The countdown to the 2026 college football season is officially underway, and early expectations are beginning to take shape. One snapshot comes fromPolymarket, where traders are alreadytaking positionson which program will win the national championship.While theprediction marketwill continue to flu
TheBig Tenonce again enters the season with national championship expectations at the top of the conference. Ahead of all the action,Steven LassanofAthlon Sportsrankedeach team into tiers for the 2026 campaign.He separated thebest of the best, starting with Tier 1 (the favorites). Afterwards, Tier 2
Every preseason Top 25 team has star players expected to carry the load. But asESPNpointed out, championship hopes often come down to a myriad of factors, like an unexpected contributor, a key transfer or a new coach making an immediate impact.With the 2026 season approaching, ESPNidentifiedoneX-fac
The Hawkeye Report Podcast is back late in the week as we look back at what we learned at Big Ten Football Media Days in Chicago. Iowa was on day one and Kirk Ferentz said a few things that were pretty surprising. He gave a glowing review of transfer wide receiver Tony Diaz and his potential this fa
The start of fall camp for most teams is just around the corner and it’s time to start making some major predictions. How about the analytics on which team will win the Big Ten title this fall?ESPN’s FPI has run this offseason and given fans an idea what to expect from an analytical angle. The favor
As private equity has begun to creep into college athletics, the question of what teams are worth has risen to the forefront. And The Athletic has attempted to place a price tag on just how valuable each Power 4 program would be if it were to be sold.The publication, for the second straight year, ra
We continue our Iowa Baseball Campus Newcomer series with an incoming freshman that got plenty of MLB Draft consideration this summer but opted to stick with his commitment to the Hawkeyes. West Des Moines Valley right-handed pitcherRyan Stedmanwill likely be regarded as one of the top freshmen pitc
It’s day two of Big Ten Media Days in Chicago and it will be another busy day of coverage. We open the day with PJ Fleck from Minnesota, who we are sure will bring his usual level of energy. We also hear from new Michigan State head coach Pat Fitzgerald. Seeing him in green instead of purple will be
USA Todayrevealed the eight most intriguingQB battles throughout college football as we approach fall camp. Now that the calendar is ready to turn to August, football is right around the corner.A lot of these battles have some new faces in terms of transfers finding new locations. Other QB battles h
The Iowa football team will officially report next Monday to Iowa City. Then two days they will begin the start of fall camp leading into the 2026. Kirk Ferentz had one final session with the Iowa media members before wrapping up his media work in Chicago and had some interesting thoughts.He talks a
Zach Lutmer has quietly gone about his business the first couple of years in Iowa City. This year the Hawkeye defensive back has been asked to ramp up his vocal leadership and he has answered that call and become the voice of the Iowa defense.At Big Ten Media Days in Chicago, Lutmer met with the med
Kirk Ferentz joked on Tuesday in Chicago at Big Ten Football Media Day that he is no longer the oldest member of his coaching staff. That’s because the long time Iowa head coach added 87 year old Tom Moore to his staff this winter.Moore is a former Iowa player, who went on to be an assistant coach f
Last year Addison Ostrenga probably felt like his football career might be over. The Iowa tight end suffered a season ending injury in week two at Iowa State and the road back meant 8 to 12 months to recover.Ostrenga healed up quickly and is now fully cleared by the Iowa training staff and is ready
There might not be a more honored player to be representing his school at Big Ten Media Day than Jayden Montgomery. The Iowa linebacker was surprised when Kirk Ferentz announced that he was one of the three players headed to Chicago for Big Ten Media Days.Montgomery had to go out and actually buy a
Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz unofficially kicked off his 28th season leading the Iowa program on Tuesday in Chicago at Big Ten Media Days. Here is what he had to say at the podium this afternoon.KIRK FERENTZ: First of all, great to be here. Just want to express my thanks to Commissioner Petitti, Big
Head football coach Kirk Ferentz isn’t the only Iowa athletics official in Chicago at Big Ten Media Days. Athletic director Beth Goetz is also here and spoke to the Iowa media for approximately ten minutes on Tuesday afternoon to discuss a wide variety of topics.She discussed the state of the Cy-Haw
During his opening remarks at last week’s2026 SEC Media Daysin Tampa, SEC commissionerGreg Sankeyacknowledged there have been “real” discussionsamong conference officials regarding potential governance breakaway options that could involve distancing the league from under the NCAA umbrella.And while
University of Iowa fourth-year offensive linemanKade Pieperhas been named to the Big Ten Conference Preseason Honors List, it was announced Tuesday by the league office.Twelve student-athletes from all 18 conference schools were selected by a media panel.Pieper, a 2026 Walter Camp Preseason first-te
Ahead of Big Ten Media Days this week in Chicago, the Conference has announced its 2026 Football Preseason honors. A media panel selected the 12-member preseason list.Reigning National ChampionIndianaleads the way with three selections, followed byOhio State,Oregon, andRutgers, with two selections e
The annual gathering of the Big Ten Football teams is officially underway in Chicago. Talking season continues with the coaches from Iowa, Penn State, Rutgers, USC, Illinois, and Wisconsin will be speaking to the media today.We will have full coverage of what Kirk Ferentz and the players have to say
We continue our Iowa Baseball Campus Newcomer series with an incoming freshman from the Des Moines area that will likely arrive on campus as a two-time First Team All-State selection. Waukee infielderGavin De Jesushelped lead the Warriors to three consecutive 4A State Tournament appearances. He is r
The Big Ten is seemingly on top of the college football world, as three teams have won the last three national championships. Overall, 14 of the 18 teams in the conference have at least one claimed national title.This past season, Indiana ran the table and won the championship. Before that, Ohio Sta
The 2026 college football season is just around the corner, and the play at the game’s most important position is always one of the biggest factors in teams’ success. So what does the quarterbacks ranking look like heading into the season?Well, the fine folks at Sports Illustrated stopped to rank ea
We are pleased to have Iowa football Chief of Staff and General Manager Tyler Barnes join us today on the Hawkeye Report Podcast.As usual, we have a wide ranging conversation with Barnes about Iowa football recruiting and the team in general. We open the show talking about how important the Iowa Swa
College football Saturdays are about much more than the final score. The traditions, pageantry and atmosphere surrounding each game are what make the sport unlike any other.Every fanbase believes its home venue belongs among the nation’s elite, making anystadium rankingan instant topic of debate. Wi
We continue our Iowa Baseball Campus Newcomer series with an incoming freshman that has went through a lot to get to Iowa City but arrives as one of the top players in the country at his position. Western Dubuque catcherBrett Harriswas once an Ole Miss signee, but the Rebels pulled his scholarship a
USA Today revealed its preseasonAll-Big Ten Teamahead of the 2026 college football season. Polling all of the writers, the votes revealed the best overall squad of players in the conference.Funny enough, there was a tie at a major position, so the race to the top is razor thin! How will this team lo
One of the signposts as we head towards the start of the college football season is the release of the Big Ten Football media poll.There was a time when the Big Ten would put out a poll every year when Big Ten Media Days took place in Chicago. But, those days are long gone. While they will likely pu
Minnesotadefensive linemanAnthony Smithhas been named the preseason Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year by Cleveland.com. Should he win the award at year’s end, he would be the first Golden Gophers player to do so.Of course, there’s a lot of season ahead. But Smith enters the year as one of the mos
