Iowa
Iowa is 7-2, No. 15 in the CFP rankings, and No. 17 of 138 in the machine's ratings, 15.1 points better than an average FBS team. Last game: won 24-10 at Northwestern in Week 10. The machine gives Iowa a 9% chance to make the playoff.
Week 11: vs Purdue, Saturday, Nov 14: the matchup, unit by unit
Why Iowa is No. 17
- Iowa's rating is 15.1: the machine's estimate that Iowa is 15.1 points better than an average FBS team on a neutral field. That is No. 17 of 138. For scale, 0 is an average FBS team: right now the closest to it is No. 68 Arizona State (0.2).
- It started the season at 10.6, ESPN's preseason Football Power Index from July. Its results since have moved it up 4.5.
- The biggest weekly moves: +2.3 after Week 9 (W 30-0 vs Wisconsin) and −2.2 after Week 2 (W 16-13 vs Iowa State).
- Its record is 7-2. The 2 losses were to No. 7 Ohio State, No. 67 Minnesota, by 10.0 points on average. The 7 wins came by 22.9 points on average; the best was over No. 31 Wisconsin. The rating weighs how much a team won or lost by and against whom, not just the win-loss count.
- Its FBS opponents so far average No. 51 in the machine's ratings.
- Just above is No. 16 Oklahoma (15.1); just below is No. 18 Wake Forest (15.1).
The rating, week by week
Strengths and weak spots
Head coach
Kirk Ferentz is in his 28th season at Iowa (since 1999). This season: 7-2. At Iowa overall: 220-130, counting this season.
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Team stats
Season totals and averages over 9 games, each with its national rank among 138 FBS teams (No. 1 = best). The game-by-game story is in the season, week by week.
Passing
| Completions-attempts | 168-261 |
|---|---|
| Passing yards | 1801 |
| Touchdowns-interceptions | 13-6 |
| Yards per attempt* | 6.9No. 98 of 138 |
| Explosive pass rate | 6.8%No. 131 of 138 |
| Sacks allowed (rate) | 2.3%No. 8 of 138 |
Rushing
| Carries-yards | 296-1564 |
|---|---|
| Yards per carry | 5.3No. 18 of 138 |
| 10-plus-yard runs (rate) | 16.8%No. 20 of 138 |
| Stuffed at or behind the line (rate) | 16.5%No. 57 of 138 |
Scoring
| Points per game | 27.8No. 72 of 138 |
|---|---|
| Yards per play | 6.14No. 43 of 138 |
| Third-down rate | 40.9%No. 58 of 138 |
| Red-zone TD rate | 57.7%No. 91 of 138 |
| Giveaways | 10No. 47 of 138 |
Defense
| Points allowed per game | 12.2No. 3 of 138 |
|---|---|
| Yards per play allowed | 4.43No. 8 of 138 |
| Yards per pass attempt allowed | 6.3No. 28 of 138 |
| Yards per carry allowed | 2.5No. 4 of 138 |
| Sack rate | 9.5%No. 6 of 138 |
| Takeaways | 9No. 98 of 138 |
| Third-down rate allowed | 29.1%No. 7 of 138 |
Totals are the official box score. * Yards per attempt and the rates come from the play-by-play, where passing yards count on completions only, so they can differ from the box score by a play or two.
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Player leaders
The top 3 in each category over the same games. Passing yards count every completion (official box score).
Passing
- Hank Brown125-190, 1316 yds, 9 TD, 4 INT
- Jeremy Hecklinski41-67, 472 yds, 4 TD, 2 INT
Rushing
- Kamari Moulton86 carries, 541 yds, 4 TD
- Xavier Williams47 carries, 272 yds, 3 TD
- L.J. Phillips Jr.55 carries, 243 yds, 0 TD
Receiving
- Tony Diaz35 catches, 504 yds, 3 TD
- Reece Vander Zee28 catches, 403 yds, 4 TD
- DJ Vonnahme32 catches, 314 yds, 3 TD
Tackles
- Cam Buffington82
- Jayden Montgomery55
- Zach Lutmer52
Sacks
- Joseph Anderson4
- Bryce Hawthorne3.5
- Jayden Montgomery3.5
Interceptions
- Deshaun Lee3
- Jacob Wallace2
- Rashad Godfrey Jr.1
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Who's playing
Based on who has actually played this season, from the box scores, not the team's published depth chart. Each bar is that player's share of the team's attempts, carries (quarterbacks left out), catches or tackles. The box score lists no positions, so there is no offensive line here.
Throwing
- Hank BrownMost passes in the last game8 games190 attempts73%
- Jeremy Hecklinski5 games67 attempts26%
Carrying
- Kamari Moulton6 games86 carries33%
- L.J. Phillips Jr.6 games55 carries21%
- Xavier Williams8 games47 carries18%
- Braeden Jackson7 games25 carries10%
Catching
- Tony Diaz9 games35 catches21%
- DJ Vonnahme8 games32 catches19%
- Reece Vander Zee9 games28 catches17%
- Addison Ostrenga6 games12 catches7%
Tackling
- Cam Buffington9 games82 tackles14%
- Jayden Montgomery9 games55 tackles10%
- Zach Lutmer9 games52 tackles9%
- Bryce Hawthorne9 games34 tackles6%
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
The season, week by week
- Week 1 W 40–0 vs Northern Illinois. The run defense was the strength: Northern Illinois got 0.2 yards a carry, 4.5 under what it usually gains. The defense had 6 sacks.
- Week 2 W 16–13 vs Iowa State. The run game struggled: 3.2 yards a carry, 2.3 less than Iowa State usually allows. The most yards a carry it has allowed all season.
- Week 3 W 55–0 vs Northern Iowa. Northern Iowa is an FCS team, so there is no FBS baseline to grade this one against. Won the turnover battle by 2.
- Week 4 W 20–19 at Michigan. The pass defense gave ground: Michigan got 9.9 yards an attempt, 3.2 over what it usually gains. The machine had Michigan by 4.1 (61%), so this was a win it did not see coming.
- Week 5 L 14–31 vs Ohio State. The pass defense gave ground: Ohio State got 12.0 yards an attempt, 2.6 over what it usually gains. Lost the turnover battle by 2.
- Week 6 W 41–24 at Washington. The run defense was the strength: Washington got -0.1 yards a carry, 3.8 under what it usually gains. The defense had 6 sacks.
- Week 8 L 10–13 at Minnesota. The passing game struggled: 5.4 yards an attempt, 2.6 less than Minnesota usually allows. The machine had Iowa by 10.4 (74%), so this was a loss it did not see coming; Iowa lost the turnover battle by 3.
- Week 9 W 30–0 vs Wisconsin. The passing game was the strength: 9.3 yards an attempt, 3.6 more than Wisconsin usually allows. Won the turnover battle by 2.
- Week 10 W 24–10 at Northwestern. The pass defense was the strength: Northwestern got 5.7 yards an attempt, 3.2 under what it usually gains. The machine had Northwestern by 0.1 (51%), so this was a win it did not see coming; Iowa lost the turnover battle by 2.