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IOWA picked to finish 8th in the B1G in Cleveland.com Preseason B1G Football Media Poll

Franisdaman

Franisdaman

Heisman
Nov 3, 2012
16,189
24,772
113
Gonzo_Bloor said:
Seems about right. I'd say the ceiling is 5th, floor is probably 10th.
Click to expand...

Probably another 8-4 (maybe 9-3) type season with these the 4 most likely losses?

at Michigan
Ohio State
at Washington
at Illinois

I do like when our ONE BYE WEEK is:

Oct 3:................vs Ohio State (at Kinnick)
Oct 9:................at Washington
Oct 17:...........BYE WEEK
Oct 24:...........at Minnesota


Our Updated 2026 Football Schedule:

DateOpponentTime/TV
Sat
Sep 5		NIU Huskies
Kinnick Stadium,
Iowa City, IA		Time: 3:15pm CT
TV: BTN
Sat
Sep 12		Iowa State Cyclones
Kinnick Stadium,
Iowa City, IA		Time: 6:30 pm CT
TV: NBC
Sat
Sep 19		Northern Iowa Panthers
Kinnick Stadium,
Iowa City, IA		Time: 3:00 pm CT
TV: FS1
Sat
Sep 26		at Michigan Wolverines
Michigan Stadium,
Ann Arbor, MI		Time TBA
TV TBA
Sat
Oct 3		Ohio State Buckeyes
Kinnick Stadium,
Iowa City, IA		Time TBA
TV TBA
Fri
Oct 9		at Washington Huskies
Husky Stadium,
Seattle, WA		Time: 8:00 pm CT
TV: FOX/FS1
Sat
Oct 24		at Minnesota Golden Gophers
Huntington Bank Stadium,
Minneapolis, MN		Time TBA
TV TBA
Sat
Oct 31		Wisconsin Badgers
Kinnick Stadium,
Iowa City, IA		Time TBA
TV TBA
Sat
Nov 7		at Northwestern Wildcats
NW Medicine at Martin Stadium,
Evanston, IL		Time TBA
TV TBA
Sat
Nov 14		Purdue Boilermakers
Kinnick Stadium,
Iowa City, IA		Time TBA
TV TBA
Sat
Nov 21		at Illinois Fighting Illini
Gies Memorial Stadium,
Champaign, IL		Time TBA
TV TBA
Fri
Nov 27		Nebraska Cornhuskers
Kinnick Stadium,
Iowa City, IA		Time: 11:00 am CT
TV: CBS
 
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52317Hawk

All-Conference
Jul 3, 2025
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Franisdaman said:
1. Ohio State
2. Oregon
3. Indiana
4. USC
5. Michigan
6. Penn State
7. Washington
8. IOWA
9. Illinois
10. Minnesota
11. Nebraska
12. Wisconsin
13. UCLA
14. Northwestern
15. Maryland
16. Michigan State
17. Rutgers
18. Purdue


The free story:

www.on3.com

Preseason Big Ten Football Poll released by Cleveland.com

.
www.on3.com www.on3.com
Click to expand...
You can rank teams individually or put them in tiers. Any of the top 2 tiers could make the playoffs.
Tier 1-
1. Ohio State
2. Oregon
3. Indiana

Tier 2-
4. USC
5. Michigan
6. Penn State
7. Washington
8. IOWA
9. Illinois

Tier 3-
10. Minnesota
11. Nebraska
12. Wisconsin
13. UCLA
14. Northwestern

Tier 4-
15. Maryland
16. Michigan State
17. Rutgers
18. Purdue
 
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Grayhair1981

All-Conference
Sep 3, 2006
770
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93
83Hawk said:
I agree. Assuming the defense and special teams continue to play well, the Oline and QB will go a long way in determining the overall success of the season.

Cue eyes’ laughing emoji in 3…2…1…
Click to expand...
"It won't make a damn bit of difference who the QB is"
 
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TrojanHawkeye

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Feb 11, 2009
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BigDelHawk said:
Pbbbt 11-1 baby, will be in the championship hunt!
Click to expand...
 
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nu2u

nu2u

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Aug 10, 2006
10,453
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52317Hawk said:
Tier 4-
15. Maryland
16. Michigan State
17. Rutgers
18. Purdue
Click to expand...
Is there a surprise team from the bottom tier? By surprise I mean bowl eligible and/or a winning record.

MD - 5star QB Malik Washington set school records as a freshman, offense should be potent but alas you are stuck with HC Mike Locksley and his trademark leaky defense. ‘26 schedule does not look daunting. I see 5 maybe 6 wins this year. I’m going 6-6 for the Terps.

Michigan State - I believe the O/U is 3.5 if you are a bettor. Take the over? Fitz always has his team well prepared. If he can post home wins over a couple MAAC teams to start the season, he will need a couple home upsets (Nebraska?) to beat the oddsmakers. I’m going 4-7 Year1 of the FitzSpartan era.

Rutgers & Purdue - haven’t read much about them but I like both HCs.
 
Franisdaman

Franisdaman

Heisman
Nov 3, 2012
16,189
24,772
113
The media predicted the right champion 4 times in the 15 years (27%) of this poll.

The full story:

Ohio State picked as 2026 Big Ten favorite in 16th annual Cleveland.com Preseason Big Ten Football Poll​

Story by Stephen Means,
cleveland.com
July 27, 2026

CHICAGO — Ohio State opens the 2026 season back in a familiar position, at the top of the Big Ten conversation.

For the 10th time since its introduction in 2011, the Buckeyes have been picked as the favorites to win the conference in the 16th annual Cleveland.com Preseason Big Ten Football Poll.

The Buckeyes are heading into their eighth season under Ryan Day , with a former NFL head coach coordinating both sides of the ball.

His defense is run by Matt Patricia in his second season in Columbus. For the second straight year, the defense only returns three starters in defensive end Kenyatta Jackson, cornerback Jermaine Matthews and safety Jaylen McClain.

Meanwhile on offense, OSU returns all but two starters for a unit headlined by quarterback Julian Sayin, wide receiver Jeremiah Smith and one of the nation’s most experienced offensive lines. Day hired longtime NFL coach Arthur Smith to oversee the unit, replacing Brian Hartline, who is now a first-year head coach at South Florida.

This will be Smith’s first season in college football since he was a member of Ole Miss’ support staff in 2010.

Last season, Ohio State came close to reclaiming the Big Ten title for the first time since 2020 before losing in the title game to Indiana in a matchup that came down to a missed field goal.

For the Hoosiers, that game was the first tangible reward for a team that went on to win the national title, had its quarterback Fernando Mendoza win the Heisman Trophy, and became the first 16-0 team in modern college football. The last two years under Curt Cignetti represent arguably the most impressive turnaround any program has ever had.

Now Indiana enters the 2026 season once again expected to compete at the top of the conference, picked to finish third. The only other team above the reigning national champions is Oregon, which Indiana beat twice last season — first in Eugene during the regular season, then again in the Peach Bowl as part of the College Football Playoff semifinals.

Ohio State, Indiana and the Ducks were the only teams to receive either first- or second-place votes this year.

Cleveland.com picked up the responsibility for organizing the poll when the Big Ten dropped it 16 years ago. Beat writers from all 18 Big Ten teams were invited to participate, as were some who cover the entire league or have a national perspective. A total of 31 voters participated.

The only other major conference that does not organize and release a preseason poll is the Big 12, which stopped doing so heading into the 2025 season.

Big Ten Media Days are Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday in Chicago. The conference will release a watch list of players — five from each division — but will not release a predicted finish.

Each writer was asked to vote 1–18, with first-place votes worth 18 points, second-place votes worth 17 points, and so on

The results:

1. Ohio State (540 points; 15 first place votes)
2. Oregon (527 points; 11 first place votes)
3. Indiana (509 points; 5 first place votes)
4. USC (446 points)
5. Michigan (430 points)
6. Penn State (380 points)
7. Washington (366 points)
8. Iowa (361 points)
9. Illinois (354 points)
10. Minnesota (268 points)
11. Nebraska (246 points)
12. Wisconsin (207 points)
13. UCLA (199 points)
14. Northwestern (140 points)
15. Maryland (137 points)
16. Michigan State (99 points)
17. Rutgers (97 points)
18. Purdue (45 points)

College Football Playoff prediction​

Cleveland.com also asked voters to predict how many teams from the Big Ten would make the 12-team College Football Playoff.

Despite being picked to finish first in the conference, Ohio State only showed up on 27 of 31 ballots. Indiana and Oregon showed up on all but one ballot.

Other teams receiving votes were USC (8), Michigan (2) and Iowa (1).

Other poll notes​

• While this is the 10th time Ohio State has been crowned the preseason champion, it’s the fourth time it’s happened under Day.

• Ohio State was the only team not to receive a vote lower than third place.

• Every ballot included some combination of Ohio State, Oregon or Indiana in the Big Ten Championship Game. Sixteen people picked the Buckeyes to win, eight picked the Ducks and four picked the Hoosiers.

• Penn State had the widest range of votes, ranging from fourth to 11th.

• While only three teams got first-place votes, six different teams got last-place votes: Nebraska, Northwestern, Maryland, Michigan State, Rutgers and Purdue.

• This is the third straight year that Purdue has been picked to finish last in the conference.

Preseason History​

2025: Pick: Penn State. Actual: Indiana

2024: Pick: Ohio State. Actual: Oregon

2023: Pick: Michigan. Actual: Michigan.

2022: Pick: Ohio State. Actual: Michigan.

2021: Pick: Ohio State. Actual: Michigan.

2020: Pick: Ohio State. Actual: Ohio State.

2019: Pick: Michigan. Actual: Ohio State.

2018: Pick: Ohio State. Actual: Ohio State.

2017: Pick: Ohio State. Actual: Ohio State.

2016: Pick: Ohio State. Actual: Penn State.

2015: Pick: Ohio State. Actual: Michigan State.

2014: Pick: Michigan State. Actual: Ohio State.

2013: Pick: Ohio State. Actual: Michigan State.

2012: Pick: Michigan. Actual: Wisconsin.

2011: Pick: Nebraska. Actual: Wisconsin.

https://www.cleveland.com/osu/2026/...elandcom-preseason-big-ten-football-poll.html
 
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B

BigDelHawk

Redshirt
Jan 9, 2004
44
36
18
nu2u said:
Is there a surprise team from the bottom tier? By surprise I mean bowl eligible and/or a winning record.

MD - 5star QB Malik Washington set school records as a freshman, offense should be potent but alas you are stuck with HC Mike Locksley and his trademark leaky defense. ‘26 schedule does not look daunting. I see 5 maybe 6 wins this year. I’m going 6-6 for the Terps.

Michigan State - I believe the O/U is 3.5 if you are a bettor. Take the over? Fitz always has his team well prepared. If he can post home wins over a couple MAAC teams to start the season, he will need a couple home upsets (Nebraska?) to beat the oddsmakers. I’m going 4-7 Year1 of the FitzSpartan era.

Rutgers & Purdue - haven’t read much about them but I like both HCs.
Click to expand...
Fitz is a damn good coach. With Lavar Woods there as his Assistant Head Coach, you can bet they will build an Iowa like all business mentality at that School. The days of them getting the cast offs that Michigan didn't want are gone.
 
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IACub

IACub

All-American
Sep 25, 2009
1,837
5,867
113
Iowa and Illinois are very close based on strength of schedule. The 7-8-9 spots are all up for grabs based on head-to-head with the Illini and Huskies. Michigan should out-talent us, but new coach/new system, so who knows? Penn State is 2025 Iowa State leveled up, so I expect them to compete, but until Campbell can start spending that blue blood money, it's still basically the 2025 Cyclones with some extra talent. USC plays Oregon, Washington, at Penn State, OSU, and at Indiana. They could be a better team than Iowa with a worse record.

So, yeah, anywhere from 4-9.
 
E

eyesofhawk

All-Conference
Apr 17, 2011
3,006
3,046
113
83Hawk said:
I agree. Assuming the defense and special teams continue to play well, the Oline and QB will go a long way in determining the overall success of the season.

Cue eyes’ laughing emoji in 3…2…1…
Click to expand...

Grayhair1981 said:
"It won't make a damn bit of difference who the QB is"
Click to expand...
There is 27 years worth of data that does not show a strong correlation between wins and QB play, under KF.

Sorry, but the narratives are not supported by the facts.

And fan negativity around QB play, has in no way been justified
 
E

eyesofhawk

All-Conference
Apr 17, 2011
3,006
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113
Grayhair1981 said:
Try telling the players they have zero chance of winning a natty.
And you are utterly full of **** saying there is no correlation between QB play and wins. It has literally been the difference in every team that has won a natty in the CFP era except for possibly Muchigan
Click to expand...
The players are not going to be reading that particular sentiment expressed by one faceless fan. At least they shouldn't be.

And I was clearly speaking of the level of correlation that has existed at Iowa for 27 years.

I don't know why you're always trying turns one's words into something else.

And I also never said, "no correlation"
 
G

Grayhair1981

All-Conference
Sep 3, 2006
770
1,478
93
eyesofhawk said:
The players are not going to be reading that particular sentiment expressed by one faceless fan. At least they shouldn't be.

And I was clearly speaking of the level of correlation that has existed at Iowa for 27 years.

I don't know why you're always trying turns one's words into something else.

And I also never said, "no correlation"
Click to expand...
"Does not show a strong correlation."
And equally as wrong. Mendoza had one of the best seasons a QB ever had last year. And his performance was even better down the stretch against OSU and the teams he played in the CFP. Zero chance Indiana wins the natty last year without the season he had. The NFL scouts agreed
 
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eyesofhawk

All-Conference
Apr 17, 2011
3,006
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113
Grayhair1981 said:
"Does not show a strong correlation."
And equally as wrong. Mendoza had one of the best seasons a QB ever had last year. And his performance was even better down the stretch against OSU and the teams he played in the CFP. Zero chance Indiana wins the natty last year without the season he had. The NFL scouts agreed
Click to expand...
Dude, I might as well repost my previous post! Can you read?

"No" correlation, and, "not a strong correlation", are not the same thing. Very simple.

And AGAIN, my post was CLEARLY about the correlation that has existed at Iowa for 27 years.

I wasn't speaking about anywhere else. As everywhere else is irrelevant to my point
 
r_desihawk

r_desihawk

All-Conference
Jul 3, 2025
2,657
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8th sounds bad but in practice 8th place will likely equate to 3rd or 4th (like in 2025) tied with a bunch others listed higher for whatever reason
 
G

Grayhair1981

All-Conference
Sep 3, 2006
770
1,478
93
eyesofhawk said:
Dude, I might as well repost my previous post! Can you read?

"No" correlation, and, "not a strong correlation", are not the same thing. Very simple.

And AGAIN, my post was CLEARLY about the correlation that has existed at Iowa for 27 years.

I wasn't speaking about anywhere else. As everywhere else is irrelevant to my point
Click to expand...
Well let's see: Best years under KF: 2002, 2009, 2015. There is a common denominator between the three. Yeah, Stanzi threw picks in 2009 but he also made huge plays down the stretch to win games. Brad Banks one of the best QB seasons in Iowa history. CJB won games with his arm and feet in 2015. Is that enough correlation?
 
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ChicagoHawk2020

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Nov 6, 2017
1,027
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eyesofhawk said:
Dude, I might as well repost my previous post! Can you read?

"No" correlation, and, "not a strong correlation", are not the same thing. Very simple.

And AGAIN, my post was CLEARLY about the correlation that has existed at Iowa for 27 years.

I wasn't speaking about anywhere else. As everywhere else is irrelevant to my point
Click to expand...
The 3 best seasons in 27 years had the three best QBs during Kirk’s tenure running the ship. Honest question, would you rather football just go back to the leather helmet era and everyone run a full option offense?
 
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rfgiowa

rfgiowa

Sophomore
Sep 14, 2003
112
142
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That's no surprise and OK by me. Hopefully Iowa can win their home games and eek out a couple of road games!
 
83Hawk

83Hawk

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Jan 1, 2023
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Grayhair1981 said:
Well let's see: Best years under KF: 2002, 2009, 2015. There is a common denominator between the three. Yeah, Stanzi threw picks in 2009 but he also made huge plays down the stretch to win games. Brad Banks one of the best QB seasons in Iowa history. CJB won games with his arm and feet in 2015. Is that enough correlation?
Click to expand...
Don’t forget Drew Tate, 2004. Hawks win the Big 10 with no running game. But, I’m sure there was “not a strong correlation” between wins and QB play that year.
 
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Franisdaman

Franisdaman

Heisman
Nov 3, 2012
16,189
24,772
113
Here are the 3 top contenders' conference schedules.

Does any team have an advantage?

1. Ohio State (540 points; 15 first place votes)

vs Illinois
at IOWA
vs Maryland
at Indiana
at USC
vs Oregon
vs Northwestern
at Nebraska
vs Michigan

2. Oregon (527 points; 11 first place votes)

at USC
UCLA
Nebraska
at Illinois
Northwestern
at Ohio State
Michigan
at Michigan State
Washington

3. Indiana (509 points; 5 first place votes)

Northwestern
at Rutgers
at Nebraska
Ohio State
at Michigan
Minnesota
USC
at Washington
Purdue
 
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JerseyCityHawk

JerseyCityHawk

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Jul 6, 2025
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Franisdaman said:
1. Ohio State
2. Oregon
3. Indiana
4. USC
5. Michigan
6. Penn State
7. Washington
8. IOWA
9. Illinois
10. Minnesota
11. Nebraska
12. Wisconsin
13. UCLA
14. Northwestern
15. Maryland
16. Michigan State
17. Rutgers
18. Purdue


The free story:

www.on3.com

Preseason Big Ten Football Poll released by Cleveland.com

.
www.on3.com www.on3.com
Click to expand...
I smell BS… I don’t agree and yes I have my Hawkeye glasses on… Iowa drubbed Washington a few seasons ago and Michigan isn’t the Michigan of old…
 
E

eyesofhawk

All-Conference
Apr 17, 2011
3,006
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UIAlumFireFighter said:
1 millionth reason why no one can take you seriously.
Click to expand...
As the accompanying content of that post indicates, no overall sentiment about Hawkeye football under KF, that doesn't amount to extensive praise, is justified.

The hall of fame agrees.

It's not that QB play has been perfect under KF. It's that fan negativity around QB play is ultimately negativity levied at the program. Which has made it silly.

Again, those fans have found a way to complain throughout most of a hall of fame career. Just sad, all the way around.

Their frustrations just haven't amounted to what they've made things out to be. Completely typical from fans
 
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OnlyTheObscure

OnlyTheObscure

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Maybe, if they played a 17 game schedule against all big ten teams.

but they don’t. Steal on of the first 3 big ten games and run the table they could very well be in playoff.
 
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