Big Ten vs SEC Scheduling: What Teams Make Sense for Iowa Football?

College basketball sees the ACC-SEC Challenge each season create fun matchups that give teams a breath of fresh air and give fans an exciting game before conference play really gets into full swing.

What if college football saw something of that nature? You would almost have to have it be between two power conferences. The gap in football from the Group of Five to the Power Four can be too big.

It is a fun hypothetical to think about, and if it did happen, the Iowa Hawkeyes are an intriguing team that could scare a lot of opponents should they play an early-season game outside of the Big Ten.

Big Ten vs SEC scheduling hypotheticals

Just last week, FOX college football analyst Joel Klatt dug into this scenario, while recognizing it would take a mountain of work to get the Big Ten and SEC to set up something like that. He presented some intriguing matchups, but he snubbed the Iowa Hawkeyes from his premier games.

What I learned at Big 10 Spring meetings last week and the match-ups we want to see in a Big 10 v SEC scheduling model https://t.co/TOR6J2xtiq
— Joel Klatt (@joelklatt) May 27, 2026

Iowa would have an intriguing aura around them for an SEC team to draw in Week 1 or Week 2 of the college football season. While the Hawkeyes may not be the most talented, they are a tough draw with the physicality, toughness, and disciplined nature of football they play.

What SEC teams make sense for the Iowa Hawkeyes?

Feb 21, 2024; Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA; Detailed view of the LSU Tigers logo on the the player chairs against the Kentucky Wildcats during the first half of the game at Pete Maravich Assembly Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images | Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

Off the bat, remove Alabama, Georgia, and Texas. These conferences would pit them against a combination of Ohio State, Oregon, Michigan, or Indiana.

Iowa is on that next tier in the Big Ten, though. The Hawkeyes proved just this past bowl season that they can hang with a 10-win SEC team and beat them, as they did Vanderbilt in the ReliaQuest Bowl.

Recent bowl games have pitted the Hawkeyes against Kentucky, Missouri, and Tennessee, all teams that are up-and-down in the SEC, but not necessarily as consistent as Iowa has been under Kirk Ferentz.

The second tier of the SEC is a group consisting of big brands, including Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, LSU, and Florida. This is the group that makes sense for Iowa for a few reasons.

Each of these schools has the history, the fan base, and the national draw that Iowa, despite being from, well, Iowa, manages to swing as well.

It also could prove to be a pivotal game for the College Football Playoff.

The top of the conferences could be in games, essentially giving a tie-breaker of sorts to the bye, while Iowa versus one from the previously mentioned bunch has a real shot at carrying real win-and-get-in type implications should it be called upon.

It is still just a thought in the college football universe, which is constantly full of new ways to change the schedule and playoff system, but if we are already in the spirit of changing things, why not shake it up even more?

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