Iowa jumps into top 25 of CBS Sports 133 Rankings

The Iowa Hawkeyes and the Western Michigan Broncos are drastically different teams and their Week 3 date inside Kinnick Stadium could show that rather quickly. The Hawkeyes have a stingy defense whereas Western Michigan does not. The Broncos offense has not lit up the world this year and Iowa’s could look to find some traction.

In the most recent CBS Sports 133 rankings, the two teams are trending in different directions. Iowa saw a jump of three spots and climbed up to No. 23 in the rankings following a win over Iowa State. Western Michigan saw a slide of seven spots downward and now sits at No. 127 in the rankings.

Iowa’s 2-0 start has them once again ranked in the AP Poll, No. 25, and the US LBM Coaches Poll, No. 24. Western Michigan’s 1-1 start includes a win over Saint Francis University and a rather ugly loss to Syracuse by a score of 48-7 in which the halftime score was already 45-7.

The Broncos out of Kalamazoo, Mich., are surrendering 32.5 points per game to opponents, and 286.5 passing yards per game. Their run defense is a bit more stout as they allow just 102 rushing yards per game and only 3.5 yards per carry. They have allowed five rushing touchdowns.

Their offense is scoring 21 points per game and running the ball well to the tune of 218 yards per game. A majority of those, 339 yards to be exact, did come in their season-opening win against Saint Francis which skews this a bit. Against the Syracuse Orange, the Broncos ran for just 97 yards on 26 carries. They have thrown for an average of 195.5 yards per game.

All signs point to Iowa being able to handle the Broncos in their Week 3 matchup with a stingy defense and hopes of fine tuning some issues on offense.