Nevada (2-1 SU, 2-1 ATS) will head to Big 10 territory when they take on Iowa (1-1 SU, 0-2 ATS) from Iowa City on Saturday night at 7:30pmET.
The Wolf Pack beat Texas State 38-14 in their opener and then were upset last week against FCS Incarnate Wired 55-41. The Hawkeyes were punchless last week in an exciting 10-7 defeat at home against rival Iowa State.
It doesn't get more embarrassing than an FBS team losing to an FCS team at home. First off, you have to pay that team a guarantee for coming and you expect to take care of business. However, Nevada was just a four-point favorite against an IW team on Saturday, that had beaten the No. 9 FCS team the week before in Southern Illinois. The Wolf Pack allowed 616 yards of total offense as this became just the second loss to a lower-division team in 28 seasons.
Get off the tracks when Toa is coming.#BattleBorn | #HomeIsNevada pic.twitter.com/SMhfJz6sld
— Nevada Football (@NevadaFootball) September 13, 2022
New coach Ken Wilson comes from Oregon, where he was their defensive coordinator. His defense looked pretty good in the first two games when they beat New Mexico State on the road 23-12 and Texas State at home (38-14). The good news is that quarterback Nate Cox threw for 302 yards and two TDs. The bad news was that he was sacked six times behind an inexperienced offensive line. Running back Toa Taua ran for 102 yards and one TD. The Wolf Pack ran for 176 yards and produced 478 yards of offense. But they gave up 406 yards passing to Scott Lindsey and sacked him just one.
In three games, the offense is averaging just 336.3 yards per game (105th) and 174.7 passing yards (112th). They'll be stepping up in competition when they face a very good Iowa defense. The defensive end needs to improve as they rank 121st in pass defense (304.3ypg).