College GameDay has announced its Week 1 destination, a trip to Baton Rouge, for the LSU Tigers versus the Clemson Tigers to start the 2026 college football season. After that, the rest of the season lingers wide open for teams across the country to host the ESPN crew on their campus.
The Iowa Hawkeyes, a team with expectations high and low this year, have a handful of games on their schedule that could see the College GameDay crew in town, be it in Iowa City or on the road across the Big Ten landscape, where Iowa looks for a road win.
Check out Iowa’s 2026 schedule and what games could draw national attention.
No chance of happening
September 5: Northern Illinois at Iowa
Not only is Week 1 already decided, but this game should be one that the Hawkeyes have in control by halftime, if not the second quarter. If all goes according to plan, this is among Iowa’s most boring games of the season.
September 12: Iowa State at Iowa
In past years, this game has drawn national attention. This year, with the departure of Matt Campbell to Penn State and Iowa State’s roster turnover, the Cyclones are a big unknown, and it’s too early to give this game the spotlight it has had previously with big names on both sides of the ball.
September 19: Northern Iowa at Iowa
Iowa’s final tune-up before Big Ten play begins, this truly should be a glorified practice for the starters to work out any kinks in the first half, then get rested for the start of conference play.
November 7: Iowa at Northwestern
Northwestern has been feisty in the past, but Iowa has consistently had the Wildcats’ number in recent years. This game is slotted into November as the College Football Playoff race heats up to a fever pitch and will be hidden somewhere in the slate.
November 14: Purdue at Iowa
This is not as much anything to do with Iowa as it is Purdue’s lack of Big Ten success in recent years. The Boilermakers are set for another long season, and with this game coming in the final quarter of the season, Purdue could be limping ot the finish line as a sacrificial lamb for the Hawkeyes.
Long shot if everything breaks right
October 9: Iowa at Washington
If they had not moved this game to Friday, there is a real chance this could be a destination. But the Friday night time slot is almost a death sentence for drawing the GameDay crew. Even if Iowa could somehow enter this game at 4-1 or 5-0, which figures to be Washington’s record with an opening slate of Washington State, Utah State, Eastern Washington, Minnesota, and USC, it’s just rather unlikely to see this game picked.
October 31: Wisconsin at Iowa
It’s Halloween, it’s going to be in Kinnick, and it could be a night game. Iowa, if they can get through the early-season gauntlet with only 1-2 losses, this game could be a possible GameDay selection. That is, if Wisconsin holds up its end of the bargain, which has been a tall task for the Badgers as of late.
November 27: Nebraska at Iowa
Another one that could see College Football Playoff implications is the final week of the season. Iowa and Nebraska are programs that believe they should be contending, and if one or both of these teams enter this game within striking distance of the 12-team field, we could have a potential win-and-in situation brewing.
It’s not likely, as both have 11 games before this to handle business in, but it’s not impossible. It is also hurt by being on the final weekend of the season, when a myriad of rivalry games take place.
A slight chance
October 24: Iowa at Minnesota
At first, I said no chance. Then I said maybe. Then I saw Minnesota’s schedule and my brain began dancing. Eastern Illinois, Mississippi State, Akron, Washington, Michigan, and Purdue lie in front of the Gophers. What if they are 5-1 at this point? What if Iowa is 5-1 with only one blemish after the gauntlet of Michigan, Ohio State, and Washington? Don’t write it off.
November 21: Iowa at Illinois
Like the Nebraska game, this one comes down to both teams keeping themselves in position for this game to carry postseason weight. Iowa has Minnesota, Wisconsin, Northwestern, and Purdue before Illinois, all winnable games. Can the Illini take the next step and create some noise around this late-season Big Ten matchup?
Most realistic chances
September 26: Iowa at Michigan
Iowa should enter this game 3-0. With their schedule, anything less is a catastrophic failure. Northern Illinois and Northern Iowa should be handled. Iowa State, this year, should be a game that Iowa can win, being itself.
Michigan has Western Michigan, Oklahoma, and UTEP before this game. If these two teams enter Week 4 a combined 6-0, College GameDay has a very attractive destination in Ann Arbor for the Hawkeyes’ Big Ten opener on the road against the Michigan Wolverines.
October 3: Ohio State at Iowa
So, let’s say Iowa wins on the road at Michigan and moves to 4-0. Ohio State awaits. At the very worst, they will be 3-1. They have Ball State, at Texas, then Kent State, and Illinois. The Buckeyes are no worse than 3-1 entering this game, and realistically, Iowa shouldn’t be either.
If both enter 4-0, it may be a no-brainer for College GameDay. If both are 3-1, there is still a case to be made that we could be viewing an early-season elimination game from the College Football Playoff, which has to command national attention.
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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire : Most likely Iowa football 2026 College GameDay dates
Reporting by Riley Donald, Hawkeyes Wire / Hawkeyes Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
