The Iowa Hawkeyes walked into Saturday’s Big Ten Conference showdown with the Northwestern Wildcats looking at their last huge test against a ranked opponent this season. Akrum Wadley made sure that Iowa would be making the trip home happy as he scored four touchdowns and tied a school record in the process during a 40-10 beating of Northwestern at Ryan Field in Evanston.
Wadley, who was replacing an injured Jordan Manzeri, scored from 35 yards out and again from four yards out early in the second quarter and added two more short scores in the third quarter within 1:26 of each other to put the game out of reach.
Northwestern did attempt a first half rally after trailing 16-0 with a touchdown pass from Clayton Thorson to Christian Jones followed by a Jack Mitchell field goal to make it 16-10 at the half but Wadley was simply too much in the second half for Northwestern to handle as he finished with 204 yards rushing for the day. C.J. Beathard was 15-for-25 through the air for 176 yards for Iowa while Thorson was 17-for-35 for 125 yards, a touchdown and an interception.
The 7-0 Hawkeyes will take next week off before hosting Maryland on October 31. Northwestern, who fell to 5-2 on the season with the loss, will hit the road next Saturday to face Nebraska in a game that will start at noon in Lincoln.
Iowa vs. Northwestern: Game Recap, Stats & Highlights
