Correction appended.

This Saturday, the Northwestern Wildcats have a chance to improve to 5-0, and maybe even secure a spot in the Top 25 rankings. But this week’s game will undoubtedly be the Cats’ toughest yet, as they travel to Kinnick Stadium to take on the Iowa Hawkeyes in their first real road test of the season. The only other road game the Cats have played so far was against Duke, where it is traditional for students to tailgate but never actually enter the stadium. People in Iowa take football a little more seriously. After the presidential primary season is over, football is all the denizens of Iowa have to occupy their time besides looking for crop circles in cornfields. Kinnick Stadium is among the loudest in the country: stories abound of Iowa students who throw cigarette butts at opposing players, and on game days it’s almost impossible to find anyone not wearing yellow.

Northwestern’s task does seem a lot easier now that coach Pat Fitzgerald has announced that starting running back Tyrell Sutton will be ready to play. Sutton left last week’s contest with a left leg injury late in the first half and did not return to the field for the remainder of the game. The senior tailback averages 6.1 yards per carry and is tied for third in the conference with six touchdowns.

For the Cats to win, their offense must be much more effective than it was against Ohio. As is traditionally the case, Iowa’s real strength is on the defensive side of the football. The Hawkeye line is led by pre-season All-Big Ten first-team tackle Mitch King, who leads the team with 4.5 tackles for loss. Iowa is ranked fifth nationally in scoring defense and 19th in total defense. Their pass defense is tied for first in the conference, with 8 interceptions. This stat may have Wildcat fans worried, especially in the wake of quarterback C.J. Bacher’s four picks last week against Ohio. Four turnovers this week and NU would be lucky to lose by less than three touchdowns.

While most of the talk at Northwestern this week has been over Sutton’s injury, all of the discussion in Iowa City has centered on who should be the Hawkeyes’ starting quarterback. Iowa, who is 3-1 after victories over Maine, Florida International and Iowa State, has played quarterback roulette, with Jake Christensen and Ricky Stanzi sharing time behind the line. Christensen started last week against Pittsburgh, but his costly fumble ended a last-ditch attempt to take the lead with less than a minute to play. Though Stanzi entered the season having attempted only four passes in his college career, Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz has chosen him to start the NU game.

Stanzi posted slightly better numbers than Christensen in non-conference play. The sophomore signal caller has completed slightly over 60 percent of his passes in the first four games, throwing for 426 passing yards, 3 TDs and 2 INTs. More importantly, Stanzi is the biggest star on Iowa’s campus since Ashton Kutcher. The Iowa faithful have started Facebook groups such as “Stanzi for Heisman,” “Ricky Stanzi — Gods Gift to Iowa Hawkeye Fans” and, my personal favorite, “Stanzi is the Man-zi,”

While the quarterback position has been a source of inconsistency, Iowa has an anchor at running back in Shonn Greene. The 5-11, 235 lb. junior has run for 506 yards on 78 carries this season, which places him second in the Big Ten in ground yardage, only behind Michigan State’s Javon Ringer. Last week the NU defense was stellar against the run, limiting Ohio to just four rushing yards. If the Cats have close to similar success against the Iowa ground attack and force the inexperienced Stanzi to throw more often, it could be a long day for Hawkeyes fans.

My prediction is that the Cats will remain undefeated with a tight win over the Hawkeyes. Iowa is always a tough place to play, but more often than not, good defense enable teams to win on the road. And, with the exception of last year’s game, Iowa always seems to bring out the best in Northwestern. In 2005, the Cats defeated the Hawkeyes 28-27 after being down 24-7 at halftime. Maybe the Cats like those pink locker rooms. Bacher will bounce back after his rough game last week and throw two touchdowns while staying interception-free. Meanwhile, the defense will contain Greene, pressure Stanzi and force him into two interceptions.

Prediction: Northwestern 24 — Iowa 16

Correction, 12:25 a.m., Sept. 26: The original version of this article mixed up Shonn Greene and Javon Ringer in the final sentence.