Coach Kirk Ferentz's Iowa Hawkeyes face a road game in Seattle against the Washington Huskies and will have to do so without starting QB Hank Brown, hero of the Michigan game. Brown battled Jeremy Hecklinski in camp, now Iowa will start the latter quarterback in a showdown against Demond Williams and company.

Pete Nakos of On3 broke the news that Hecklinski will start.

“Iowa will start QB Jeremy Hecklinski at Washington tonight…Hank Brown is dealing with an upper-body injury,” On3 wrote.

The Hawkeyes got support from Pat McAfee and Nick Saban ahead of their big game vs. Ohio State but were soundly beaten by the Buckeyes. Brown was held to 12-of-27 passing for 132 yards and one interception during the game, with Hecklinski playing in relief. Hecklinski was more accurate, completing 5-of-5 passes for 67 yards during an otherwise dreadful day on offense for coordinator Tim Lester's unit.

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The Huskies will be playing without a star wide receiver against a strong Phil Parker led Hawkeyes defensive unit that was made to look far worse than it normally performs against Jeremiah Smith and the Buckeyes. Coach Jedd Fisch's team has scored over 20 points in all but one game this season, most recently losing 25-21 to the USC Trojans at the Coliseum in Los Angeles.

Hecklinski and the Hawkeyes have their work cut out for them against a high-powered offensive football team in a hostile environment. If Ferentz and company want to bring a win back to Iowa City, they will need their backup quarterback to play smart, and make big plays like Brown did at Michigan at the right times. Hecklinski has the talent to do it, soon it will be time for him to execute.