Iowa Looks to Become Bowl Eligible vs. Minnesota

Six wins is the magic number in college football. Heading into a marquee B1G matchup on October 25, the 5-2 (3-1) Iowa Hawkeyes are set to do battle with the 5-2 (3-1) Minnesota Golden Gophers. Ultimately, one team will leave knowing they've qualified for a bowl game.

In the modern era of college football, some teams elect to pad their wins by choosing rather easy non-conference opponents. Iowa's non-conference schedule included wins over Albany and UMass, two teams that have a combined 1-13 record.

Their other non-conference game saw them fall to No. 16 Iowa State, 16-13. The Cyclones are no longer ranked, though they at least have a respectible 5-2 record. Regardless, head coach Kirk Ferentz knows he has five chances to send Iowa to their fifth straight bowl game.

Iowa Needs One More Win To Become Bowl Eligible

Iowa Hawkeyes defensive back TJ Hall (2) hugs Iowa Hawkeyes head coach Kirk Ferentz after the Hawkeys’ win against 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

Ignoring the modified 2020 season, Iowa has been in a bowl game each year since 2012. Ferentz may be just 1-3 in his last four bowl games, but he's hovering around .500 with a 10-11 career record. After failing to make a bowl game in his first two seasons, he's only missed making one in three seasons.

Seeing as he began his coaching job in 1999, that's quite a solid track record. In the past few seasons, Iowa has been stuck in the Citrus Bowl and Music City Bowl. There's nothing wrong with either of those games, but it's not quite comparable to their past appearance in the Orange or Rose Bowl.

If the Golden Gophers vs. Hawkeyes rivalry game wasn't enough, each team knows the implications going in. While it's hard to imagine a scenario where neither of these teams become bowl eligible, it's quite impressive to do so in late October.

Iowa's Bowl Game Projections

Iowa Hawkeyes quarterback Mark Gronowski (11) slides 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

In the past few weeks, Iowa has consistently been projected for the ReliaQuest Bowl. This week is no different. ESPN's Mark Schlabach has once again placed them in the New Year's Eve bowl game that takes place at the home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. This week, their projected opponent is red-hot Vanderbilt.

Elsewhere, Kyle Bonagura sees them heading to Las Vegas. Bonagura has Michigan vs. Missouri in his ReliaQuest Bowl, and instead placed Iowa in the SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl. That game is played in Allegiant Stadium, home of the Las Vegas Raiders. If Iowa were to make that bowl game, Bonagura believes Utah would be their opponent.

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