Wadley Has 4 TDs, No. 17 Iowa Tops No. 20 Northwestern 40-10
EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) — Reserve running back Akrum Wadley ran for 192 yards and tied a school record with four rushing touchdowns to carry No. 17 Iowa over No. 20 Northwestern, 40-10, on Saturday.
With leading rusher Jordan Canzeri sidelined in the first quarter with an ankle injury, Wadley took over for Iowa (7-0, 3-0 Big Ten). The injury occurred following a short run when Northwestern linebacker Jaylen Prater landed on Canzeri, folding his ankle under a pile of players.
Wadley, who had only eight carries coming into the game, scored his third touchdown on a 2-yard run with 6:42 remaining in the third quarter, extending Iowa's lead to 23-10. His record-tying fourth scoring run, which followed a Northwestern fumble on the Wildcats ensuing drive, came on a 4-yard run that.
Marshall Koehn added a 36-yard field goal before Derrick Mitchell scored on a 13-yard touchdown run with 7:55 left.
Northwestern (5-2, 1-2) turned the ball over three times as the Wildcats lost for the second straight week after five consecutive victories.
Iowa led 16-10 at halftime after failing to extend its lead on the final play of the second quarter. C.J. Beathard drove the Hawkeyes to the Northwestern 16, but Koehn pushed a 34-yard field goal attempt wide left.
Northwestern struggled to find any rhythm offensively for much of the first half, but responded to a 16-point deficit with 10 straight points.
Redshirt freshman Clayton Thorson, who was 17 for 35 passing for 125 yards with a touchdown and interception, connected with a wide open Christian Jones on a 4-yard touchdown pass with 6:18 remaining in the first half to get Northwestern to within 16-7.
After Treveon Henry intercepted Beathard on Iowa's next drive, the Wildcats drove to the Hawkeyes 1-yard line, but had to settle for a Jack Mitchell 20-yard field goal to close to within 16-10.
Iowa built an early lead behind Wadley, who scored on runs of 35 and 4 yards, to provide the Hawkeyes with the double-digit lead.
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