By Pat Harty

IOWA CITY, Iowa – With the 2026 college football season set to start in approximately two months, now seems an appropriate time

to look at what might happen barring injuries. So here are 26 predictions in no particular order about mostly the Iowa football team.

I would like to thank my crystal ball for its assistance.

1. Iowa sophomore quarterback Jeremy Hecklinski will start the season opener against Northern Illinois on Sept. 5 in what will prove to be a game-time decision following a hotly contested battle with junior Hank Brown.

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2. Iowa will have four running backs – Kamari Moulton, LJ Phillips, Xavier Williams and Nathan McNeil – who all rush for at least 250 yards on the season.

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3. Left tackle Trevor Lauck and center Kade Pieper will both make first-team All-Big Ten and multiple All-America teams.

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4. Lauck, a junior from Indianapolis, will also be the recipient of the Golden Gavel Award, which is given annually by the local media to the Iowa football player who exhibits the highest degree of professional integrity, cooperation, and honesty during interviews.

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5. Iowa will start the season 3-0, but will also be 3-3 at the midway point of the season.

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6. Iowa will not have to block two field goals in the final seconds to avoid losing to Northern Iowa in the third game of the season.

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7. Junior safety Zach Lutmer will lead Iowa with at least four interceptions and will be named the Big Ten Defensive Back of the Year.

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8. Junior Tanner Philpott, a transfer from Simpson College, and freshman Boston Everitt, Iowa’s latest punter from Australia, will both be used during the course of the season.

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9. Iowa will defeat Wisconsin by at least 10 points on Oct. 31 at Kinnick Stadium, causing new Wisconsin Athletic Director Shaun Eichorst to say afterwards that he has to evaluate where Iowa is as a program before making a decision about Luke Fickell’s future as head coach.

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10. Iowa will go yet another full season without passing for at least 300 yards in a game, a streak dating back to the 2019 season.

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11. Sophomore linebacker Cam Buffington will lead Iowa in tackles in his first season as a starter.

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12. Junior defensive end Kenneth Merriewhether will lead Iowa in sacks in his first season as a starter.

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13. Sophomore tight end DJ Vonnahme will lead Iowa in receiving yards, while junior receiver Reece Vander Zee will lead Iowa in touchdown receptions.

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14. Indiana will lose at least two games, causing some to wonder if Curt Cignetti is losing his magic touch.

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15. Kirk Ferentz will do multiple halftime interviews, but will offer very little insight because halftime interviews are just silly and unnecessary.

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16. Iowa will finish 8-4 in the regular season and will then make its first appearance in the Las Vegas Bowl, much to the delight of long-time Hawkeye fan Tom Suter, who has proudly made Vegas his home away from home.

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17. Iowa will defeat Nebraska in the regular-season finale at Kinnick Stadium by at least 15 points.

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18. Sophomore receiver Tony Diaz will lead Iowa in yards-per-catch.

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19. Junior kicker Eli Ozick, who transferred from North Dakota State, will make three field-goal attempts from beyond 50 yards, including a game-winner against upset-minded Purdue on Nov. 14 at Kinnick Stadium.

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20. Iowa will win road games at Minnesota on Oct. 24 and at Northwestern on Nov. 7 , but will lose at Illinois on Nov. 21.

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21. Kirk Ferentz, who turns 71 on Aug. 1, will be asked to address his future more than once during the regular season, and he will say that he hasn’t given any serious thought about retiring despite the landscape changing dramatically around him.

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22. Iowa will not return a punt or a kickoff for a touchdown this season.

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23. At least two Big Ten head coaches will be fired during the course of the 2026 season.

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24. Michigan State will win fewer than five games under first-year head coach Pat Fitzgerald, but will show significant improvement on special teams with former Hawkeye player and assistant coach LeVar Woods now coaching special teams.

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25. Penn State, despite having what appears to be a favorable schedule, will lose at least three games under first-year head coach Matt Campbell.

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26. Ohio State will finish the season undefeated, winning its 10th national championship in program history and keeping Ryan Day off the coaching hot season for another year.