Iowa Leading All of College Football in Essential Stat

"Explosivity" isn't exactly the most common word in the Iowa Hawkeyes' vernacular. Head coach Kirk Ferentz and his veteran-led football team have made a name for themselves this season on their diehard consistency, especially on the defensive side of the football.

In the B1G, one of the nation's most notoriously difficult leagues, Iowa's efficiency between the lines has set the team apart in a sea of more sporadic regimes.

Keeping it Between the Ditches

At 6-2 (4-1) and tied for fourth in the conference, the Hawkeyes are aiming for upper-echelon status that was last achieved by the team in their 2023 B1G championship appearance. While they lost that bout to the Michigan Wolverines, to be back in the conversation after a relative off-year services both Ferentz' continued tenure and the program's reputation.

Part of the team's ongoing consistency is their unmatched ability to avoid drawing penalties. Of the 136 FBS teams playing in 2025, the Iowa Hawkeyes have (by far and away) the least yellow flags thrown at their feet. Only 26 teams have committed fewer than 30, eight fewer than 25 and just one below 19.

There are 136 FBS teams in 2025.

26 FBS teams have committed fewer than 30 penalties in 2025.

Eight (8) FBS teams have committed fewer than 25 penalties in 2025.

ONLY one (1) FBS team has committed fewer than 19 penalties in 2025:

• Iowa Hawkeyes - 13 penalties

Discipline. pic.twitter.com/kDW3UgSaHg
— Ben Stevens (@BenScottStevens) October 16, 2025

That team, of course, is the Iowa Hawkeyes. Say what you will about HC Kirk Ferentz - especially given his inability to generate explosive plays from his team when they're needed - but objectively, no team has been better this season about making unforced mistakes. If and when Iowa loses, their mistakes that lead them there are very rarely self-inflicted.

A Final Test for Conference Supremacy

Moving forward, the Hawkeyes will work to continue to force other teams to beat them (a task growing harder by the week) when the #6 Oregon Ducks come into Iowa City after the bye-break this week. In the third-spot in the B1G, just one place above the Hawkeyes' current standing, Oregon represents a sort of "final test" for Iowa before their bid for conference relevance is fully realized in a would-be pedestal standing.

Iowa Hawkeyes quarterback Mark Gronowski | Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Further, the team's growing call for national recognition in the form of an AP Poll ranking would likely grow to an undeniable degree. Much of what has driven the Iowa Hawkeyes' success and motivation to this point is wrapped up into a big, crucial ball in their matchup against Oregon at home.

A win in that game - unlikely, sure, but possible given their aforementioned league-best consistency - would set the team apart in a way that they haven't yet been in the 2025 season. It'll likely be the decider between a middling finish and a true championship chance.

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