Where Iowa football stands heading into the second Big Ten matchup of the season

IOWA CITY — The training wheels are fully off.

Iowa football will either sink or swim, facing three ranked teams over the next five games.

Seven Big Ten teams still are undefeated through four weeks of college football. Nearly all of them also are ranked this week.

With conference play in full swing, the Hawkeyes are knee-deep in do-or-die mode. Every snap counts moving forward, and one play could change the trajectory of a season.

Though last week was a fairly normal week for the Big Ten, there’s potential for shake-ups to change the landscape of the conference by Saturday night.

Here are a few notes from Iowa heading into Week 5, and its conference mates before the start of the week.

Notes on the Hawkeyes

Iowa wide receiver Kaden Wetjen earned Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week for the second time in as many weeks.

Wetjen had a100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to start Iowa’s game against Rutgers, and had his fifth career game with 100-plus return yards.

The Hawkeyes’ depth chart also revealed Xavier Williams likely won’t play against Indiana on Saturday, but running back Jaziun Patterson and wide receiver Seth Anderson both were listed after not playing the second half against the Scarlet Knights.

Head coach Kirk Ferentz said Williams was “week-to-week” leading up to Friday’s game, but didn’t provide any more information.

The Hawkeyes also didn’t have receiver Reece Vander Zee on their depth chart. Ferentz said he wasn’t expecting the sophomore receiver to be back against Indiana, but it more likely he’ll be back following the bye week.

Deshaun Lee remains the top cornerback as well, after Jaylen Watson took over at Rutgers. Lee’s maintained the starting role throughout the regular season.

How to watch Iowa vs. No. 11 Indiana

When: Saturday, September 27 at 2:30 p.m. CT

Where: Kinnik Stadium (sold out)

TV: Peacock ($)

Notes on Indiana

Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza earned the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week. He was 21-for-23 for 267 yards and a career-high five touchdowns in the Hoosiers’ 63-10 clobbering of Illinois.

Mendoza also was named the AP Player of the Week for his performance.

It’s the second consecutive week Indiana had the conference’s offensive player of the week. Last time, Omar Cooper Jr. earned the accolade after scoring four touchdowns against Indiana State with 207 receiving yards.

The Indiana vs. Illinois marque matchup from last week was the first Big Ten top 20 matchup of the season, and was one of the most explosive games the conference will see all season.

Indiana (4-0, 1-0 Big Ten) jumped eight spots in the AP Top 25 poll to No. 11, while the Fightin’ Illini (3-1, 0-1 Big Ten) dropped 14 spots to No. 23.

Key matchup this week

The Hawkeyes’ game against the Hoosiers will carry the most weight for those in Iowa City, but Happy Valley may determine who goes to the Big Ten title game in a few months.

No. 3 Penn State (3-0, 0-0 Big Ten) hosts No. 6 Oregon (4-0, 1-0 Big Ten) in the Nittany Lions’ annual white out game — a game that’s capturing more national attention by the minute. It’s Penn State’s first conference game of the season, and its last ranked matchup until it visits reigning national champion Ohio State on Nov. 1.

Another matchup of note will be No. 21 USC (4-0, 1-0 Big Ten) visiting No. 23 Illinois. The Trojans begin back-to-back weeks with ranked matchups, hosting No. 19 Michigan (3-1, 1-0 Big Ten) after.

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