The Iowa defense is about to face its biggest challenge of the season so far on Saturday.
The Hawkeyes faced some really good offenses and quarterbacks so far in 2025, losing to Rocco Becht and Iowa State before beating Athan Kaliakmanis and Rutgers. But unlike those two offenses, Iowa will be facing an offense with the complete package this weekend.
The Indiana Hoosiers are off to a fast 4-0 start this season, thanks in large part to an elite offense. The Hoosiers can beat you through the air or on the ground, have a fantastic offensive line, and elite weapons to get the ball to. Indiana is averaging 54.8 points and 588.5 yards per game this season. They run for over 300 yards per game and pass for almost 280 yards per game. And they just put 63 points on the board against a top-ten Illinois team.
It’s going to be a huge challenge for Phil Parker’s defense. And if Iowa wants to win the game on Saturday, they’ll need to do these three things defensively.
Create havoc in the backfield
Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza is excellent. The Cal transfer has been unbelievable in his first four games as a Hoosier, completing 76.8% of his passes for 975 yards and 14 touchdowns. He’s yet to throw an interception. He’s one of the Hesiman Trophy frontrunners for a reason. He has great weapons to throw to in senior wide receivers Elijah Sarratt and EJ Williams, as well as junior wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr.
The Iowa defense needs to create havoc in the backfield for Mendoza if they want to win. Against Rutgers, the Hawkeye defense started to turn things around when it got pressure on Kaliakmanis. That needs to happen from the jump on Saturday. If Iowa walks away with a win over Indiana, it’ll be because Aaron Graves, Max Llewellyn, and Ethan Hurkett completely took over and made life difficult for Mendoza all afternoon. They have the talent to do just that. And it’ll be vital that they do this weekend.
Be opportunistic
The Hawkeye defense finally forced its first turnover of the season against Rutgers, with a clutch fourth-quarter interception from senior linebacker Jaxon Rexroth. They’ll need a few plays like that against Indiana to win. Mendoza has yet to throw an interception, but he also hasn’t played against a defense like Iowa’s or a coordinator like Phil Parker. The defense will need to be opportunistic, taking advantage of tipped balls and turning one or two of those into turnovers.
The Hoosiers have put the ball on the ground a couple of times this season, fumbling twice. That’s another area where this defense can potentially make a big splash play or two to change the tide of the game. Curt Cignetti’s offense usually plays a buttoned-up game, so it’ll be up to the Iowa defense to seize the opportunity when the Hoosiers do slip up.
Feed off the home crowd
The biggest advantage Iowa has in this game is the fact that it’s at Kinnick Stadium, one of the best home-field advantages in the Big Ten. Kinnick will be loud and ready to do their part to help Iowa secure a win. The Iowa defense needs to use the crowd to its advantage. Making a couple of stops early in the game will keep the crowd energized and in the game. And then Kinnick Stadium can work its magic.
From false starts to miscommunications, the Kinnick crowd can really mess up the opposing offense’s rhythm, no matter how elite or explosive they may be. Throw in the fact that this is Indiana’s first road game of the season, and I definitely see the Kinnick crowd forcing some mistakes from a usually clean Indiana offense. The Hawkeye defense will need to play off of that and capitalize on that momentum if they want to walk away with a win.
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