No. 15 Iowa (5-1, 2-1 Big Ten) at Minnesota (4-2, 2-1 Big Ten). Saturday, Oct. 24, 2:30 p.m. CT / 3:30 p.m. ET, Huntington Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, FS1.
Your hosts are Orrin Kalvelage, an Iowa farm-country Hawkeye who wears the same sweater every week, and Torvald Engebretsen, a Minnesota ski-hill Gopher who owns enough coats to lend one out.
Orrin: Afternoon, Torvald. Same sweater. Same defense. Same pig, hopefully.
Torvald: Orrin, I respect a man with commitment. Floyd looks good in maroon, though.
Players to watch
Iowa running back Kamari Moulton has 519 yards and four touchdowns. Wide receiver Tony Diaz leads with 28 catches for 329 yards. Cam Buffington leads with 52 tackles, and Joseph Anderson has three sacks. Iowa allows 14.5 points per game, eighth in FBS, and 84.7 rushing yards, seventh.
Minnesota quarterback Drake Lindsey has 1,335 yards, nine touchdowns and five interceptions. Wide receiver Javon Tracy leads with 32 catches for 375 yards. TJ Bush Jr. has four sacks, and Maverick Baranowski has 45 tackles. The Gophers' pass defense ranks ninth, allowing 159.7 yards per game.
Orrin: A defense built in a barn. That's a compliment where I'm from.
What happened last week
Both teams had an open week. Iowa's last game was a 41-24 win at Washington on Oct. 9. Moulton ran 26 times for a career-high 208 yards, including a 56-yard touchdown, and said he played with "a chip on my shoulder". Jeremy Hecklinski went 14 of 19 for 202 yards and three touchdowns, two to tight end DJ Vonnahme. Iowa held Washington to minus-3 rushing yards with six sacks.
Minnesota lost 41-13 at Purdue on Oct. 10. P.J. Fleck said Purdue "dominated the game in pretty much every facet". Jalen Smith caught a 42-yard touchdown.
Torvald: A rough run down the hill. Two weeks to wax the skis.
Injuries and availability
The official Big Ten report for this game has not been published yet. Iowa quarterback Hank Brown (832 yards, five touchdowns) didn't start at Washington, and Iowa hasn't announced its starter for Saturday. No Minnesota injury news has surfaced.
What the coaches are up to
Kirk Ferentz is in his 28th season at Iowa, the longest current tenure in FBS. He's the Big Ten's all-time leader in wins. The Washington win was Iowa's first in the Pacific Time Zone since the 2019 Holiday Bowl.
Fleck has led Minnesota since 2017. He is 1-8 in his career against Iowa, which Orrin mentions roughly once per sweater. His team's big Big Ten wins this year came at Washington, 27-24, and against Michigan, 20-14.
Player storylines
Moulton against a Minnesota defense allowing 288.8 yards per game is a strength-on-strength matchup. Minnesota runs for 104.8 yards per game, 129th, and managed 25 rushing yards at Purdue. That puts the load on Lindsey and Tracy against an Iowa pass defense ranked 68th. Iowa wants to finish drives: Minnesota's red-zone defense ranks 102nd.
Torvald: The pass defense is the open trail. Let's ski it.
What's happening on campus
It's Homecoming week in Minneapolis, Oct. 19-24. Comedians Sal Vulcano and Wally Baram perform at Northrop on Oct. 23. Homecoming also includes a Jr. Royalty program for young Gophers 12 and under.
Anything else fun and true
The winner takes home Floyd of Rosedale, a bronze pig trophy introduced in 1935. Minnesota leads the all-time series 63-54-2. Iowa went 9-1 against Minnesota from 2016 to 2025, and Iowa won 41-3 last year in Iowa City.
Orrin: Nine of ten, Torvald. Floyd likes it in Iowa City.
Torvald: Sixty-three wins all-time, Orrin. Floyd's from up here originally. Well, he's a bronze pig. But still.
The Cover Window
My call: Iowa Hawkeyes 28, Minnesota Golden Gophers 18.