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Three Bold Predictions For The 2026 Iowa Football Season
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- Three Bold Predictions For The 2026 Iowa Football Season
(USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect)
College football games are taking place on Saturday.
We've officially made it to football season folks, which means it's time to book those watch parties with friends and start firing up the grills.
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That's what you guys do at least.
For the thousands of us that cover this great American sport, the lead up to the season means it's time to start releasing predictions for the team we cover.
We cover anything and everything Iowa Hawkeyes around here, and since there's only just over a week until kickoff, it's a good time to get the predictions rolling on HawkeyeRoundtable.com .
My official game-by-game season predictions drop on Friday afternoon, but in the meantime, what better place to kick things off than listing my three bold predictions for the 2026 Iowa football season?
Here we go.
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L.J. Phillips Rushes For 1,300 Yards
Anyone who follows Hawkeye football knows a thing or two about Phillips. H e was a superstar at the FCS level for South Dakota last year , collecting a Division I best 1,920 rushing yards and 19 touchdowns.
While the FCS is definitely a step below the FBS, rushing for nearly 2,000 yards in the toughest conference (Missouri Valley Football Conference) is incredibly impressive, and all signs point to that carrying over to Iowa City. Phillips has a low center of gravity that allows him not only to bulldoze opposing fronts, but he's also super quick in the open field.
So why is this a bold take you may ask? Because Phillips is competing with four other backs in a loaded room for carries. He'll probably be listed behind Kamari Moulton on the Week 1 depth chart and share the primary duties with Moulton, but how is new running backs coach Jay Norvell going to split the carries between these two along with Nathan McNeil and Xavier Williams ?
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That's why this is a bold take. If Phillips was the lead back in this offense, he'd probably be a lock for a 1,300-yard season because of the talented offensive line in place. I think he still gets there anyway because he'll emerge as the best back in this room and likely get a heavy workload if Iowa doesn't get help at the quarterback position.
The Hawkeyes Average 30 Points Per Game
One could say I'm taking the easy road here considering Iowa's offense nearly averaged 30 points per game last year (29.3), but here's why this is a bold prediction.
The first reason is because of the questions at quarterback. As it stands right now, this race between Hank Brown and Jeremy Hecklinski feels like it will extend into the season.
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That uncertainty is concerning when you're trying to scheme a good offense, but quarterback controversy or not, there's two reasons why Hawkeye fans should have faith in their offense to reach this benchmark in 2026 - offensive coordinator Tim Lester and a loaded supporting cast of weapons.
Lester has done tremendous things since arriving in Iowa City to overhaul this offense two years ago, and if you look at the numbers from last year, reaching 30 points per game is more than doable.
I point to the third down conversion numbers. Iowa converted on 43.5% of its third down attempts last year, which was a slight improvement from 2024 and a massive leap from the putrid 29.4% in 2023. The scheme has usually delivered on the money down, and it also led to the Hawkeyes scoring touchdowns on 36 of their 50 red zone trips.
The consistency that has defined Phil Parker's side of the ball is starting to slowly trickle to the offense, and it's a testament to what Lester is building in Iowa City.
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Speaking of building, designing an offense with will be a lot easier with the weapons Lester has at his disposal. The aforementioned running back room is there, as is a talented group of pass-catchers like Reece Vander Zee, Tony Diaz , and DJ Vonnahme .
No matter who the quarterback is, Iowa will post 30 points per game for the first time since 2018.
Cam Buffington Emerges As The Next Great Iowa Linebacker
Linebacker is a position of great interest for the Hawkeyes this year, but they're in a similar position then they were in a year ago. There's talent in this room, but outside of Jayden Montgomery, it's all about the "next man up" mentality again.
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No man fits that category better than Cam Buffington. The Winfield native earned a scholarship at the Big Ten level after starring in the eight-man high school ranks, but take one look at Buffington and you'll see why Iowa was so keen on bringing him in.
Buffington has great ball tracking ability and graceful agility for his position, and it feels like he's primed and ready for a breakout 2026. It may not all completely come together this season, but by the end of the year, start talking about Buffington as the next great linebacker to roll through Iowa City.
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HawkeyeRoundtable publisher Brad Schultz has covered the Iowa Hawkeyes since 2023. To send him story ideas, scoops, or criticize his writing, reach him at bradschultz@roundtable.io
