With six games under their belt, the Iowa Hawkeyes sit a 4-2 overall with a 2-1 mark in Big Ten play. It is not an unusual position for Iowa at the moment as they were taking some time finding their footing, but may now have an identity.
Also familiar territory for Iowa is having a favorable slate ahead of them for the back half of the season. The Hawkeyes currently do not have another ranked opponent on their slate for the rest of 2024.
Everything Iowa set out for before the season, including a Big Ten Championship, is truly still in front of them. That isn’t just in theory either, but it has been put in writing by College Football News.
College Football News provided their Big Ten midseason projections and has given the Hawkeyes some high expectations. They have Iowa winning out the rest of the way and finishing 10-2 overall (8-1) in Big Ten play being tied for first in the conference.
Despite being tied for first, the Big Ten Championship game would feature a rematch of Ohio State vs. Oregon due to tiebreakers that leave the Hawkeyes on the outside looking in.
They have Iowa running the table against Michigan State, Northwestern, Wisconsin, UCLA, Maryland, and Nebraska, which isn’t entirely impossible if Iowa can continue to play like they just did against Washington.
The toughest game for Iowa may be the last one on their schedule. The Nebraska Cornhuskers are 5-1 and appear bound for a bowl game under head coach Matt Rhule after a severe drought.
Sure, it is a pleasant schedule for the Hawkeyes. No one is going to argue that. But, one can’t dismiss that Iowa seems to have much more than a pulse on offense to go along with their usual stout defense.
Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes, and opinions.
Follow Riley on Twitter: @rileydonald7