Wisconsin has a golden opportunity to slay the dragon that's caused it so much misery the past two seasons.

The Badgers are set to take on Iowa at Kinnick Stadium on Halloween, riding high coming off a big-time upset win over No. 16 USC. While the Hawkeyes are slim favorites, Wisconsin looks to have what it needs to go into Iowa City and take back the Heartland Trophy if it plays how it's demonstrated it can.

Below, Badgers On SI breaks down three Badgers who need a stellar performance come Saturday if Wisconsin wants to return to Madison with the Heartland Trophy in tow:

OG Colin Cubberly

The entire offensive and defensive lines are going to need to play well, of course, as this game is always defined by who's more physically dominant in the trenches. But the left guard Cubberly specifically needs to be dialed in on the Badgers' offensive front due to the tough matchup he draws against Iowa's defensive line.

The Hawkeyes' best and most disruptive defensive lineman, Bryce Hawthorne, lines up in the B-gap opposite the left guard. He's been nothing short of a problem this season.

Hawthorne has racked up 27 tackles, 2.5 sacks and 19 pressures, the latter of which which easily leads Iowa's defense. The 6-3, 298-pound former South Dakota State Jackrabbit is a wrecking ball in the middle of Iowa's defensive front, and more often than not it will be on Cubberly to contain him.

Cubberly, meanwhile, is coming off his worst performance of the year against USC. He allowed his first sack of the season, and also allowed two pressures, the first time this fall he's surrendered more than one. It wasn't an abysmal game from Cubberly, but he'll need to bounce back against one of the better defensive lineman the Badgers will see all season.

QB Colton Joseph

The starting quarterback can obviously make or break any game. But I'm of the genuine belief that if Colton Joseph simply doesn't turn the ball over, Wisconsin has a tremendous shot to win.

The Badgers' gunslinger has done a much better job keeping the ball out of harm's way in recent weeks. After he threw five interceptions across Wisconsin's first four games with eight "turnover-worthy plays" in that span according to Pro Football Focus, he's gone three straight games without throwing a pick with just one turnover-worthy play.

This is going to be the kind of low-scoring, field position-predicated game in which every possession matters. Wisconsin can't afford to give Iowa a short field, and visa versa.

I don't expect it to look pretty, by air or by ground, on offense Saturday. But if Joseph can keep the unit at least quasi-operational and protect the football, Wisconsin won't need a whole lot of production out of its quarterback.

With that being said, I also think Joseph's legs can be a big X-factor Saturday. It's never easy to run into the teeth of Iowa's defense, but if the quarterback can keep Iowa's linebackers guessing and stress the edges of the defense, Wisconsin has a much better shot to stay on schedule offensively.

Nickel Bryce West

West is coming off his best game yet as a Badger. The nickel corner finished with five tackles, one tackle-for-loss, one interception and one quarterback hit, all while playing through a shoulder stinger. He was tremendous both in coverage and in run support.

West is going to be a big-time key to this game for several reasons. First of all, Iowa obviously loves to run the ball (they do so on 55% of their plays this season) and West, as mentioned, has been excellent coming downhill in run support. He's big enough to disengage from blocks and he's a very sure tackler in space.

What's more, Iowa's passing offense is predicated on the quick game with a few deep shots mixed in. That means plenty of screens, bootleg rollouts and quick passes — many of which are designed to put the slot corner in conflict. Wisconsin needs to limit the short to intermediate passing game, and West figures to be right in the middle of that.