2026 Iowa Hawkeyes football team

2026 Iowa Hawkeyes football
Conference	Big Ten Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 22
AP	No. 22
Record	0–0 (0–0 Big Ten)
Head coach	Kirk Ferentz (28th season)
Offensive coordinator	Tim Lester (3rd season)
Defensive coordinator	Phil Parker (15th season)
Home stadium	Kinnick Stadium

2026 Big Ten Conference football standings

	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
Illinois		0	–	0					0	–	0
No. 6 Indiana		0	–	0					0	–	0
No. 22 Iowa		0	–	0					0	–	0
Maryland		0	–	0					0	–	0
No. 16 Michigan		0	–	0					0	–	0
Michigan State		0	–	0					0	–	0
Minnesota		0	–	0					0	–	0
Nebraska		0	–	0					0	–	0
Northwestern		0	–	0					0	–	0
No. 1 Ohio State		0	–	0					0	–	0
No. 2 Oregon		0	–	0					0	–	0
No. 18 Penn State		0	–	0					0	–	0
Purdue		0	–	0					0	–	0
Rutgers		0	–	0					0	–	0
UCLA		0	–	0					0	–	0
No. 14т USC		0	–	0					0	–	0
No. 17 Washington		0	–	0					0	–	0
Wisconsin		0	–	0					0	–	0
Championship: December 5, 2026
As of August 26, 2026 Rankings from AP poll

The 2026 Iowa Hawkeyes football team will represent the University of Iowa as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 2026 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Hawkeyes are led by Kirk Ferentz who is in his 28th year as head coach. Iowa will play their home games at Kinnick Stadium located in Iowa City, Iowa.

Offseason

2026 NFL draft

See also: 2026 NFL draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	NFL Club
2	57	Logan Jones	C	Chicago Bears
3	96	Gennings Dunker	T	Pittsburgh Steelers
4	121	Kaden Wetjen	WR	Pittsburgh Steelers
5	148	Beau Stephens	OG	Seattle Seahawks
6	183	Karson Sharar	LB	Arizona Cardinals
7	219	TJ Hall	CB	New Orleans Saints
7	238	Max Llewellyn	DE	Miami Dolphins

Transfers

Outgoing

Player	Position	Destination
Brian Allen	DL	Vanderbilt
CJ Bell	CB	UConn
Rhys Dakin	P	Michigan State
Koen Entringer	DB	Louisville
Kael Kolarik	S	South Dakota
Jaziun Patterson	RB	Michigan State
Jackson Stratton	QB	San Diego
Terrell Washington Jr.	RB	New Mexico State

Incoming

Player	Position	Previous school
Lance Beeghley	WR	Southern Methodist
Kahmari Brown	EDGE	Elon
Tyler Brown	S	James Madison
Tony Diaz	WR	UT Rio Grande Valley
Boston Everitt	P	Melbourne
Lance Ingold	EDGE	Northern Illinois
Cody Haddad	DB	Ohio State
Anthony Hawkins	S	Villanova
Evan James	WR	Furman
Emmanuel Olagbaju	DL	North Dakota
Eli Ozick	K	North Dakota State
L. J. Phillips	RB	South Dakota
Tanner Philpott	P	Simpson
Brice Stevenson	DL	Holy Cross
Xavier Styles	S	Robert Morris
Trent Wilson	OL	James Madison

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result
September 5	3:15 p.m.	Northern Illinois*	No. 22	Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA	BTN
September 12	6:30 p.m.	Iowa State*		Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA (Cy-Hawk Trophy)	NBC
September 19	3:00 p.m.	Northern Iowa*		Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA	FS1
September 26		at Michigan		Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI
October 3		Ohio State		Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA
October 9	8:00 p.m.	at Washington		Husky Stadium Seattle, WA
October 24		at Minnesota		Huntington Bank Stadium Minneapolis, MN (Floyd of Rosedale)
October 31		Wisconsin		Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA (Heartland Trophy)
November 7		at Northwestern		Ryan Field Evanston, IL
November 14		Purdue		Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA
November 21		at Illinois		Gies Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL (rivalry)
November 27	11:00 a.m.	Nebraska		Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA (Heroes Game)	CBS
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll - Released prior to game All times are in Central time Source:

Rankings

Further information: 2026 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings

Ranking movements

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	Final
AP	22
Coaches	22
CFP	Not released																Not released

Game summaries

vs Northern Illinois

See also: 2026 Northern Illinois Huskies football team

Iowa has only lost to the Huskies once (2013) in this series but have struggled against them several times.

Northern Illinois Huskies (0–0) at No. 22 Iowa Hawkeyes (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Huskies			0
No. 22 Hawkeyes			0

at Kinnick Stadium • Iowa City, Iowa

• Date: September 5
• Game time: 3:15 p.m. CST
• TV announcers (BTN): TBD

Statistics	NIU	IOWA
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Northern Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Iowa	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

vs Iowa State

See also: 2026 Iowa State Cyclones football team and Iowa–Iowa State football rivalry

Iowa State has won three of the last four in this in-state series. The Hawkeyes will be out for revenge after a lackluster performance in the last meeting.

Iowa State Cycloness (0–0) at Iowa Hawkeyes (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Cyclones			0
Hawkeyes			0

at Kinnick Stadium • Iowa City, Iowa

• Date: September 12
• Game time: 6:30 p.m. CST
• TV announcers (NBC): TBD

Statistics	ISU	IOWA
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Iowa State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Iowa	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

vs Northern Iowa (FCS)

See also: 2026 Northern Iowa Panthers football team

The first meeting of the two Iowa schools since 2018. A 2020 match-up was canceled due to the pandemic. The Panthers will be seeking redemption as they were humbled in their last visit to Iowa City.

Northern Iowa Panthers (FCS) (0–0) at Iowa Hawkeyes (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Panthers (FCS)			0
Hawkeyes			0

at Kinnick Stadium • Iowa City, Iowa

• Date: September 19
• Game time: 3:00 p.m. CST
• TV announcers (FS1): TBD

Statistics	UNI	IOWA
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Northern Iowa	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Iowa	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Michigan

See also: 2026 Michigan Wolverines football team

Iowa hasn't beaten Michigan since 2016 and has only won at Michigan Stadium twice in the Ferentz era (2002, 2010).

Iowa Hawkeyes (0–0) at Michigan Wolverines (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Hawkeyes			0
Wolverines			0

at Michigan Stadium • Ann Arbor, Michigan

• Date: September 26

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	IOWA	MICH
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Iowa	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Michigan	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

vs Ohio State

See also: 2026 Ohio State Buckeyes football team

The Buckeyes' first visit to Iowa City since 2017. Iowa will be looking to upset the Big Ten powerhouse.

Ohio State Buckeyes (0–0) at Iowa Hawkeyes (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Buckeyes			0
Hawkeyes			0

at Kinnick Stadium • Iowa City, Iowa

• Date: October 3

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	OSU	IOWA
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Ohio State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Iowa	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Washington

See also: 2026 Washington Huskies football team

The Hawkeyes' first visit to Seattle since 1963. The Huskies will be looking to avenge a loss from two years prior.

Iowa Hawkeyes (0–0) at Washington Huskies (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Hawkeyes			0
Huskies			0

at Husky Stadium • Seattle, Washington

• Date: October 9
• Game time: 8:00 p.m. CST
• TV announcers (FOX or FS1): TBD

Statistics	IOWA	WASH
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Iowa	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Washington	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Minnesota

See also: 2026 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team and Iowa–Minnesota football rivalry

Iowa has won five consecutive road games in this trophy series and humiliated the Gophers the previous season.

Iowa Hawkeyes (0–0) at Minnesota Golden Gophers (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Hawkeyes			0
Golden Gophers			0

at Huntington Bank Stadium • Minneapolis, Minnesota

• Date: October 24

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	IOWA	MINN
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Iowa	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Minnesota	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

vs Wisconsin

See also: 2026 Wisconsin Badgers football team and Iowa–Wisconsin football rivalry

This will be the 100th meeting in the series (Wisconsin leads, 49–48–2). Iowa has dominated the last two meetings in this border rivalry (79–10 margin), and are seeking their fifth consecutive victory for the first time in three decades. Wisconsin also hasn't won at Kinnick Stadium since 2018.

Wisconsin Badgers (0–0) at Iowa Hawkeyes (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Badgers			0
Hawkeyes			0

at Kinnick Stadium • Iowa City, Iowa

• Date: October 31

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	WIS	IOWA
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Wisconsin	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Iowa	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Northwestern

See also: 2026 Northwestern Wildcats football team

Iowa has won four straight and five of the last six in this series.

Iowa Hawkeyes (0–0) at Northwestern Wildcats (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Hawkeyes			0
Wildcats			0

at Ryan Field • Evanston, Illinois

• Date: November 7

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	IOWA	NU
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Iowa	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Northwestern	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

vs Purdue

See also: 2026 Purdue Boilermakers football team

These two programs have split their last eight meetings with each other prior to not playing in 2024 or 2025.

Purdue Boilermakers (0–0) at Iowa Hawkeyes (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Boilermakers			0
Hawkeyes			0

at Kinnick Stadium • Iowa City, Iowa

• Date: November 14

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	PUR	IOWA
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Purdue	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Iowa	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Illinois

See also: 2026 Illinois Fighting Illini football team

Illinois ended a long losing streak in this series with Iowa's last visit in 2022.

Iowa Hawkeyes (0–0) at Illinois Fighting Illini (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Hawkeyes			0
Fighting Illini			0

at Gies Memorial Stadium • Champaign, Illinois

• Date: November 21

Game information
First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter

Statistics	IOWA	ILL
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Iowa	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

vs Nebraska

See also: 2026 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team and Iowa–Nebraska football rivalry

The Hawkeyes have won 10 of the last 11 in this trophy series. Nebraska will be looking to avenge a humbling loss from the previous season.

Nebraska Cornhuskers (0–0) at Iowa Hawkeyes (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	Total
Cornhuskers			0
Hawkeyes			0

at Kinnick Stadium • Iowa City, Iowa

• Date: November 27
• Game time: 11:00 a.m. CST
• TV: CBS

Statistics	NEB	IOWA
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Nebraska	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Iowa	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

Roster

2026 Iowa Hawkeyes football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class QB 9 Hank Brown Jr QB 16 Ryan Fitzgerald  Fr QB 10 Jeremy Hecklinski  So QB 3 Jimmy Sullivan  Fr RB 15 O'Lontae Dean  Fr RB 23 Brevin Doll  So RB 22 Braeden Jackson  Fr RB 5 Nathan McNeil So RB 28 Kamari Moulton  Jr RB 21 Lendon Phillips Jr. Jr RB 26 Xavier Williams  So WR 88 Lance Beeghley So WR 0 Jarriett Buie  Jr WR 14 Tony Diaz So WR 17 Alex Eichmann Sr WR 7 Dayton Howard  Jr WR 8 Evan James So WR 83 Jackson Naeve  So WR 1 KJ Parker  So WR 84 Apollo Payne  Fr WR 12 Diondre Smith Fr WR 13 Terrence Smith  Fr WR 82 Dylan Stecker  Fr WR 6 Xavier Stinson Fr WR 2 Reece Vander Zee Jr TE 80 Michael Burt  So TE 86 Eli Johnson  Fr TE 85 Thomas Meyer  Fr TE 48 Zach Ortwerth Sr TE 87 Addison Ostrenga  Sr TE 81 DJ Vonnahme  So TE 19 Mason Woods  Fr OL 60 Lucas Allgeyer  Fr OL 71 Jack Dotzler Sr OL 52 Will Hahn  Fr OL 63 Josh Janowski  So OL 64 Leighton Jones  Jr OL 59 Trevor Lauck  Jr OL 75 Cannon Leonard  Jr OL 72 Owen Linder Fr OL 74 Bodey McCaslin  So OL 77 George Nahas  Jr OL 79 Carson Nielsen Fr OL 68 Will Nolan  So OL 70 Hudson Parliament Fr OL 58 Kade Pieper  Jr OL 78 Gene Riordan Fr OL 65 Trent Wilson So OL 61 Cael Winter  Jr	Defense Pos. # Name Class DE 84 Joseph Anderson  So DE 13 Drew Campbell  So DE 40 Chima Chineke  So DL 56 Maddux Borcherding-Johnson  Jr DL 43 Kahmari Brown Jr DL 97 Iose Epenesa  Fr DL 99 Brad Fitzgibbon  Fr DL 51 Luke Gaffney Sr DL 96 Bryce Hawthorne Jr DL 57 Will Hubert  Sr DL 95 Lance Ingold So DL 45 Jack Janda Fr DL 32 Sawyer Jezierski Fr DL 99 Devan Kennedy  So DL 50 Will Lockhart  Fr DL 44 Kenneth Merrieweather  Jr DL 88 Emmanuel Olagbaju Jr DL 92 Brice Stevenson Sr LB 33 Cam Buffington  So LB 15 Carson Cooney  Fr LB 31 Nolan DeLong  Jr LB 10 Burke Gautcher  Fr LB 47 Jack Laughlin  Jr LB 4 Julian Manson Fr LB 36 Jayden Montgomery Sr LB 46 Preston Ries  So LB 23 Landyn Van Kekerix Sr LB 22 Derek Weisskopf  So LB 12 Billy Weivoda Fr DB 2 Tyler Brown Jr DB 17 Teegan Davis  Jr DB 19 Kyler Gerardy  So DB 7 Rashad Godfrey Jr.  So DB 0 Cody Haddad  Fr DB 5 Anthony Hawkins So DB 20 Ty Hudkins Jr DB 8 Deshaun Lee Sr DB 6 Zach Lutmer  Jr DB 34 Drew MacPherson  Fr DB 14 Alex Mota  Jr DB 18 Xavier Styles So DB 11 Jacob Wallace  Fr DB 3 Jaylen Watson Jr DB 16 Ronnie Hall Fr DB 1 Darion Jones Fr DB 26 Eli Robbins Fr DB 21 Marcello Vitti Fr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K 92 Caden Buhr  Fr K 25 Eli Ozick Jr P 49 Boston Everitt Fr P 35 Tanner Philpott Jr LS 47 Ike Speltz  So	Head coach Kirk Ferentz Coordinators/assistant coaches Seth Wallace – Assistant head coach/Assistant defensive coordinator/linebackers Tim Lester – Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks Phil Parker – Defensive coordinator/secondary Chris Polizzi – Special teams coordinator George Barnett Offensive line Kelvin Bell – Defensive line Omar Young – Running backs Jon Budmayr – Wide receivers Abdul Hodge – Tight ends/fullbacks Jay Niemann – Assistant defensive line/defensive recruiting coordinator Jason Mason - Senior football analyst/Assistant offensive coach Raimond Braithwaite – Director, strength and conditioning Drew Heitland – Assistant, strength and conditioning Kohle Helle – Assistant, strength and conditioning Cody Myers – Assistant, strength and conditioning Allan Reyes – Assistant, strength and conditioning Cedric Nah – Strength and conditioning specialist Tyler Barnes – Chief of Staff/Meneral manager Austin Showalter – Associate Director, Football Operations Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster Last update: April 27, 2026