Aug 30, 2025; Iowa City, Iowa, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes head coach Kirk Ferentz looks on before the game against the Albany Great Danes at Kinnick Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

Iowa Reveals Full 2026 Schedule

Originally posted on Iowa Hawkeyes on SI | By Lane Mills | Last updated Jan 27, 2026 6:40 PM ET

After finishing their 2025-26 season with a victory over the Vanderbilt Commodores in the ReliaQuest Bowl, Iowa put a bow on what was an improved, fulfilling season on the gridiron, in spite of some occasional frustration.

Now, as head coach Kirk Ferentz and his staff remain hard at work on the recruiting trail, the full schedule for the 2026-27 year has been fully released online for Hawkeyes fans to analyze and discuss.

In a video posted on the official Hawkeye Football account on X (Twitter), Iowa's full slate was revealed in stylized fashion. Featured on an old television with black and gold decor painting the set, a slow zoom unveils what may be shaping up to be one of the team's most difficult schedules in recent memory.

A Retro Reveal

As it always goes with football in the B1G, the Hawkeyes will be given few breaks. Iowa has a chunk of unfavorable games no matter how you spin it; the kicker, it seems, will be which are played at home, and which will take place in front of hostile away crowds.

The complete schedule can be viewed here:

Our 2026 Schedule! pic.twitter.com/lXVcyZCrOB
— Hawkeye Football (@HawkeyeFootball) January 27, 2026

Back Home and Far Away

The biggest road blisters that seem to stick out on the new list are bouts at Michigan and Illinois, towards the beginning and end of the season, respectively. The Wolverines, coming off a top 5 finish in the B1G and sharing the same 9-4 overall record as the Hawkeyes (and as Illinois), are perhaps the more formidable of the two, if not only for their historically volatile home crowd.

The Fighting Illini, on the other hand, finished just behind Iowa in the B1G rankings this past season. A program on the rise, that unique road battle will likely serve as a telling test for the Hawkeyes as they look to set themselves apart in the season's final stretch, just as they did this year.

Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

On the other hand, Iowa's anticipated toughest game of the bunch will come at home when the Ohio State Buckeyes come to Kinnick Stadium at the beginning of October.

Hosting the Buckeyes

Despite falling behind the national champion Indiana Hoosiers this season - who Iowa, luckily, won't have to play - the Buckeyes still stand as one of the most regularly elite college football programs.

Before the halfway point in their yea, Iowa has a chance to make a major splash with that win. Amongst a schedule peppered with peaceable B1G competition, as well as a chance for home revenge against the rival Iowa State Cyclones, these three matchups feel like potential turning points for a Hawkeyes campaign that draws closer every day.

This article first appeared on Iowa Hawkeyes on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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