This is the game we’ve been waiting for.

It’s No. 3 Iowa hosting No. 4 Penn State in the first top-five matchup inside Kinnick Stadium since 1985. This game has College Football Playoff implications, and a win for the Hawkeyes would be a gigantic boost to their resume.

And I think Iowa will pull it off on Saturday.

Both programs are on hot streaks dating back to last season. Iowa hasn’t lost since starting 0-2 in 2020, and Penn State hasn’t lost since dropping a game to the Hawkeyes in State College last season. Both programs are coming off impressive wins — Iowa defeated Maryland 51-14 on Friday, and Penn State shut out Indiana, 24-0, the next day.

Someone’s hot streak is going to end. It’s going to be Penn State’s.

The Nittany Lions have a nonexistent rushing offense. Head coach James Franklin and company trust quarterback Sean Clifford to sit back all day throwing the football. That doesn’t go well against a defense that leads the nation in interceptions and just picked off the Big Ten’s leading passer five times. However, Penn State’s defense is good too, and Iowa will have troubles on offense.

But the Hawkeye defense is better. The defense will force turnovers, and it might even score touchdowns. Either way, it will take stress off of Iowa’s offense.

Iowa is going to play the same sort of team football this week as it did last Friday. The defense will put the offense in position to succeed, and then the offense will cash in.

Look forward to a 6-0 Iowa team. This season is about to get even more special.

Iowa City will be the epicenter of college football this weekend, as No. 3 Iowa and No. 4 Penn State meet at Kinnick Stadium with Big Ten Championship and College Football Playoff berths potentially on the line.

Unfortunately for Hawkeye fans, they may not walk out of Kinnick happy Saturday night.

Excluding the unusual, COVID-19-laced 2020 season, the Hawkeyes have lost their last six games against the Nittany Lions, dating back to 2011.

Some of the losses Iowa has suffered to Penn State likely scarred Hawkeye fans, coaches, and players alike.

For instance, when Iowa played Penn State at Kinnick Stadium in 2017, then-Nittany Lion and now-Baltimore Raven quarterback Trace McSorely threw a touchdown to now-New Orleans Saints tight end Juwan Johnson as the final seconds of the fourth quarter ticked away.

Following the McSorely-Johnson touchdown, the scoreboard read 21-19 in favor of Penn State and no time was left on the game clock.

The scar tissue left from Iowa’s loss to Penn State at Kinnick in 2017 can’t be overlooked, nor can the Nittany Lions’ winning trend  in six of the last seven Iowa-Penn State games.

My brain tells me to pick the Nittany Lions to win the game, but my gut tells me to go with the Hawkeyes — I’ve trusted my brain picking games all season, and it’s paid off.

Per my math, I’m the best game-picker on The Daily Iowan staff so far this year, as I sit atop the overall standings in our “On the Line” game picks that can be found in our weekly football Pregame edition.

So, this week, I’m sticking to the formula and picking the team I think is the best, not the team I feel better about. The Nittany Lions won’t just cover the 2.5-point spread, they’ll win outright on Saturday.