We’re officially at the midway point of the 2026 season with the Hawkeyes sitting at 5-1 overall, 2-1 in the Big Ten and ranked 15th in the nation. At the outset of the year, virtually every Iowa fan would have signed up for that through six weeks.
Getting to that point has come with some twists and turns, however. Starting the year 3-0 came as little surprise. Struggling at home against an Iowa State team in a full rebuild was, and it was reason for some concern.
Then came the trip north to Ann Arbor and a ranked win over Michigan. While that one was picked by some given the coaching change for the Wolverines, it was the way Hank Brown led the offense down the field for a game-winning drive on the road that spurred optimism for this season. It also set the table for upside in what was widely considered the most difficult three game stretch of the season.
The Hawkeyes returned home and were blasted by Ohio State, as virtually everyone expected pre-season. That left us with the question of whether this team was simply a solid one that could perform well against inferior competition and would struggle with real opponents.
While that question remains largely unanswered, the response from the Hawkeyes in their road trip to Washington raised both the floor and the ceiling on this season’s potential. Iowa dominated as a road dog west of the Rockies in a way we haven’t seen an Iowa offense do in quite some time. The defense dominated in a way we weren’t sure whether we could count on. The result was a whole lot of fun and the end of that difficult three-game gauntlet better than most could have expected.
So where do things stand at the midway point in this season? Let’s dive in.
The Offense
Six games in, Iowa’s offense is averaging 31 points a game, good for 61st nationally. They’re 62nd in total offense at 403.2 yards per game. They’re 93rd in passing offense at 209.2 yards per game and 35th in rushing offense at 194.0 yards per game.
Those are winning numbers for the Hawkeyes, but some skepticism remains.
A lot of work has been done against the softer competition on the schedule. Against NIU and UNI, the offense averaged 573.5 yards and 47.5 points – both would be top-15 marks. Against the likes of Iowa State, Michigan and Ohio State, the numbers were an abysmal 269.0 yards and 16.7 points – both would be bottom-10 marks nationally.
Washington was the first power-conference opponent Iowa cracked 300 yards or 21 points against all season. That one game dragged the P4 averages up to 318.0 yards and 22.75 points. Still not glamorous, but the trend line finally points the right direction and it bent on the road with Jeremy Hecklinski making his first career start behind an offensive line that didn’t allow a sack.
A reason for optimism for Hawkeye fans is the efficiency underlying the numbers. Iowa has allowed 5 sacks all season, tied for 10th fewest in the country and has given the ball away just 3 times in 6 games. The Hawkeyes are completing 62.6% of their passes collectively, 81st nationally while the passing attack is averaging 7.0 yards per attempt.
Midseason Grade: C+
The Defense
Through six games, Iowa is 8th nationally in scoring defense at 14.5 points per game and 22nd in total defense at 293.3 yards per game allowed. Up front is where it gets really loud: the run defense sits 7th nationally at 84.7 yards a game, 2.51 a carry and exactly one rushing touchdown allowed all season. In their last outing, Iowa gave up -3 rushing yards on 25 carries, marking just the second time in the Ferentz era the Hawkeyes have held an opponent to negative rushing for a full game (Kent State 2004).
Opponents are converting a third of their third downs (38th nationally), the turnover margin sits at a modest +2 and the red zone defense ranks 29th.
Meanwhile, the pass rush has quietly stacked 19 sacks, tied for 6th in the country. The quiet part is driven by the variety of guys working together to make that happen. Iowa’s leader in sacks is Joseph Anderson at 3.0. Preston Ries and Bryce Hawthorne each have 2.5 while Jayden Montgomery and Cam Buffington both have 2.0. Pressure comes from everywhere, which means offenses can’t slide protection toward any one problem.
While Iowa has shown the ability to get to the QB, the pass defense looks worse on paper than it has been. They come in at 68th nationally allowing 208 yards per game. That will happen when you face Ohio State and the best receiver in the country. It’s the one number on the sheet which points the wrong way, and we’ll get more into it momentarily.
Like the offense, the defense has certainly made a lot of its hay against weaker competition.
Every single point Iowa has allowed this season came from a power-conference opponent. Both tune-up games ended in shutouts – 137.5 yards a game allowed, zero points, with NIU held to 7 rushing yards in the opener. Against the four P4 opponents, the numbers are mortal: 21.75 points and 371.25 a game, with Michigan (429 yards) and Ohio State (484) both moving it more than anyone in black and gold enjoyed watching.
But last week mattered, because Washington was the first P4 game where the front seven flatly dominated. And the schedule’s remaining offenses look a lot more like Washington’s than Ohio State’s.
Now, about that number pointing the wrong way: Iowa is 68th in passing yards allowed at and the last three opponents threw for 276, 324 and 320. Some of that is structural – teams abandon the run against Iowa because the run stops working and Washington’s 320 came largely after the game was 27-0. But Michigan’s and Ohio State’s totals came in competitive football and nine passing touchdowns allowed in six games isn’t the Parker standard. Again, thankfully most of the rest of the schedule looks little like the Buckeyes, but there is some cause for concern in the secondary if you’re picking nits.
So, where does 14.5 a game sit in the Phil Parker catalog? Right in the penthouse. The 2023 defense, the one that dragged a 15-points-a-game offense to 10 wins, finished the year 4th nationally at 14.8. The 2021 West champs allowed 19.2 (13th), and the 2015 group entered the Rose Bowl ranked 15th at 18.5. This unit is currently tracking ahead of all of them, with the cupcake caveat fully acknowledged.
Midseason Grade: A-
Second-Half To-Do List
So we have a middling offense that is trending the right way, elite ball security and a defense allowing 14.5 points a game. That’s a formula this program knows by heart. Now, what does a strong second half look like from here?
The honest answer is something boring. Iowa doesn’t need 41 a week like they got at Washington. It needs the P4 average to live in the mid-20s instead of the mid-teens, the run game to stay ahead of schedule as they did last week and the quarterback (whichever one trots out at Minnesota) to keep the giveaway count microscopic. The defense handles the rest. That’s how 5-1 becomes 11-1, and 11-1 teams don’t sweat Selection Sunday.
The fanbase is a skeptical they’ll be able to stick to the script. We asked for updated projects on the full season during the bye and 74% of you think the Hawkeyes will drop one somewhere down the stretch. The most common response was 10-2, indicating they’ll drop just one. That leaves 27% of the fanbase that thinks Iowa will fall at least two more times this season.
History tells us that’s probably true and the math points that direction as well. But it’s hard not to daydream about running the table, and there too the statistics say it’s certainly plausible.
The 2009 Orange Bowl team averaged 23.2 points per game. The 2021 Big Ten West champs averaged 23.4 on 303.7 yards a game, ranking 99th in scoring and 121st in total offense. The 2023 team won 10 games averaging 15.4 points with the worst total offense in the country. This year’s 31.0 points and 403.2 yards clear all of those bars with room to spare. Even the P4-only bucket at 318 yards a game outproduces what the 2021 team managed across a full season.
Ceiling comparisons are even higher: the 2002 team (37.2 points, 424.5 yards, an offense that outscored people by 228 over the year) and 2015’s 12-0 regular season at 30.9 a game. This group is scoring like that 2015 team and as noted, the defense is trending ahead of that group’s line. That season ended in the Rose Bowl (as much as we try to forget it) when the playoff only took four. This one has a 12-team bracket and the path is clear.
Keep: the run game and the protection. 194 rushing yards a game, Kamari Moulton coming off a career night and zero sacks allowed in Seattle. Ferentz said Moulton is “running as decisively and strong and just seeing things at a different level than he has.” He’s on pace for 1,038 yards and 8 TDs. The offense is proficient when they can get the run game going to open up the pass. Keep feeding him.
Fix: third down. Iowa converts just 39.4% of third downs, 80th nationally. It was one of the only placed the offense actually got worse against the Huskies, going just 3-of-9 on third down. Part of the answer here is above – keep pounding the ground game with success and put yourself in shorter third downs that are easier to convert.
The other minor fix is in the red zone, where Iowa scores on a healthy 89.5% of trips but has settled for field goals on 4 of its 17 scores. A 68% touchdown rate inside the 20 isn’t bad, but the jump from 68% to 75% is the difference between coming down to the wire with the former Big Ten West and playing with a lead where the defense can suffocate opponents with weaknesses. Finish drives in six, not three.
Do that and 11-1 and the playoffs are on the table. Struggle with any of the above and 74% of the fanbase will be right. It all starts at 2:30pm on Saturday where the Hawkeyes are favored by 6.5 in Minneapolis, according to FanDuel Sportsbook. You can catch all the action on FS1.