Wisconsin Football: 3 takeaways from Big Ten West win over Iowa

3. The Wisconsin defense showed up to play against Iowa

Tyler Goodson, pictured above, managed to rip off the longest run of the night for Iowa. He went for 21 yards before getting caught by the Badgers, and he finished the game with just 26 total rushing yards on five carries. It was testament to a larger issue for the Hawkeyes. Wisconsin came into the game giving up just 84 rushing yards per game to their opponents.

Iowa, already struggling to get their ground game going in 2019, was held to just 87 yards overall by the Badgers defense. Toren Young led the way with nine carries for 44 yards, but as a team the Hawkeyes couldn’t come close to matching the ability of Jonathan Taylor and a deep stable of Wisconsin running backs.

Likewise, Nate Stanley found it hard to find open receivers against a stingy defense ranked third nationally in passing yards allowed. Held to just 208 yards through the air on 17-of-28 passing, Stanley padded his stats late in the futile comeback bid. The Badgers were unable to force any turnovers, but Stanley needed to be more than just a game manager to beat the Badgers.

All around, Wisconsin showed up hungry to show that they are still one of the most talented defenses in the country. Jim Leonhard’s unit might have suffered defeat in the fortnight leading up to their bye week, but as Iowa learned they are still one of the top defenses in the FBS and can do a number on opponents trying to outscore them.