Iowa vs. Nebraska: Previewing the Heroes Game

Joseph Cress/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORKIowa may have clinched the Big Ten West, but the Hawkeyes still have one game to go before their trip to Indianapolis. Iowa travels to Nebraska for a Black Friday showdown against a program hungry for their first bowl appearance since 2016. This is a matchup that screams “trap game”; one team that has nothing to play for and every incentive in the world to rest its players and deploy and ultra-conservative gameplan ahead of its season-defining game one week later, while the other has everything on the line and a significant chip on its shoulder as it squares off against a rival that has dominated them in recent years. However, all indications are that the Hawkeyes are taking this game seriously. Iowa is not planning to rest any of its players with lingering injuries, and Kirk Ferentz has talked about how special it would be for this team to notch its tenth win of the season and reclaim the Heroes Trophy after seeing their winning streak against Nebraska end next year. For better or worse, expect the Hawkeyes to go all-out this week.

…