Big Ten Week 10: Undefeated #10 Iowa travels to

Iowa (8-0, 4-0 B1G West) @ Indiana (4-4, 0-4 B1G East)

Bloomington, IN -- After eight games played in the 2015 season: one program is seeking their first conference win of the season, while the other program enters the week in the College Football Playoff conversation, as one of three Big Ten programs undefeated.

Indiana's helmet coordinates with a Veteran Day theme, as the Hoosiers get set to play their third Top 10 opponent in conference play. 

"Good open date. Some recruiting. It was a good week. Had a good practice last night, and play a very good Iowa team, very, very good," as Indiana coach Kevin Wilson and selected players met with the media Monday to preview the match-up with the Hawkeyes.

Indiana senior QB #7 Nate Sudfeld began as a starting QB, back when he was a
true freshman. Today, he is the full-time starter and leading the Big Ten in
passing yardage and passing efficiency in 2015.

Indiana is 4-4, 0-4 in the B1G East. The Hoosiers won its first four games of the season over Southern Illinois (48-47), Florida International (36-22), Western Kentucky (38-35) and Wake Forest (31-24). The Hoosiers have lost to Ohio State (34-27), Penn State (29-7), Rutgers (55-52) and Michigan State (52-26). One Power 5 win to open the 2015 season.

Iowa is 8-0, 4-0 in the B1G West. The Hawkeyes have wins over Illinois State (31-14), at Iowa State (31-17), Pittsburgh (27-24), North Texas (62-16), at Wisconsin (10-6), Illinois (29-20), at Northwestern (40-10) and Maryland (31-15). Three wins over Power 5 programs with at least six wins.

When asked about the Iowa Hawkeyes, the Indiana coach shared the following about facing his third undefeated opponent in Big Ten play:

To me, and I think our football guys will tell you just how consistent they play and as a group offense, defense, kicking, put it all together. Last game was an example of it's a 14-0 game, and right before the half they sky punt coffin corner to the three. Played three straight plays of shutdown D. Get a blocked punt that's deflected out to the 19, and they score and four plays later, three plays later. About an eight-, 10-play run of all phases from sky kick and the defense, and the punt return into that. Maryland scores to make it 21-7. They recovered an on-side kick. Iowa does. That is the third phase of that game in a kicking unit. It's 24-7, and Maryland's down, ready to score. There is an 80-yard interception return, 80-something on a wide receiver screen.

So you see them contributing in all phases. Running defense, running the ball very, very well. Quarterback's playing at a high level. Got a lot of nice weapons, like the way their offensive line and tight ends block and complement. Defensively playing really good run defense. Giving up 65, 70 yards a game, fourth in the country. Defensive back leads the country in pick returns. It's a team that's playing really, really good and well-coached as they always are.

In Big Ten play, both Indiana (28.0) and Iowa (27.5) average similar offensive scoring numbers. The contrast is on the other side the football, Iowa allows only 12.8, but Indiana has been allowing 42.5, for last in the conference.

Indiana coach Kevin Wilson is looking for his team to "play better" during the
second half of the 2015 Big Ten football season. Next up: vs. #10 Iowa.

The Indiana coach was asked about Iowa's new signal caller, junior QB C.J. Beathard, who Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz named a starter, after Iowa's 12th bowl in 16 seasons completed. Ferentz is off to his second 8-0 start in 17 seasons at Iowa.

Iowa junior QB #16 C.J. Beathard is 9-0 as a starter, throwing here against
Iowa State in Week 2. Beathard's first career start was in 2014 @ Purdue.

"Hasn't lost. He's 9-0. Football family. His grandfather was the old Redskins GM, I believe, Bobby Beathard, right? So just seems to have a nice presence about him. He's injured a groin, but still moving around pretty good that last game. He's smart. A kid that does have some mobility. Really distributed the ball well. I think they've got a lot of nice pieces on offense. Couple tight end guys. One of them was a kid his dad coached at Oklahoma. I know him really well. But the way they use the tight end group, they're very talented at receiver, several running backs. They've had multiple guys over a hundred yards, couple guys at 200. That goes back to the O-line, which Coach Kirk and his son Brian and the job they do. His son Brian does a heck of a job with the line. So he's back there managing."

Iowa likes to use the TE in the passing game. Indiana Kevin Wilson was an
assistant at Oklahoma and is familiar with Iowa TE #46 George Kittle,
who's father, Bruce, was an assistant, as well, with former Iowa player, teammate
and OU head coach Bob Stoops. Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz was George Kittle's
father's position coach, when he was an offensive lineman on the 1981 Big Ten
championship team under former head coach Hayden Fry.

"I don't know if it's a great group, but they're better together than they are independently. The tight ends complement. And here come the hard-running running backs, and they get one-on-ones. The quarterback gets them in good plays. So you don't win all these games the way they're winning. They're scoring points. They've done a nice job. I've always had a lot of respect for their program and the job that they've done there. This is a good football team."

The Iowa Hawkeyes took an early lead in the 2012 game in Bloomington, only to lose the game in the fourth quarter, by the score of 24-21. Indiana is seeking their first B1G win the 2015 season, but this is the best Iowa football team, since the 2009 Hawkeyes open the season at 9-0.

"I thought we got off to a great start. I think it was our second possession we took it down and scored. Defense came up with a big play. We got off to a great start and had a 14-3 lead. I think all-in-all, our guys really played hard and competed hard, but the bottom line is we didn't play well enough to win and we didn't play clean enough to win." - Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz, after the 2012 loss @ Indiana 24-21.

The Fourth Quarter dating back to Iowa's Taxpayer Bowl Game in 2015

QB C.J. Beathard and the Hawkeyes’ rush defense have dominated the fourth quarter in 2015. Iowa’s rush defense, the No. 2 defense in the conference, has yielded 148 total rushing yards in the fourth quarter this season.

Beathard is 19-of-27 passing for 250 yards and one touchdown. He has also rushed 11 times for 28 yards and one touchdown in the fourth quarter this season. He has engineered game-winning drives in the fourth quarter two times this season (Iowa State and Pitt). He was 4-of-4 for 46 yards and a touchdown against Iowa State, and he rushed for 27 yards on three carries to set up senior PK Marshall Koehn’s 57-yard game winning field goal against Pitt.

Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz congratulates Iowa QB #16 C.J. Beathard for his
TD drive during the fourth quarter of the 2015 TaxSlayer Bowl in Jacksonville.

In Iowa’s last nine games, including the 2015 TaxSlayer Bowl, Beathard’s fourth quarter numbers include 26-of-34 passing for 345 yards and three touchdowns, and 13 carries for 66 yards and one touchdown. Beathard did not play in the fourth quarter against North Texas.

Indiana LG #77 Dimitric Camiel is the newest member of a veteran offensive
line in 2015. The Hoosiers are giving up only 2 sacks in Big Ten play.
The passing offense ranks #2 and the total offense ranks #3 in Big Ten play.

At 4-4, with only four Big Ten games left, the Hoosiers need to win at least two of the final four games to pull off their first bowl trip, since 2007. It would be the first bowl bid in five seasons under Kevin Wilson. The Hawkeyes are bowl eligible for the 14th season in 15 years, since Ferentz returned to Iowa in 1999.

Last year, the Hawkeyes defeated the Hoosiers 45-29 in Iowa City, as Indiana QB Nate Sudfeld was knocked out of the game, suffering a season ending injury. After struggling in two previous match ups against Iowa, Sudfeld is likely looking to go out with a strong senior game against Iowa.

"Iowa played very well today. They got after us and got a good win. We had a couple opportunities early. They made more big plays than us. The game stats were kind of close, but they had more big plays than us. We played uphill all day. I thought our kids fought hard out there, but we have to do better," said Indiana Kevin Wilson, after last year's game in Iowa City.

The Iowa-Indiana game will kickoff at 2:30 p.m. CST on ESPN from Bloomington. Iowa has won five of the last six games in the series, but Indiana won the last one in Bloomington.