from breaking tackles and gaining extra yards. That's where veteran linebacker Jaheim Thomas comes into play. Thomas is a steady tackler, as he has 52 total stops to his name this year. He needs to be the leader for the unit on Saturday and make sure Johnson doesn't have another monster performance. If Johnson gets into a rhythm, it could be a long day for Wisconsin as a whole.
1. RB Tawee Walker
We wrote about Wisconsin RB Tawee Walker earlier in the week, as we'd like to see him get back on track in Week 10. In the loss to Penn State, Walker struggled to find space and he was limited to just 59 yards on 22 carries. Walker's worst games this year have come against the toughest teams on Wisconsin's schedule, which can't be the case. In this big-time rivalry game, Walker needs to be at his absolute best for this team to have a chance to win.