The question is whether the frustration will be on the Hawkeye or Panther side of things. The styles of play may not be similar, but the talent level, expectations and concerns by the fans sure seem to run parallel.

If you want to stereotype Big Ten football, perhaps even moreso than Ohio State, Iowa under Kirk Ferentz has been the conservative, physical poster child of Big Ten football.\

“They’re not going to panic,” Graham said. “I think the key in this game is going to be playing hard-nosed, smash-mouth. A 3-yard gain is a positive gain for them. That doesn’t bother them one bit. They’ll line up and do it again and again and again and again. And you’re going to have to stop the run.

“This is going to be the best offensive line we’ve played. They’re very big, physical, and grind it out. Their center [James Ferentz] is an outstanding player, left tackle [Riley Reiff] is an outstanding player.”

Pitt defensive coordinator Keith Patterson said that the key against a team like Iowa that has a big, physical offensive line and employs a vanilla, pro-style system is playing physical.

He also said they can’t be lulled to sleep by the Hawkeyes offense and must understand that, in what likely will be a close game, every snap matters.

How the defense responds to this will be a big in the second half really struggled issue. In the first two games, the defense played well in the first half. Mostly shutting down the offenses, but in the second half really struggled. Pitt has only allowed one first half touchdown, but has been torched for five in the second half.

Whether it was getting sloppy, or wearing down because of an opponent that stressed a faster tempo with quick, short plays to take advantage of Pitt’s defensive weaknesses is unclear at least to me right now. That’s part of what makes this such a difficult game to figure.

Iowa isn’t going to be pass-heavy and looking for the underneath stuff the same way. They are going to pound the ball. They will not protect the QB by making a quick pass to blunt attempts to bring pressure, but with bulk that can protect the QB in the pocket. They are going to be looking to milk the clock. The defense will face a physical team, but they will have time to catch their breath.

And as much as Pitt’s offense has not clicked perfectly, it is the kind of offense that has regularly hurt Iowa.

This is the season of the slick, slippery, spread, option, no-huddle quarterback for the Hawkeyes. The first test was, just going off the scoreboard, a failure.

Some of the football terms you learned about coming out of last week was contain. If it’s not job one this week, it’s job one, two and three and maybe four.

“It’s stuff you learn like when you’re in junior high school, typically,” Ferentz said. “Well, you used to in the old days. I’m not sure anybody is learning it anymore. But anyway, I will say good high school and junior high school teams understand guys have to contain. I think most of us learn that growing up.

“We’re not doing a very good job of it, so we’re going to have to coach it better and just get it accomplished somehow.”

This week, it’s not a terribly pressing issue, but pace of play, another element that has bugged the Hawkeyes during their 5-5 run over the last 10 games, will be.

Spread elements and fast tempo seem to be toxic to Iowa according to this from BHGP.

But schematically, Pitt seems to run the same stuff on offense that gives Iowa fits in general: they use the shotgun, three or four receivers and a zone read running game, and hope to get the ball out to someone in space before the line collapses. The quarterback is left back there with minimal protection, so there are opportunities to blitz (as I said, Maine got to Sunseri seven times), but Sunseri is not a stiff and can run decently. All in all, it’s nothing Iowa hasn’t seen before. The test should be similar to Iowa State and Northwestern and Missouri: can Iowa’s linebackers match up to receivers and “tight ends” in space, and can the defensive line provide enough push to a) contain the running game and b) get to the quarterback. Iowa did a remarkable amount of blitzing against Iowa State, so it will be interesting to see if they take the same approach against Pitt’s spread, or if they stick with their base zone defense (or try something else, like nickel coverage).

The only thing that everyone seems certain of, is that it will be a close game.  One that leaves one side grumbling about missed opportunities while the other breathes a sigh of relief about doing just enough to get the win.