Iowa Gets Another Disappointing Ranking

This week, the Iowa Hawkeyes (3-2) (1-1) are tasked with responding. After a disheartening 20-15 loss to the now No. 7 Indiana Hoosiers (5-0) (2-0) two weeks ago, the focus must now be on an improved performance heading into a loud Camp Randall Stadium next weekend to go head-to-head with Luke Fickell’s Wisconsin Badgers (2-3) (0-2).

At the risk of sounding like your stereotypical coach, next Saturday feels like one of those “must-win” kind of games. If Iowa can march into one of the loudest stadiums in the nation and take down the Badgers, then the Hawkeyes' record will bump to 4-2, and things will be steadied around a fervent Kinnick Stadium.

Yet if Iowa were to head home with two conference losses on the record and a .500 overall slate, then the feeling around this season’s potential drops.

In the Athletic’s piece titled “Ranking 136 college football teams after Week 6: Miami takes top spot after a wild weekend,” the Hawkeyes were slotted in 41st place, having moved down by one after last week’s bye.

Nine other teams from the Big Ten ranked ahead of Iowa.

After a week that was filled with coordinator press conferences and relapses to the loss to the Hoosiers, this is a ranking that feels relatively fair. After all, the Hawkeyes’ losses have come down to last-second errors in both the 16-13 loss to the No. 22 (5-1) (1-1) Iowa State Cyclones and the Hoosiers, which shows a squad that can compete with the nation’s elite, but wins over UAlbany (1-5) (0-2), UMass (0-5) (0-1) and Rutgers (3-2) (0-2) will not typically light the world on fire.

Where are the Hawkeyes ranked? — Iowa Hawkeyes head coach Kirk Ferentz runs off the field with his players after becoming the winningest coach in Big Ten history, passing Woody Hayes, with a win over the Massachusetts Minutemen Sept. 13, 2025 at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa. | Julia Hansen/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

This was a weekend that saw a number of heavyweights clash, including No. 2 Miami (5-0) (1-0) take down Florida State (3-2) (0-2) in a near-monstrous 28-22 comeback effort from the Seminoles.

No. 20 Vanderbilt suffered its first loss of the season after falling to No. 8 Alabama in a 30-14 Crimson Tide win.

Scott Satterfield’s Cincinnati (4-1) (2-0) took down the up to that point perfect Iowa State Cyclones in a 38-30 shootout.

The biggest upset of the weekend was UCLA’s (1-4) (1-1) 42-37 takedown of the Penn State Nittany Lions (3-2) (1-1).

For those who are wondering, the Badgers are ranked 74th on the list.

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