When I say college football is like a dive bar, I mean the kind of dive bar where you hope to get two drinks every Friday night, the one where you feel welcome but also know someone will make an absolute fool of themselves by the end of the night.
There is no game that description is more true of than the annual meeting between the Iowa Hawkeyes and the Iowa State Cyclones.
Good luck predicting what absurdity will decide this rivalry this season. A muffed punt has been done. Expect some new form of incompetence.
My Iowa vs. Iowa State predictions expect such chaos to most show itself in the Hawkeyes’ offense, as has long been the best laugh of our weekends.
Read on for my college football picks for Saturday, September 6.
Our best Iowa vs Iowa State SGP for Week 2
The Iowa State Cyclones excelled in one-score games last season, going 5-1 in no small part because veteran quarterback Rocco Becht knew when to make a big play. He scored the game-winning touchdown against Kansas State in the season opener in Dublin, and last year, Becht rushed for at least one touchdown in seven of 14 games.
More notably, Becht rushed for at least one touchdown in four of Iowa State’s five wins in one-score games. He knows when to pick his moments.
Part of Becht’s excellence in close games is protecting the football and taking what is given to him. In other words, he does not mind chewing up some clock for Iowa State. That will limit Iowa’s chances.
The greatest limit on the Iowa Hawkeyes' chances will be the Cyclones’ underappreciated defense. It held Kansas State’s dynamic backfield to 21 points in Week 0. The Hawkeyes have no playmakers comparable to Avery Johnson; keeping them below 20 points should be entirely expected from Iowa State.
Iowa vs Iowa State 3-Leg SGP
- Iowa State moneyline (-152)
- Rocco Becht Score a Touchdown (Yes: +210)
- u19.5 Team Total (-113)
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