On the strength of 140 rushing yards and two touchdowns from Jordan Canzeri, No. 4 Iowa improves to 12-0 with a 28-20 victory over Nebraska. (2:14)

LINCOLN, Neb. -- On to Indianapolis and the Big Ten championship game, Iowa is 60 minutes from the College Football Playoff.

Fourth-ranked Iowa rumbled past Nebraska 28-20 Friday at Memorial Stadium to complete a 12-0 regular season, using a pair of third-quarter touchdown runs by Jordan Canzeri to create separation in ice-cold conditions.

Leading 14-10 at halftime, Iowa stopped Nebraska on three plays to open the third quarter and had a 26-yard punt return from Desmond King, the Hawkeyes' star cornerback who was suspended for the first quarter. A late hit on the return added 15 yards, and Canzeri burst 29 yards untouched two plays later.

After Nebraska (5-7, 3-5 Big Ten) answered with a 75-yard touchdown drive, Canzeri raced 68 yards -- again untouched -- to give Iowa its final points with 6:43 to play in the third quarter.

The Huskers penetrated the red zone in the final six minutes, but quarterback Tommy Armstrong Jr. threw incomplete from the 19-yard line on a fourth-and-1 fade route to the end zone, killing Nebraska's last legitimate chance. Iowa's Henry Krieger Coble recovered an onside kick with 1:16 left to seal the win.

Jordan Canzeri had a pair of touchdown runs among his 17 carries for 140 yards Friday. Jeffrey Becker/USA TODAY Sports

Armstrong threw four interceptions Friday, completing 25 of 45 throws for 296 yards. His counterpart, C.J. Beathard, attempted only 16 passes in the miserable weather. He completed nine for 97 yards and did not commit a turnover in improving to 13-0 as Iowa's starting quarterback.

Canzeri finished with 140 yards and the two touchdowns.

What the win means for Iowa: The road to a perfect season continues. The Big Ten West-winning Hawkeyes (12-0, 8-0) survived the elements in Lincoln and will be rewarded with a crush of attention in the coming week as they prepare for the conference championship game against the East representative: Michigan State, Ohio State or Michigan. Well before Friday, Iowa ascended to a position unreached in school history. But now, the noise is set to turn deafening. The Hawkeyes are no longer a cute story; they're one victory from truly making history.

What the loss means for Nebraska: This third five-win regular season since 2004 brings to a close perhaps the most unusual three-month stretch in the history of this program. And that's saying something, considering the Huskers are on their fourth coach since 1998. It's probably not the most painful or the most hopeless season. But with so many opportunities missed -- including plenty Friday -- Nebraska finds itself mired in a state of anxiety for the next nine months. Third-tier bowl game to come or not, was this an aberration? People will want to know.

Stat of the game: Iowa failed to convert any of its nine third-down opportunities, with an average distance needed of 9.2 yards. The Hawkeyes entered Friday at 46.8 percent for the season, second in the Big Ten and 17th nationally. How did they overcome the lack of production against Nebraska? The Huskers helped by committing eight penalties for 95 yards. And Iowa was particularly efficient on first down, producing four of its six chunk plays (10 yards or more) immediately after the chains were set.

How the game was won: By Iowa's ability to limit mistakes and capitalize on the mistake-prone Huskers. Armstrong threw the four interceptions, including an ultra-costly sideways toss inside the 10-yard line returned by freshman defensive end Parker Hesse for a touchdown in the second quarter. Penalties were costly, too, for the Huskers, with the worst -- an illegal-touching flag on defensive tackle Kevin Williams -- negating a lost fumble by Beathard late in the first quarter.