Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz is back in the preseason spotlight, landing on the 2026 Dodd Trophy watch list as the college football season starts to come into view.
The Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation and Peach Bowl, Inc. announced the list Thursday, putting Ferentz among 20 coaches recognized for more than just what happens on Saturdays. The Dodd Trophy honors the head coach of a team that finds success on the field while also emphasizing scholarship, leadership and integrity - the three pillars of Bobby Dodd’s coaching philosophy.
Ferentz is entering his 28th season at Iowa, and no one in college football has held a head-coaching job longer. His run in Iowa City has produced 14 individual national award winners on 17 occasions, along with 101 NFL draft selections. He has also guided the Hawkeyes to Big Ten championships in 2002 and 2004, plus Big Ten West Division titles in 2015, 2021 and 2023.
The resume keeps piling up. Ferentz has 209 wins at Iowa, making him the winningest coach in Big Ten history in all games played while a member of the conference. His 133 Big Ten victories rank third in league history, behind only Michigan’s Bo Schembechler (143) and Ohio State’s Woody Hayes (153).
At 70, Ferentz has also taken Iowa to 23 bowl invitations, including 14 January bowl games. The Hawkeyes have finished in the top half of the Big Ten 19 times under his watch, and they’ve landed in the final top 25 six times in the last eight seasons.
This isn’t new territory for Ferentz. He was a Dodd Trophy semifinalist in 2023 and won the award in 2015.
That same year, he was also named Big Ten Coach of the Year for the fourth time, adding to honors from 2002, 2004 and 2009. In 2015, he also earned the Woody Hayes and Eddie Robinson National Coach of the Year awards.
The preseason watch list was assembled by the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation and Peach Bowl, Inc., with APR, GSR, community service and charity work, and projected success for the 2026 season all part of the evaluation.
Ferentz is joined on the list by coaches from Alabama, Boise State, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Houston, Illinois, Indiana, Louisville, Miami (FL), Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oregon, Tennessee, TCU, Texas, Texas A&M, USC and Washington.
Iowa opens the 2026 season on Sept. 5, hosting Northern Illinois at 3:15 p.m. CT at Kinnick Stadium.
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