The Iowa Hawkeyes and the Northwestern Wildcats meet Saturday in college football action from Wrigley Field. Iowa is 6-2 overall this year. The Hawkeyes are coming off a bye week following a close loss to Minnesota in their last appearance. As for Northwestern, they played Maryland over the weekend. The Wildcats went on to power out a six-point victory that improved the team to 4-4 on the season. Check back all season long for free college football picks at Sports Chat Place.

Iowa Hawkeyes 

The Hawkeyes started out at a nice 6-1 overall with a lone loss to Penn State 31-0. Iowa took a 12-10 loss to Minnesota in their most recent outing however, which didn’t help their flailing scoring average this year. The Hawkeyes have been very solid on defense but they’re scoring just 19.5 points per game. Iowa has six touchdowns via the pass alongside six interceptions and they average just 3.5 yards per play on the ground. 

Back on October 21 versus Minnesota, the Hawkeyes had a 10-3 edge at the break. Iowa failed to score in the second half however, and lost 12-10. QB Deacon Hill finished with 116 yards and an interception, while Kaleb Johnson carried six times for just 18 yards to head an anemic rush. Diante Vines snagged three passes for 62 yards as well. 

Iowa Hawkeyes Team Facts

• Iowa has won each of its last eight November road games against non-AP-ranked teams.
• Iowa has covered the spread in five of its last six November road games against non-AP-ranked teams.
• Iowa has won the first half in each of its last four games against conference opponents.
• Each of Iowa’s last four road games against conference opponents have gone UNDER the total points line.

Northwestern Wildcats 

Over on the Northwestern side, they took on some tough teams in their first seven outings, which led to a sketchy 3-4 record overall. The Wildcats scored 14 or fewer points in each of those losses and 23 or more points in each of the wins. That led to a 20.1 points-per-game average with 10 scores passing and seven via the rush. 

In last weekend’s matchup versus Maryland, Northwestern scored in every quarter—and also gave up points in every quarter—during an intense 33-27 win. Brendan Sullivan led the way on 265 yards with two passing scores. Cam Porter added 27 rush yards with a TD, and Joseph Himon led the receivers on 67 yards from two catches. 

Northwestern Wildcats Team Facts

• Northwestern has lost each of its last nine games in November.
• Northwestern has covered the spread in seven of its last eight matches as an underdog when playing with a rest disadvantage.
• Northwestern has lost the first half in 15 of its last 20 games against conference opponents.
• Each of Northwestern’s last four games as a home underdog have gone OVER the total points line.

Matchup/League Facts

• Northwestern has recorded the equal-most home wins by a margin of three points or less of any FBS team this season (2).
• Iowa rank 6th among FBS teams for points allowed per game this season (14.5).

ANDREW’S FREE PICK 

I’m going to take a stab on Iowa here. The Hawkeyes are on the downswing after that tough loss to Minnesota, but the good news is that they’ve had some extra time to rest and prepare for this matchup—a game they most certainly should win. Iowa needs to get off to a hot start and generate some offense early in this one. The Hawkeyes are averaging a tepid 232.4 yards per game and they’ve got just 25 combined points over the last two outings. Still, I think the defense will keep Iowa in control here. 

As for Northwestern, they get credit for a gritty win over the Terrapins on Saturday but it wasn’t pretty. The Wildcats went just 2-of-10 on third downs and committed eight penalties for 69 yards. Northwestern has 13 or fewer points in two of the last three games and it’s tough to imagine them finding much room against Iowa’s rested defense.