After a hard-fought win against Iowa State in week two, Iowa came out with a vengeance against Northern Iowa in week three.
Iowa did everything right against Northern Iowa, and the game was essentially over by halftime. The Hawkeyes had success in all three phases of the game, especially on offense, putting up 640 total yards in a blowout 55-0 win. The offense was dynamic, the defense was suffocating, and most importantly, the Hawkeyes moved to 3-0 before a pivotal week four road game against Michigan. After the dominant win, we have five big takeaways.
No. 1: Hank Brown has all but locked up the QB1 spot
Uncertainty at the starting quarterback position carried into week three, with both Hank Brown and Jeremy Hecklinski receiving snaps. The game gave both quarterbacks an opportunity to show what they can do, with UNI putting up little resistance on defense. Brown earned his third start, and he made the most of his snaps. Brown was perfect on the day, finishing 12/12 for 153 yards and two touchdowns. He was accurate and efficient, leading the offense to five straight scoring drives to begin the game. If he had remained in the game, he could have done even more damage, but he was pulled at halftime.
If there was any doubt about who should be the starting quarterback heading into the UNI game, Brown put that to rest. Hecklinski didn't play poorly, but he didn't do enough to convince us that he should win the starting job after Brown started all three games and performed well. Hecklinski finished with 65 yards on 6/11 passing, and while he showed his willingness to go deep, he didn't do enough against a much weaker opponent.
Even though Kirk Ferentz and the coaching staff haven't officially named Brown as the starter, it should only be a matter of time.
No. 2: Iowa has the deepest running back room in college football
Very few college football programs can lose their top two running back options and do what Iowa did against Northern Iowa last weekend. Iowa was without starting running back Kamari Moulton and backup running back L.J. Phillips Jr., both injured, yet the rushing attack put up its best numbers all season. Four running backs carried the football against UNI, and three had over 100 total rushing yards.
Xavier Williams led the way with 151 rushing yards and three touchdowns, with Braeden Jackson (125 yards, two total touchdowns) and Nathan McNeil (111 yards, two touchdowns) also torching the UNI defense. Iowa racked up 422 total rushing yards, the seventh-most in program history, without its top two options. It was also the first time Iowa had three running backs go over 100 yards in a game since 1983. It is wild to think how much more they could've racked up with Moulton and Phillips Jr. in the lineup, but it proves that Iowa has a ton of talent in the running back room.
No. 3: The offense deserves a lot more credit than they are getting
Iowa has long been known for its stellar defense, but the narrative is shifting after three weeks of the 2026 season, even if it's been against two much weaker opponents. The Iowa offense has put up some astronomical offensive numbers, something we have rarely seen in the past. Iowa tallied 507 total yards on offense in week one against Northern Illinois, and topped that with 640 in week three against Northern Iowa. Although Iowa's offense struggled against a new-look Iowa State defense, it still tallied 284 total yards.
The Iowa offense has grown significantly through the first three games, and the biggest test will be in week four on the road in Ann Arbor. If the offense can hold its own against a tough Michigan defense, all the negative talk about Iowa's offense should quickly disappear. Through the first three games of the season, Iowa's offense is averaging 37.0 points per game, 477.0 total yards, and 7.4 yards per carry.
No. 4: Iowa's passing attack can survive without a big game from Tony Diaz
Tony Diaz's astronomical hype entering the season continued through week three, but the star wide receiver didn't make much of an impact against UNI. It is unclear whether that's because Iowa stuck with the dominant running game, wanted to open up the playbook, or didn't want to show their full offensive playbook to Michigan before week four. Still, Diaz finished with only two catches for 22 yards, a season-low. Although Diaz didn't have a big game, Iowa still had 218 passing yards and completed passes to 10 different receivers.
Running back Nathan McNeil led all pass-catchers with 37 receiving yards on three receptions, with WR Evan James right behind him (35 yards). Brown and Hecklinski spread the ball around, shrinking Diaz's stat line, but should be a focus moving forward. With the Big Ten schedule starting, Iowa most likely won't keep spreading the ball around as much, but at least for one week, the offense proved it can be effective without a big game from Diaz.
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