Iowa Hawkeyes Make Major Move in New Rankings

The Iowa Hawkeyes have made a rather significant move in a new set of college football rankings.

Nov 25, 2022; Iowa City, Iowa, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes head coach Kirk Ferentz watches his team play the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Kinnick Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Reese Strickland-Imagn Images | Reese Strickland-Imagn Images

The Iowa Hawkeyes had a relatively disappointing year last season, going 8-5 and falling to the Missouri Tigers in the Music City Bowl.

Looking back, we probably shouldn't be too surprised that Iowa wasn't all that great in 2024, as its offense outside of Kaleb Johnson was absolutely horrendous.

However, the Hawkeyes took major strides in addressing the offensive side of the ball this offseason, landing quarterback Mark Gronowski and wide receiver Sam Phillips via the transfer portal.

Yes, Johnson has departed for the NFL, but Iowa has a couple of very intriguing running backs set to take his place in Kamari Moulton and Jaziun Patterson.

Not only that, but the Hawkeyes project to be very strong defensively yet again, which is why they cracked USA Today's top-25 rankings following spring practice.

Iowa comes in at No. 24, just ahead of Oklahoma in the top 25. That is good for sixth among Big Ten teams, so Kirk Ferentz's group will still have plenty of work to do in order to make some noise in one of the best conferences in the country.

The Hawkeyes have generally always been a solid program under Ferentz, but they have been unable to take that next step. Playing in a conference that includes schools like Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State and, more recently, Oregon, obviously makes that difficult, but perhaps Iowa will be able to vault itself into the upper echelon of Big Ten squads next season.

Much of the Hawkeyes' success will be determined by how well Gronowski—who won the Walton Payton Award (essentially the FCS player of the year) at South Dakota State in 2023—adjusts and performs against a fiercer level of competition.

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