We are about a month away from the kickoff of the 2022 college football season and the return of Iowa Hawkeyes football. The Hawkeyes are coming off a 10-2 season capped with losses in the Big Ten Championship and the Citrus Bowl. Will Iowa improve on that record or take a step back? Let’s break it down game-by-game.
Avoiding The Trap Game
The Iowa Hawkeyes are not easing into the season with a Miami (OH) or Northern Illinois this year. Instead they open with South Dakota State. The Jackrabbits are a well coached team under John Stiegelmeier. He has a 185-111 record spanning 25 seasons as a head coach. This team is the picture of consistency among FCS programs, making ten-straight playoff appearances. The Hawkeyes will get it done at Kinnick but do not expect a cakewalk here.
Iowa Hawkeyes vs. ISU Cyclones
Iowa continues a three-game homestand with the continuation of the Cy-Hawk series against Iowa State. This is ISU’s first trip to Kinnick since 2018. There is some serious turnover on offense for the Cyclones but it is the defense that is really in for a drop off. Iowa makes it wins its seventh in a row against its in-state rival.
Iowa Hawkeyes At Night
Nevada is another small conference program that has been pretty good in recent years. If this game happened a season ago it would have been much more interesting. Instead, the Wolf Pack has lost too much to hang against Iowa’s defense. Carson Strong, the holder of the program’s single-season record 36 touchdown passes, is in camp with the Eagles. Worse than that, coach Jay Norvell spurned Nevada for Colorado State and took a share of the team’s talent with him. This is another Hawkeye win under the lights at Kinnick.
Starting the Big Ten Schedule
Finally we get to the Big Ten schedule with a trip to New Jersey to face Rutgers. Iowa has taken care of business against the Scarlet Knights to this point. The last meeting between these teams went 30-0 in favor of the Hawkeyes at home in 2019. It’s year three for coach Greg Schiano. He is still laying the foundation for a competitive team in Piscataway and that day is drawing near. It just is not here quite yet. Iowa will have a conference win in the tank heading into its Big Ten Championship rematch at home against Michigan.
Prediction
The Iowa Hawkeyes will start the season 4-0 after navigating a couple legitimate threats in the opening month of the season. SDSU is the biggest threat to blemish the Hawkeyes record ahead of a showdown against Michigan. The rivalry game against ISU is never one to sleep on either, despite Iowa’s win streak against the Cyclones.
Tune in tomorrow as I break down the next four games on the schedule, including Michigan and Ohio State. Be sure to follow My Page for more Iowa football news and analysis and follow me on Twitter @jfisheriainfo
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