From Hawkmania.com
IOWA CITY — Chances to test yourself against the best don’t come along every day.
.That’s one reason Iowa defenders anticipate the opportunity to cope with what Purdue quarterback Kyle Orton brings to the field — healthy or not — in Saturday’s 2:30 p.m. game at Kinnick Stadium.
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"It makes it a lot more fun, a lot more interesting when you’ve got a Heisman hopeful out there,’’ Hawkeye defensive end Matt Roth said. "When you get that chance, you want to crash his parade.’’
.Orton remains questionable for Saturday’s game, bothered by a hip pointer on one side of his body and a hip flexor on the other.
.The injuries have resulted in two dramatically different seasons for Orton.
.In Purdue’s 5-0 start, its best since 1945, Orton completed almost 70 percent of his passes for 1,642 yards, 18 touchdowns and two interceptions.
.Over the past three weeks, he completed just 50 percent of his passes for 591 yards in three losses. In setbacks to Wisconsin, Michigan and Northwestern, Orton has thrown three touchdown passes and has been intercepted three times.
."I think we’ve all lost some confidence,’’ Orton said. "We’ve been beat the last three weeks on offense pretty bad. … Every time you lose it’s like a punch in the stomach. We are literally trying to do everything we can to win a football game. We’re fighting and clawing to get a win.’’
.Orton said it has been difficult to put a finger on Purdue’s problem.
."I don’t think we have one problem recurring over and over again,’’ Orton said. "I think we have a breakdown on almost every single play by a couple of guys, instead of all 11 contributing to every single play. We just need to get everybody back on the same page.’’
.If the Boilermakers’ Heisman-hyped senior doesn’t play, backup Brandon Kirsch will start. Kirsch completed 5 of 9 passes for 67 yards last week.
.The
Hawkeyes want to face Orton, an Altoona, Iowa, native who prepped at Southeast Polk and ranks eighth in the Big Ten in career passing yards.
."You want to be out there against the best,’’ safety Miguel Merrick said. "You want to put yourself in a position where you’re tested, where you have a chance to see if you have what it takes. That’s what defensive backs live for. The chance to make plays when it matters is big, and that’s what I hope to be able to do this week.’’
.Iowa has welcomed its share of challenges the past few seasons.
.The
Hawkeyes handed current Pittsburgh Steelers starter Ben Roethlisberger his most recent loss as a starter last season, intercepting him four times in a 21-3 win over Miami (Ohio).
.They kept Arizona State’s Andrew Walter out of the end zone and limited him to a season-low 160 passing yards in a 21-2 Iowa win at Kinnick Stadium last season, although Walter returned the favor earlier this season in a 44-7 victory over the
Hawkeyes.
."He kind of got us back,’’ Roth said.
.Roth counts Orton among the best he’s faced.
."He’s like the guys we faced last week at Illinois in the way he gets rid of the ball so quick. So you have to get after him fast,’’ Roth said. "The guys in the middle have to get their hands up, try to deflect a pass or two, and you have to get into the passing lanes.
."This is one of those weeks where the guys up front have to do what they can to get some pressure on him to help the defensive backs out.’’
.Wisconsin, which gave the Boilermakers their first loss this season, found that disguising its defense and delaying a shift into what they wanted to do seemed to pay dividends.
."Orton is one of the best I’ve seen at reading coverages before the snap and adjusting,’’ Badgers coach Barry Alvarez said. "He always seems to know where to go with the ball.
."What we did was make him go through some mental gymnastics after the snap, instead of prior to the snap, and it seemed to work. Bret Bielema (the Badgers’ defensive coordinator) and the rest of the staff did a good job preparing our guys and disguising what we were doing to make it work.’’
.Similar challenges have greeted Orton the past two weeks.
."I’m about as frustrated as I’ve been as a player here because I’ve played hurt before, and I thought I could throw and play through it,’’ he said. "It just seemed like everything was falling apart, and I was extremely angry and frustrated. It’s something I have to work through.’’
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