Iowa Hawkeyes quarterback Hank Brown (9) throws a pass during a football game agains the Massachusetts Minutemen Sept. 13, 2025 at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa. Julia Hansen/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Iowa vs. Indiana Ranked As Elite Game

Originally posted on Iowa Hawkeyes on SI
By Connor Mardian | Last updated Sep 30, 2025 7:00 AM ET

Iowa Hawkeyes fans likely spent the remainder of their weekend mulling over Saturday’s heart-wrenching 20-15 loss to the now No. 8 Indiana Hoosiers.

While the score line probably suggests a grueling, boring matchup, the feeling inside a packed Kinnick Stadium was anything but so, as the bowl-shaped stadium amplified the noise on every Indiana snap.

This was a matchup that saw a Heisman candidate, Fernando Mendoza, look mortal for the first time this season, an Iowa quarterback injury that saw the record-holding Mark Gronowski be replaced by sophomore Hank Brown, with a sprinkling of two of the nation’s most stubborn defenses filling the stat sheet.

Between the two sides, the Hawkeyes and the Hoosiers combined for 621 yards. Indiana’s lowest to date was 502 yards against Old Dominion in week one, yet that number was adjusted to 337 yards, flaunting just how dangerous Iowa’s defense was.

Iowa had looked to figure things out after an early Gronowski interception set up an early 7-0 Hoosiers start. Gronowski finished the day with 144 yards on 19/25 passing, yet his accuracy controlled the tempo of an Iowa defense that never looked too far behind the chains.

Several sideline passes flexed Gronowski’s accurate arm and showed his passing prowess had taken dramatic steps forward after a shaky start earlier in the season.

Both sides saw struggles staying on the field as the Hoosiers totaled a 6-15 third-down efficiency with Iowa seeing a paltry 6-16 rate, making each score more and more important.

By the end of the first half, the score was knotted at 10-10. After both sides went scoreless in the third, the game was laid right in Iowa’s hands after a Mendoza interception gave Iowa the ball at Indiana’s 29-yard line with 2:50 to go in the game, and both teams with 13 points on the board. Yet a Drew Stevens missed 42-yard field goal gave the Hoosiers the chance to close out the game with a touchdown, and after just five plays, the game was eventually put to bed thanks to an Elijah Sarratt 49-yard touchdown. Iowa could not respond, and the Hoosiers gave away a safety to put the game to an end.

ESPN writer Bill Connelly touted the dramatic matchup as the nation’s 13th-best game of the week which may not sound super high but when you consider this was a slate that saw Oregon vs Penn State, LSU vs Ole Miss, Alabama vs Georgia, USC vs Illinois all being ranked vs ranked matchups, and the fact that Connelly dipped as low as Division III games for his ranking, it proves just how entertaining the Hoosiers and the Hawkeyes was.

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

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