Iowa Football's Recent History in the Preseason Coaches Poll Top 25

Iowa finds itself in the preseason top 25 more often than not, but it often feels like the Hawkeyes are being underrated. The 2026 poll feels no different.

Oct 18, 2025; Iowa City, Iowa, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes head coach Kirk Ferentz enters Kinnick Stadium before the game against the Penn State Nittany Lions. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Preseason polls - a method for madness, debates, and leverage for conferences to brag in August.

Meaningful stuff, right? Well, that's another conversation up for debate.

Nonetheless, preseason polls are upon us as fall camp is nearing full stride, and it's time to remind ourselves how painfully close we are to actually playing games on the field versus debating and hypothesizing conference hierarchies.

Kirk Ferentz's Hawkeyes Have Been a Regular in the Preseason Coaches Poll

For the Iowa Hawkeyes, the 2026 campaign feels like a crossroads. Is this team ready to take the next step? Or will it be another year of Iowa being Iowa? Coming in at No. 22 in the US LBM Coaches Poll, the stage is set for both with the Hawkeyes.

While Iowa hopes for the first, let's look back at those years of Iowa being Iowa, starting with preseason rankings.

Iowa Hawkeyes Recent Preseason Ranking History

Iowa is never too high, often too low, but has developed a reputation as a program with a high floor, hard ceiling, and a respectable amount of wins each year.

This purgatory, if we can call it that, has the Hawkeyes appearing in preseason rankings with a token ranking in the bottom half of the poll, daring Kirk Ferentz and Iowa to prove everyone wrong.

Iowa's Preseason Rankings: Coaches Poll

2026: No. 22
2025: n/a
2024: No. 25
2023: n/a (First team out receiving most votes)
2022: n/a (First team out receiving most votes)
2021: No. 18
2020: No. 23
2019: No. 19
2018: n/a
2017: n/a
2016: No. 15
2015: n/a

It's clear where Iowa stands in the eyes of the polls. This team gets the benefit of the doubt more often than not, but it's not by much.

The Hawkeyes are usually starting the season ranked near the bottom of the polls, but have a history of outperforming those expectations.

Sitting at No. 22 entering the 2026 campaign, the Hawkeyes are going to have ample opportunities, namely three games against Michigan, Ohio State, and Washington, to outperform this ranking.

Will Iowa exceed preseason Coaches Poll expectations during the 2026 season?

I hate to minimize things down to three games of a 12-game schedule, but it's really the case for Iowa.

The Hawkeyes open Big Ten play at Michigan, at home versus Ohio State, then on the road at Washington on a short week. It's among the nation's hardest stretches of any schedule.

Should Iowa manage to take one of those three, the second half of the schedule sets up very favorably for Iowa. If they can take two, this team has a clear path to reach the top 10 in the polls.