Iowa’s quarterback room has been a moving target all season, and that constant pressure has pushed the Hawkeyes to keep sharpening their edge. Now, with four games left, Hank Brown is the one carrying that momentum into Northwestern after the best outing of his career.
Brown’s performance against Wisconsin turned heads across the Big Ten. He completed 20 of 24 passes for 222 yards and two touchdowns, and he also hit on three explosive throws of at least 20 yards. That effort made him the first Iowa quarterback to win Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week since Nate Stanley in November 2018.
“It's part of being a young player, and I've been trying to say that since January, probably, that whoever is going to be a new player playing in a position, you have to understand it's not going to look like it will probably as a senior,” Iowa football head coach Kirk Ferentz said. “… You can only play one, and obviously what Hank did the other day was really impressive.”
Brown didn’t try to make the award about himself. He pointed back to the group around him and the way Iowa’s offense functioned as a whole against Wisconsin.
“I think it’s just looking at our team and the game that we played on Saturday,” Brown said. “I might be getting the credit for that one, but that’s credit to our team … it’s obviously cool to get those awards, but ultimately, just credit to the guys around me to allow me to do that.”
A big part of Brown’s growth has come from his work with quarterbacks coach Billy VandeMerkt, who has held that role this season in place of offensive coordinator Tim Lester. Even with Jeremy Hecklinski in the mix, the quarterback room has leaned on the collaboration between VandeMerkt and Lester.
Brown and Hecklinski were also competing for the backup job behind former quarterback Mark Gronowski last season. Brown won that spot on paper, though both quarterbacks saw game action during the 2025 season.
That experience, Brown said, showed him where he still needed to improve. Now he heads into Northwestern as Iowa’s starter, coming off one of the strongest games of his career.
“I’ve learned just throughout my career of the balance of flushing it, and allowing that to propel us as a team forward,” Brown said. “I think there are plays that I can use to build my confidence, that I know I can allow that to stem into this week of practice and into this game, but ultimately, we have to flush it and move forward.”
Brown’s opportunities on the road have already given Iowa a glimpse of what he can do. At Michigan, he delivered the game-winning touchdown pass to Reece Vander Zee. At Minnesota, the Hawkeyes let a chance to close out another road win slip away.
For Brown, every appearance this season has been part of the same lesson. Whether he was starting or not, he’s treated the year as a chance to keep learning.
“There’s always room for improvement,” Brown said. “Coach Lester does a good job of finding those things so we can always continue to grow. As a quarterback, you’re growing every day in practice, too.”
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