The key to this game for FIU, as cliche as it may sound, will be the play of the offensive line. Paul McCall did not have a lot of time to throw last week, spending a lot of time on the run, which is not the strength of his game. If the Iowa defense spends a lot of time in the FIU backfield tomorrow, look for the more agile Wayne Younger to see some significant play time. The O-line will also need to open bigger holes for A'mod Ned as well: 42 yards won't cut it. In order to run Bill Legg's spread option offense properly, FIU must establish at least a threat of a running game. Just ask John Parker Wilson and Alabama what a successful ground attack can do for the passing game. Based on last week's game, the Iowa Run D may be just what the doctor ordered for FIU. The Hawkeyes surrendered 137 rushing yards to the Black Bears.
On defense we need to see more of what we saw last week, which was Golden Panthers wreaking havoc. The Golden Panthers D forced two fumbles and made one interception while combining for nine tackles behind the line of scrimmage for losses totaling 30 yards. Those tackles will come in handy this week against an Iowa offense that relies heavily on the run. In their rout of Maine last week, the Hawkeyes ran for four touchdowns and 245 yards on 44 carries. They were led on the ground by Shonn Greene, who carried the ball 22 times for 109 yards.
Iowa started the season using a two-quarterback system. Jake Christensen and Ricky Stanzi had very similar stats last week. JC finished 9/15 for 122 yards with a touchdown and an interception while RS was 9/14 for 90 yards and no TDs. Neither quarterback, based on their rushing stats, seems incredibly mobile. That means the Golden Panthers may have an opportunity to get to the passers and disrupt the offense of Iowa. If the Hawkeye receivers have seen that hit that "Buzzsaw" Scott Bryant laid on that unfortunate Jayhawk last week, they may be a bit reluctant to run patterns across the middle of the field.
Overall, I'm looking for FIU to have a much better showing against Iowa than they did against Kansas. I think that Iowa's susceptibility to the run will allow Paul McCall to properly run the offense and I would be will ing to bet we may have a few trick plays involving the speedy T.Y. Hilton on offense. There is no reason not to try to get a weapon like that on the field as much as possible. Although I do not think that FIU pulls off the upset, I think they are more capable of beating Iowa than they were Kansas.
My prediction: Iowa 37, FIU 21
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