Iowa has spent the College Football Playoff era piling up wins without ever getting to the sport’s biggest stage, and that strange little badge has become the program’s most stubborn label. It says plenty about consistency. It also says plenty about the ceiling the Hawkeyes are trying to break through.
Saturday’s Big Ten opener at Michigan gives Iowa another shot at doing something bigger than just winning a game in September. It’s a chance to take a real step toward changing the conversation around Kirk Ferentz’s program.
This Iowa team has the look of one that can at least force that discussion. The Hawkeyes are playing clean football.
The quarterback play has been solid enough to help unlock a more dangerous running game. And the defense, under Phil Parker, has the familiar Iowa edge: fast, strong and miserable to move the ball against, even with plenty of new faces in the mix.
That combination has to turn into a statement win at some point. Last season, Iowa had Indiana and Oregon, both College Football Playoff teams, in position to be knocked out, but couldn’t finish the job.
That was a lesson for Ferentz and the Hawkeyes. Now Michigan is the next test, and it arrives with Iowa still searching for that breakthrough moment.
The matchup itself gives Iowa a real shot. Michigan is also 3-0, but the record comes with some baggage.
Western Michigan had the Wolverines beaten before a fluky clock-management mess changed the ending. And even beyond the finish, that game exposed something more important: Western Michigan pushed Michigan around.
The Broncos were more physical and gave the Wolverines trouble in the trenches, an area Michigan is supposed to control.
That part of the game matters for Iowa. The Hawkeyes have the kind of front that can handle a fight up close.
That has long been part of their identity, and it’s true again this season. Iowa’s offensive line has the talent to answer back and, if things click, to become the bully in this matchup.
In Other News...
Braeden Jackson Just Added To Iowas Walk-On Tradition
Braeden Jacksons name already carries some football weight in Iowa circles, and now the walk-on running back has given Hawkeye fans another reminder of why that tradition still resonates. In a notable game, he flashed the kind of burst and versatility that can turn a roster afterthought into a real storyline, piling up 125 rushing yards, adding 24 more as a receiver and finding the end zone twice.
It fits the family history, too. Jackson is the son of Fred Jackson, the former Coe College standout who went from unrecruited long shot to a nine-season NFL career with the Buffalo Bills, and Braeden followed a similarly determined path after a strong high school career as both a football player and track star. He chose to walk on at Iowa in part because of his fathers connection to the coaching staff, and performances like this only deepen the sense that the Hawkeyes may have found another name worth remembering. [Read more 🡒]
Braeden Jackson Just Made Iowas Backfield Picture A Lot Tougher
Braeden Jackson turned a lopsided afternoon into something worth watching for Iowa. In the Hawkeyes 55-0 win over Northern Iowa, the second-year running back piled up 125 rushing yards and scored two touchdowns, continuing the kind of steady rise that has made him easy to notice in a crowded backfield. A preferred walk-on who arrived in December 2024, Jackson has been one of the quieter development stories on the roster, but his progress has been hard to miss.
What stands out most is how much cleaner and more complete his game looks now. Iowa quarterback Hank Brown and head coach Kirk Ferentz have both pointed to Jacksons improved awareness and physical development, and his background helps explain why he keeps trending up. As the son of former NFL running back Fred Jackson, he has had the benefit of football knowledge at home, and it is starting to show on the field in a way that could make the Hawkeyes backfield even harder to sort out. [Read more 🡒]
Ferentz Sends Iowa Fans A Promising Message Before Michigan Test
Iowa is heading into its first Big Ten game of the season with a familiar kind of test waiting on the other side, and Kirk Ferentz spent part of the buildup offering a reassuring look at his roster. The Hawkeyes are set to face No. 18 Michigan on Sept. 26, and Ferentz said the recovery process is moving in the right direction for several key players, including Kamari Moulton and Bryce Hawthorne, as the team tries to get healthier at an important point on the schedule.
The matchup itself brings the bigger challenge, of course, and Ferentz made clear that Iowa will need its defense locked in against a Michigan offense led by quarterback Bryce Underwood. For a Hawkeyes team trying to open conference play on solid footing, the combination of improved health and a stern test against a ranked opponent gives this week a little extra weight, even before the game kicks off. [Read more 🡒]