The Iowa State Cyclones (1-0) will attempt to take down the 25th-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes on Saturday, September 7, at 3:30 PM ET at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa. The Hawkeyes are slight favorites with a point spread of -3.0 (-105).
The Cyclones defeated the North Dakota Fighting Hawks 21-3 in their home opener last week. They only needed possession of the ball for about 22 minutes, which showed they were efficient with their chances.
Rocco Becht had a great showing, completing 20 of his 26 passes for 267 yards and two touchdowns. However, he did not play particularly well against the Hawkeyes last season, and they ended up losing 20-13. In fact, the Cyclones have lost seven out of the last eight against the Hawkeyes.
Despite holding the Fighting Hawks to just three points, they had some issues defending against the running game. Even if they were good enough to care for a weaker team, they may have issues against the Hawkeyes running game.
Their previous season had great running defense in the Big 12 and even ranked second. However, they are showing some signs of weakness after their first matchup.
The Hawkeyes took care of business against the Illinois State Redbirds, defeating them 40-0. It started off ugly, at 6-0 after the first half, but the Hawkeyes were able to put it on in the second half, with a 21-point fourth quarter to drive home the win.
The Hawkeyes' defense was stout. They only allowed 56 yards rushing in 33 attempts. They also caused three turnovers and limited the Redbirds to just 12 first downs and 25 minutes of possession.
Their offense put up nearly 500 yards and looked great, with Cade McNamara back in the lineup after a season-ending ACL injury the year prior. He completed 21 of his 31 passes for 251 yards and had three touchdowns.
This will likely be a lower-scoring game, as both teams will burn a lot of time running the ball and make great defensive stops. That said, the Hawkeyes will look better overall with more key defensive plays.
MyBookie gives you excellent college football betting odds for the Iowa State Cyclones vs. Iowa Hawkeyes showdown. The odds have the Hawkeyes as 3.0-point favorites.
Looking at market analysis, the Hawkeyes have a 71.6 percent chance of winning. A lot of similar players are gearing up for both teams on the defensive end from last season, which indicates that this could be a low-scoring battle. Look for the Hawkeyes to cover.
