The 2020 Iowa Hawkeyes football team represented the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is org ...

during the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Hawkeyes played their home games at

Kinnick Stadium Nile Kinnick Stadium is a stadium located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is the home stadium of the University of Iowa Hawkeyes football team. First opened in 1929 as Iowa Stadium to replace Iowa Field, it currently holds up to 69,250 peo ...

Iowa City, Iowa Iowa City, offically the City of Iowa City is a city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States. It is the home of the University of Iowa and county seat of Johnson County, at the center of the Iowa City Metropolitan Statistical Area. At the time ...

, and competed in the West Division of the

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

. They were led by 22nd-year head coach

Kirk Ferentz Kirk James Ferentz (born August 1, 1955) is an American football coach. He is the current head football coach at the University of Iowa, a position he has held since the 1999 season. From 1990 to 1992, Ferentz was the head football coach at the ...

. On August 11, 2020, the Big Ten Conference canceled all fall sports competitions due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. However, on September 16, the Big Ten reinstated the season, announcing an eight-game season beginning on October 24. The Hawkeyes compiled a 6–2 record, all in conference games. The team was set to face

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

in the

Music City Bowl The Music City Bowl is a post-season American college football bowl game certified by the NCAA that has been played in Nashville, Tennessee, since 1998. Since 2020, it has been sponsored by TransPerfect and is officially known as the ''TransPerf ...

, but the game was canceled after Missouri had to withdraw due to COVID-19 issues. Junior defensive lineman

Daviyon Nixon Daviyon Nixon (born December 13, 1998) is an American football defensive tackle who is a free agent. He played college football at Iowa Western and Iowa before he was selected by the Carolina Panthers in the fifth round of the 2021 NFL Draft. E ...

was named Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year, Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, and was a unanimous First-team All-American.

Previous season

The 2019 Hawkeyes team finished the season 10–3, 6–3 in Big Ten play to finish in third place in the West Division. They received an invitation to the

Holiday Bowl The Holiday Bowl is a post-season NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football bowl game that has been played in San Diego since 1978. San Diego County Credit Union has been the game's title sponsor since 2017, and the bowl has b ...

where they defeated

USC USC most often refers to: * University of South Carolina, a public research university ** University of South Carolina System, the main university and its satellite campuses **South Carolina Gamecocks, the school athletic program * University of ...

, 49–24.

Schedule

Iowa had games scheduled against

Northern Iowa Iowa () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wiscon ...

, Iowa State, and

Northern Illinois Northern Illinois is a region generally covering the northern third of the U.S. state of Illinois. The region is by far the most populous of Illinois with nearly 9.7 million residents as of 2010. Economics Northern Illinois is dominated by t ...

, but canceled these games on July 9 due to the Big Ten Conference's decision to play a conference-only schedule due to the

. , Michigan and Missouri were canceled due to COVID-19.,

Roster

Rankings

(*) Big Ten Conference members were not eligible for the Week 2 of the AP and Coaches Polls and Week 3 of the AP due to not having a scheduled season at the time.

Game summaries

At Purdue

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Box Score

Northwestern

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Michigan State

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Box Score
Iowa's first win over Michigan State since 2012, and the Hawkeyes' largest in the 48-game series, gave

his 163rd win as coach, passing

Joe Paterno Joseph Vincent Paterno (; December 21, 1926 – January 22, 2012), sometimes referred to as JoePa, was an American college football player, athletic director, and coach. He was the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions football, Penn ...

in total wins as a Big Ten head coach. The Hawkeyes dominated in all three phases of the game and gave Spartan quarterback Rocky Lombardi a long day, intercepting him three times.

At Minnesota

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Box Score
Iowa has won eight of the last nine meetings in this series. The Hawkeyes dominated the Golden Gophers, winning for the third straight time in Minneapolis, to keep Floyd of Rosedale in Iowa City for a sixth straight year.

At Penn State

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Box Score
Iowa earned their first win over Penn State since 2010, forcing four turnovers in the process. The victory gave

his 100th Big Ten win – just the 4th coach in conference history to achieve the feat – and Penn State their first-ever 0–5 start in the program's 134-year history.

Nebraska

*Source
Box Score
Iowa was victorious for the sixth straight time – and seventh in eight meetings – against Nebraska. In this back-and-forth game, turnovers in the fourth quarter hurt the Cornhuskers, as they fumbled twice in the last 10:17. The second of which was forced by

Chauncey Golston Chauncey Golston (born February 10, 1998) is an American football defensive end for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Cowboys in the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft. He played college football at Iow ...

to keep the Heroes Trophy in Iowa City. Senior

Keith Duncan Keith Duncan (born February 19, 1998) is an American football placekicker. He played college football for the Iowa Hawkeyes football, Iowa Hawkeyes. Early life and high school Duncan grew up in Weddington, North Carolina and attended Weddington H ...

kicked four field goals in a game for the fourth time in his career, joining

Nate Kaeding Nathaniel James Kaeding (born March 26, 1982) is an American former professional football player who was a placekicker in the National Football League (NFL). He played the majority of his career with the San Diego Chargers and retired after the ...

as the only Hawkeye kickers to achieve the feat.

At Illinois

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Box Score
Iowa hasn't lost to Illinois since 2008. This was their seventh straight victory in the series and have won 12 of the last 13 overall. Illinois jumped out to a 14–0 lead early but the Hawkeyes put up 35 unanswered points and controlled the line of scrimmage from that point on having the ability to both run and pass the ball effectively.

Wisconsin

Iowa won at home over Wisconsin for the first time since 2008 to recapture the bull. After a slow start on the snow-covered field in the first half, the Hawkeyes put up three touchdowns in the second, and were able to stop the Badgers on several fourth down attempts.

Michigan

Iowa was looking to avenge a loss in Ann Arbor from previous season, but it was announced on December 15 the game was canceled due to COVID-19 issues within the Wolverines program. Michigan hasn't won at

since 2005.

vs. Missouri (Music City Bowl)

Due to a COVID-19 outbreak within the Tigers' football program, the Music City Bowl was canceled, ending the season for both the Hawkeyes and the Tigers. Had the game been played, it would have been the first meeting between Iowa and Missouri in a decade. If Iowa had won the game, it would have given

his 10th bowl win, which would have tied

for first all-time in Big 10 history.

Awards and honors

Players drafted into the NFL

References

{{Iowa Hawkeyes football navbox

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

Iowa Hawkeyes football seasons

Iowa Hawkeyes football The Iowa Hawkeyes football program represents the University of Iowa in college football. The Hawkeyes compete in the West division of the Big Ten Conference. Iowa joined the Conference (then known as the Western Conference or Big Nine) in 1899 ...