Quarterback C.J. Beathard provides rock-solid leadership for No. 9 Iowa

IOWA CITY, Iowa -- In tough moments this season -- and there have been a few amid Iowa's unbeaten, eight-game start -- quarterback C.J. Beathard remembers a note of encouragement delivered to the Hawkeyes by strength coach Chris Doyle during the offsesaon.

"You don't rise to the occasion," Beathard said, recalling a quote often found in reference to the grueling Navy SEAL regimen. "You fall to the level of your training."

Beathard, the Hawkeyes' first-year starter and a junior out of Franklin, Tennessee, took it to heart. He's playing hurt this month and playing well for No. 9 Iowa, which visits Indiana on Saturday (3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN) in a bid to match the 9-0 start of 2009 as the best in…