What: #11 Indiana Hoosiers (4-0) at Iowa Hawkeyes (3-1)
When: Saturday, September 27 at 3:30 on Peacock
Where: Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, IA
How to Watch: The game will be broadcast on Peacock and can be heard on the IU Radio Network.
Spread and Total: Indiana (-7.5) | Total of 47.5 (as of September 25, 2025)
Series History: The Indiana Hoosiers have played the Iowa Hawkeyes 78 times with Iowa dominating the more recent part of the series. The Hawkeyes hold the all-time edge 46 to 28 with four ties but they have won all but one meeting since 2008 and IU has not won at Kinnick Stadium since 2007. Iowa has won four straight games in Iowa City between these two schools with an average margin of victory of 20.5 points per contest.
What’s at Stake: The Indiana Hoosiers are currently just outside of the top ten and only two wins away from bowl eligibility. Of course, this team has their eyes on much larger prizes than just a bowl game and beating Iowa would be a second-straight high-quality win and keep IU firmly in the running for a spot in the College Football Playoff. The Iowa Hawkeyes are 3-1 and both teams have a bye week after this matchup plus both have remaining games against Penn State and Oregon.
A Few Things to Look For
1. Battle at the Lines of Scrimmage
In 2023, the Iowa Hawkeyes only averaged 15.4 points per game. Last season, they took a step forward and jumped up to 27.7 points per game. The Hawkeyes turned to the transfer portal and grabbed quarterback Mark Gronowski from South Dakota State and through four games, they are averaging 33 points per game and they are fresh off of scoring 38 points against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. Now, we don’t need to overhype this, the Iowa Hawkeyes are certainly not some offensive juggernaut but it’s fair to say they have improved on that side of the ball and are at least an average attack in the Big Ten. Mark Gronowski struggled early in the season but he played well against Rutgers, throwing for 186 yards while rushing for 55 yards and adding three scores on the ground. Gronowski is a big quarterback that seems to seek out contact as a between the tackles runner and Iowa is using him as a battering ram in the red zone.
The Hawkeyes are good at the point of attack, in fact, Iowa currently has top-rated offensive line in the country according to Pro Football Focus. It’s actually not even close as Iowa has the top-rated lineman nationally at four of the five positions. They are deep at receiver but it would be fair to call the group unremarkable and lacking dynamism. Add in the road atmosphere and this will be a significant challenge for IU’s defense.
2. Defense Lives Here
For nearly the entirety of the Kirk Ferentz era (which began in 1999), the Iowa Hawkeyes have been a very strong defensive team. Coordinator Phil Parker is a legend and the Hawkeyes have not surrendered more than 20 points per game in any season in the past decade. Thus far in 2025, the Hawkeyes are allowing only 14.5 points per game and they are limiting opponents to just 4.19 yards per play. That is actually a tick lower than IU’s defense (4.24 yards per play allowed) through four games.
Opponents are rushing for only 2.25 yards per carry and they shut down the rushing attacks of both Rutgers (2.3 yards per carry) and Iowa State (3.5) in the two games they played against power conference opponents. The Hawkeyes do appear a bit vulnerable in the secondary and Indiana has the quarterback and weapons at wide receiver to take advantage of that. Iowa will try to offset that by using the home field advantage at Kinnick Stadium and a pass rush that is 26th in the country with 2.7 sacks per game. Max Llewellyn and Ethan Hurkett form a really good one-two punch at defensive end.
3. Handling the Pressure and Atmosphere
One of the unknowns remaining for the Indiana Hoosiers is how Curt Cignetti’s squad will respond on the road in a hostile environment. The Iowa Hawkeyes are 2-0 this season at home (Albany and UMass), they were 6-1 last season at Kinnick Stadium with the lone defeat being a one-point loss to Iowa State and 6-1 at home in 2023 with the lone defeat being by two points. Iowa does not lose often at home and they very rarely lose by double-digits in Kinnick Stadium: a 13-point defeat to Michigan in 2022 and a 17-point loss to Purdue in 2021 are the only 10+ point losses at home this decade.
A season ago, Indiana was swallowed up by the atmosphere in Columbus against the Ohio State Buckeyes. The offense was particularly thrown off, struggling to mix up the snap count and lacking an ability to execute at the level the team had become accustomed to. The special teams unit blundered a couple of punts and there were far too many mistakes to really threaten Ohio State on the road. This is the first of many tough road games this season and the first chance for Indiana to prove they have grown from the experience of 2024.
Game Week Links
Know Your Opponent: Iowa Hawkeyes
Numbers That Matter: #11 Indiana vs. Iowa
The Hoosiers Brace for Tough Road Test at Iowa
Hoosier Huddle Podcast No 11 Indiana at Iowa Preview
Chatter From the Other Sideline: Iowa
No. 11 IU Will Raise the Victory Flag at Iowa If…
The Reactionary Take on Illinois
IU Reactionary Prediction and Preview: Iowa
Matchup to Watch: Indiana Defensive Line vs Iowa Offensive Line