Hawks and Cyclones both playing for potential title

The Iowa Hawkeyes have continued to win close games and suddenly the Hawks find theselves heading into their regular season finale with a shot at a share of the Big Ten title. Iowa needs to beat ninth ranked Wisconsin and have Ohio State beat Michigan to grab a piece of the crown.Coach Kirk Ferentz says they’ve been surviving by looking directly ahead and haven’t thought much about the ramifications of winning the title. Iowa has posted an 8-2 mark despite the lack of a ground game. Sophomore quarterback Drew Tate has posted big numbers but Ferentz says the ultimate goal on offense is balance. Wisconsin’s defense was yielding fewer than ten points per game before giving up 49 in a loss at Michigan State. Ferentz expects that unit to be motivated. He says sometimes those games happen when a score gets out of hand. Iowa State coach Dan McCarney says the Cyclones are focused on their first goal, winning at Kansas State. The Cyclones close the regular season at home next week against Missouri and have the inside track to the Big-12 North nivision title. He says their whole focus is on beating Kansas State. He says enough is written about the Boston Red Sox, and Detroit Pistons, and he doesn’t know if his team will be the next one to make a break through.The Cyclones have won three straight and the growing confidence is evident on the practice field.K-State has won the last ten games in the series and many of them have been lopsided. McCarney says the Cyclones have committed too many turnovers to make it a competitive series.