Iowa Cracks Top 15 in Key Statistic

No one has ever doubted the Iowa Hawkeyes defense, and if they have, they've never watched a Kirk Ferentz-coached team. Even though the Hawkeyes had four blemishes on their record this season, they didn't lose a single game by more than one score.

All four of their losses were by a combined 15 points. All four losses were to ranked teams, even though Iowa State no longer cracks the AP Top 25. That's one game they'd certainly love to have back, but all four losses still proved just how legit this Iowa defense is.

ESPN recently compiled a list of all 136 teams and their defensive stop rate. It's a straightforward number to look at as Max Olson also provided how many points per drive each team allowed. Both are eye-opening numbers as Iowa managed to crack the nation's Top 15.

Iowa Ranks No. 14 In Defensive Stop Rate

Iowa Hawkeyes defensive back Xavier Nwankpa (1) reacts during a college football game against the Penn State Nittany Lions Oct. 18, 2025 at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa. | Julia Hansen/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Olson describes the statistic as being, "a basic measurement of success: the percentage of a defense's drives that end in punts, turnovers or a turnover on downs. Defensive coordinators have the same goal regardless of their scheme, opponent or conference: prevent points and get off the field. Stop rate is a simple metric but can offer a good reflection of a defense's effectiveness on a per-drive basis in today's faster-tempo game."

Ranked No. 14, Iowa has a defensive stop rate of 73.8%. For reference, the top team, Texas Tech, has a stop rate of 84.8%. There are only four teams with a number higher than 80%, and the lone Big Ten team in that category is Ohio State.

Iowa finds themselves behind the No. 4 Buckeyes, No. 5 Indiana and No. 8 Oregon in the B1G. Those are the only teams in the conference that beat them, and it makes sense that two of their four losses came to teams in that category. Keep in mind, Iowa didn't face Ohio State this season.

Iowa Allowed 1.42 Points Per Drive

This year, only Texas Tech and Ohio State allowed fewer than one point per drive. Iowa is one of ten teams that allowed 1.50 or fewer. A few of the teams directly ahead of them, No. 13 Virginia, No. 12 Fresno State, No. 11 LSU, and No. 9 Old Dominion, all allowed more points per drive than the Hawkeyes.

Iowa's defense didn't allow more than 28 points in a game this season. Oddly enough, that point total came against Rutgers, a game they won, 38-28. In their four losses, the Hawkeyes allowed 16, 20, 18, and 26 points.

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