Rival fanbases scoff at seeing the Hawkeyes on the preseason polls every year, but when you've been consistent for nearly three decades, you're going to earn the voters' respect.
For the fifth time in eight years, Kirk Ferentz's Iowa football team is ranked in the preseason AP Poll.
The Hawkeyes checked in at No. 22 in the poll and are one of eight Big Ten teams to be ranked, joining No. 1 Ohio State, No. 2 Oregon, No. 6 Indiana, No. 14 USC, No. 16 Michigan, No. 17 Washington and No. 18 Penn State.
Many college football fans and media members will likely scoff at seeing Iowa listed on another batch of preseason rankings, and some of the criticism is warranted.
The Hawkeyes were ranked in both the 2023 and 2024 preseason polls, but the seasons that followed didn't come close to warranting a final ranking. Yes, the 2023 squad did win 10 games and finish No. 24 in the final AP Poll, but its historically-poor offense and eventual NCAA scandal didn't leave a good taste in the mouths of AP voters.
Iowa was the national media's punching bag for an entire offseason, and AP voters could've easily left the Hawkeyes off their 2024 preseason poll, but instead of doing that, they chose to still rank Iowa 25th in that year's preseason poll.
The Hawkeyes did have very high expectations entering that season because of quarterback Cade McNamara's return from injury and the benefit of playing a soft schedule, but what people fail to realize is the preseason AP and Coaches Poll rankings are based off of one simple thing - respect.
Yes, there are many college football teams that we think are going to be College Football Playoff contenders in 2026, but the bottom line here is that we know absolutely nothing about any of these teams right now.
Ohio State, Oregon, Georgia, and Notre Dame all have legitimate cases to win a national championship this year, but anything can happen.
Everyone thought the Fighting Irish would return to the national championship game last year, but they didn't even make the CFP. The same goes for Texas, which was ranked No. 1 in both polls before losing three games and missing the playoff.
These five teams are obviously some of the most respected and powerful programs in the country, but these voters (or even the coaches for that matter) know what these teams are going to look like until they actually start playing football games.
Brand and respect are basically the only criteria for having preseason polls in the first place. Iowa may not have the national prestige that its Big Ten heavyweights have, but the reason why it consistently finds itself in these polls is because it has built one of the best reputations in the sport.
There's been plenty of lumps in the Ferentz era, but the Hawkeyes have been one of the nation's most consistent programs during his nearly three decades in charge. Iowa is the winningest program that has yet to make the College Football Playoff, and it hasn't had a losing season since 2012.
Only the true blue bloods of the sport can say they've been able to match that consistency, and every AP voter has taken notice of that.
Does Iowa regularly compete for national championships? No, but it has done more than enough to be one of the sport's most-respected brands, and it feels like a CFP appearance could be coming in the near future.
Iowa State, Minnesota, Nebraska fans, and Barstool Sports' Brandon Walker (a Mississippi State fan) are probably steaming mad reading this column on their couches, but until their football programs become a model of consistency for almost 30 years, then they'll have to live with seeing Iowa on the annual preseason rankings.
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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 [email protected]
