Iowa fans had already been preparing themselves for the worst when Kamari Moulton left Saturday's 13-10 loss to Minnesota with an arm injury, and Kirk Ferentz confirmed what most suspected during his weekly press conference the following Tuesday.

Moulton will indeed miss the remainder of the season, Ferentz announced in his opening statement. The coach added that Iowa looks forward to welcoming Moulton back next year, but he will have a lengthy rehab process ahead of him.

The loss is undoubtedly a major one for an already-struggling running back room. The Hawkeyes tallied just 90 yards on 30 carries against Minnesota and have averaged 112.5 rushing yards per game in Big Ten action, which ranks in a disappointing 12th place in the league.

With Moulton now out, Iowa will have to hope L.J. Phillips, Braeden Jackson, Xavier Williams, and Nathan McNeil can produce, but there's also another problem - Phillips, who would likely be Moulton's primary replacement, may not suit up for Saturday's Homecoming game against No. 25 Wisconsin (11 a.m. FS1).

Phillips has been battling a lingering ankle injury all season long and is currently listed as "day-to-day" for Saturday's contest, per Ferentz. Phillips did participate in practice on Tuesday, but his status for the game will ultimately be decided closer to kickoff.

Plan is to start Hank Brown

Ferentz didn't 100% declare Hank Brown to be his starting quarterback against the Badgers, but there's probably a 97% chance you'll see Brown under center.

"We'll see how the week goes. But right now, plan to start him and play it by ear from there," Ferentz said. "Nothing really changed too dramatically there."

If Brown indeed is the starter, this won't be new territory for him. The fourth-year has started all but two games this year and clearly has Ferentz's full confidence. Brown won the starting job over Jeremy Hecklinski to begin Big Ten play, but lost it after Hecklinski played well in relief of an injured Brown against Washington on Oct. 9.

Brown has completed 89 of 145 passing attempts (61.4%) for 968 yards, six touchdowns and three interceptions this season. The numbers aren't bad, but Brown is coming off arguably his worst game of the year against Minnesota, which saw him go 11-for-21 for 136 yards, one touchdown, and two costly interceptions after he replaced Hecklinski late in the first half of that game.

Despite Brown's struggles in relief, Ferentz maintained that there was no second-guessing once they made the move and they are still confident in either quarterback to succeed moving forward.

"We believe in both players. I think both Hank and Jeremy are both good young people, and they're good young quarterbacks. And neither one are really experienced right now. But yeah, there are some things we could have done better [on Saturday]," Ferentz said.

A centennial celebration

Saturday will mark the 100th edition of the Iowa-Wisconsin rivalry. The Badgers hold a slight 49-48-2 edge in the series, but the Hawkeyes are seeking a fifth consecutive victory over their rivals to the northeast.

Ferentz is no stranger to facing Wisconsin. Saturday will be his 26th meeting against the Badgers (Iowa didn't play Wisconsin in 2011 and 2012 because of conference realignment) as a head coach, but he's also got plenty of experience against Wisconsin as an assistant coach, as he was Hayden Fry's offensive line coach from 1981 through the 1989 season.

The 71-year-old Ferentz wasn't aware that Saturday will be the centennial matchup in the rivalry, but he certainly has his fare share of stories from the game. The actual games - a 17-7 victory in Madison in 1981 en route to a Big Ten title and Rose Bowl berth or watching Wisconsin running back Ron Danye set NCAA records in 1999 - feature plenty of memories, but if there's one thing Ferentz has noticed when playing Wisconsin, it's how competitive each game is.

"I think for the most part, at least my 30 whatever it is, 37 years, 36 years, it's been a tough contest," Ferentz said. "I didn't realize this was the 100th one, but boy, they've mostly been really close and tough and competitive, and that's what I see coming Saturday."

Source: Yahoo Sports