C.J. Beathard
When Iowa plays Michigan State on Saturday night in the Big Ten Championship it will match a pair of starting quarterbacks who have combined to post a career record of 46 wins against only four losses.
Junior C.J. Beathard is 13-0 as a starter and led the fourth ranked Hawkeyes to a 12-0 regular season while Spartan senior Connor Cook is 33-4 and has already led fifth ranked Michigan State to victories in the Rose Bowl and Cotton Bowl.
“He’s a great quarterback and I have a lot of respect for him”, said Beathard. “They do run a pro style offense which is a lot like our offense and there are a lot of similarities in style but he is a very good quarterback.”
Besides the play of Cook the biggest obstacle for the Hawkeyes may be overcoming the Spartans’ edge in big game experience. This will be Michigan State’s third appearance in the Big Ten Championship in five years.