MADISON, Wis. _ Analysts from coast to coast note that the schedule is so soft it makes Charmin impenetrable by comparison.
Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst and his players don't listen.
They continue to struggle early, as they did Saturday against Iowa, with Alex Hornibrook gifting the Hawkeyes a touchdown with an interception just 90 seconds into the game.
Chryst's players don't flinch, a trait which might be this team's No. 1 strength.
Whether they impress with style points is irrelevant to Chryst and his players.
All this UW team does is find ways to win, as it did by slowly squeezing the life from rival Iowa en route to a 38-14 win in front of a crowd of 80,462 Saturday at Camp Randall Stadium.
UW (10-0, 7-0 Big Ten) clinched at least a share of the West Division title and a berth in the league title game and became the first team in program history to win its first 10 games.
UW has won at least 10 games in four consecutive seasons, another program first.
The victory also marked the first time since 2008 that the home team has won in this rivalry. Before Saturday, UW's last home victory over Iowa was 2007.
Iowa (6-4, 3-4), which dismantled then-No. 3 Ohio State 55-24 one week earlier, saw its winning streak end at two games.
UW's defense was magnificent for four quarters.
The Badgers entered the day having allowed just 12 touchdowns, matching Georgia for the third fewest among FBS teams. They came in having held seven of their nine opponents under the 300-yards mark.
Iowa, led by sophomore quarterback Nate Stanley, was overmatched.
The Hawkeyes gained 20 yards on 23 plays in the opening half as UW rallied for a 17-7 halftime lead.
By the time UW's lead was 38-14 with 7 minutes 2 seconds remaining, Iowa had 46 yards on 43 plays.
Iowa finished with 66 yards on 50 plays and 0-13 on third downs.
Stanley, who came in with 22 touchdowns and four interceptions, finished 8 of 24 for 41 yards, with one interception.
Leon Jacobs returned a fumble 21 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter to help UW take a 24-14 lead.
Linebacker T.J. Edwards intercepted a pass at the UW 41, which resulted in a 59-yard touchdown drive and a 31-14 lead.
Hornibrook entered the day with 15 touchdown passes, nine interceptions and a completion rate of 64.4 percent. He had thrown at least one interception in all six Big Ten games.
Hornibrook threw two interceptions in his first eight attempts. The first, on his second attempt, was returned 43 yards for a touchdown just 1:30 into the game by cornerback Josh Jackson.
Hornibrook finished with three interceptions _ Jackson returned a tipped ball 52-yards for a touchdown to pull Iowa within 17-14 in the third quarter.
The redshirt sophomore finished 11 of 18 for 135 yards, with two touchdowns and the three interceptions.
He hit Kendric Pryor for a 12-yard score to give UW a 17-7 halftime lead and capped his day with a 5-yard pass to A.J. Taylor to push the lead to 38-14. Pryor also scored on a 25-yard run to give UW a 10-7 lead.
Tailback Jonathan Taylor lost one of two fumbles but ran hard all game and finished with 157 yards on 27 carries.
Bradrick Shaw, who had struggled since rushing for 84 yards in the opener, scored on an 8-yard run and finished with 47 yards on 10 carries.
Iowa opened the game just as it did one week earlier against Ohio State, with an interception return for a touchdown.
This time, Jackson stepped in front of Taylor near the UW sideline for the theft and 43-yard return just 1:30 into the game.
How would Hornibrook and UW respond?
With an impressive drive from their 20 to the Iowa 1.
Iowa's defense kept UW out of the end zone, however.
Fullback Austin Ramesh gained nothing on second-and-goal from the 1 and on third-and-goal tight end Kyle Penniston moved before the snap for a 5-yard penalty.
On the next play, Hornibrook wasn't able to hit Troy Fumagalli in the end zone and UW settled for a 23-yard field goal by Rafael Gaglianone with 5:43 left in the quarter.
UW's defense limited Iowa to 30 yards on its first three possessions. After a three-and-out and a 36-yard punt, the Badgers took over at their 49 with 11:13 left in the first half.
Hornibrook hit Zander Neuville for 9 yards to the Iowa 36 on third and 4 and then hit Fumagalli for 11 yards on the next play.
Wide receiver Kendric Pryor scored on an end-around on the next play to help UW take a 10-7 lead with 8:55 left in the first half.
UW's defense continued to dominate Iowa and Stanley.
After Anthony Lotti pinned the Hawkeyes at their 8 with a 62-yard punt, the defense flexed its muscles.
Nose tackle Olive Sagapolu sacked Stanley for a 7-yard loss to the 1 on first down. Stanley sneaked for 2 yards on second down but linebacker Ryan Connelly dropped tailback Akrum Wadley at the 1 and came close to recording a safety.
UW called a timeout with 2:46 left and the Badgers took over at the Iowa 26 after Nick Nelson returned a 45-yard punt 20 yards.
A false-start penalty moved the ball to the 31 but after Taylor gained 5 yards on a run, he gained 14 to the 12-yard line on a screen to the right.
Hornibrook then hit Pryor, over the top of cornerback Manny Rugamba, in the left corner of the end zone for a touchdown with 1:19 left in the half to help UW push its lead to 17-7.
Iowa gained nothing on its final possession of the half and went to the locker room trailing by 17-7 and with 20 yards on 23 plays.
Two mistakes allowed Iowa back into the game just 3:32 into the third quarter.
Left guard Jon Dietzen was called for unsportsmanlike conduct for a late hit, leaving UW facing third-and-18 from the Iowa 48.
Hornibrook threw high to Rachid Ibrahim in the right flat on the next play. The pass was a bit high but Ibrahim got both hands on the ball and tipped it into the air.
Jackson caught the ball on the run and raced down the sideline 52 yards for a touchdown to help Iowa pull within 17-14 with 11:18 left in the quarter.
UW would have to respond to another disastrous turnover.
The defense did _ with a touchdown.
Iowa took over at its 20 after a punt and moved out to the 30. But on third-and-10, Stanley wasn't ready for the shotgun snap and the ball glanced off his right hip.
Two Iowa players had a chance to recover the ball, which squirted out of a pile at the 21.
Jacobs scooped up the ball and raced 21 yards for the touchdown to help UW take a 24-14 lead with 6:10 left in the third quarter.
After the teams exchanged punts, Iowa was on the march until Edwards ended the drive.
Edwards, who played quarterback in high school, made a one-handed interception at the UW 41 with 18 seconds left in the third quarter.
UW's offense avoided turning the ball over and marched 51 yards for a touchdown.
Hornibrook hit freshman wide receiver Danny Davis on back-to-back third-down plays, for 12 yards to the Iowa 40 and for 28 yards to the 10.
Shaw scored on an 8-yard run two plays later and the lead was 31-14 with 10:59 left.
UW's defense wasn't done.
Three plays after the kickoff, Connelly came free on a blitz and forced a fumble by Stanley. Jacobs fell on the ball at the 14 and the offense needed five plays to reach the end zone.
A holding call on Jason Erdmann, filling in at center for injured starter Tyler Biadasz, wiped out a 14-yard touchdown run by Taylor and pushed the ball back to the 20.
A pass interference call on third-and-5 gave UW the ball at the 2 and after two running plays lost a combined 3 yards, Hornibrook hit Taylor three plays later for a 5-yard score.
The lead was 38-17. Just 7:02 remained.
UW was unbeaten, still.
