The 2025 college football season is just one month away, and Hawkeye football fans are eager to see what their squad can do this season. After finishing with a disappointing 8-5 record last season, Iowa looks to turn the page with some intriguing additions.
The quarterback position has been a glaring issue for nearly a decade, with the likes of Spencer Petras, Deacon Hill, and Cade McNamara bringing headaches to the Hawkeye faithful. This season, however, a new face enters town and provides plenty of excitement for the fans.
Mark Gronowski transferred from South Dakota State to Iowa with two FCS national championship titles, a 42-5 career record, and a Walter Payton Award, the FCS equivalent to the Heisman trophy.
With the Jackrabbits in 2024, Gronowski threw for 2,721 yards and 23 touchdowns, while rushing for 380 yards and 10 touchdowns.
“He’s just a tremendous young person,” head coach Kirk Ferentz said about Gronowski at Big Ten media days on Thursday. “Did a great job in the classroom at South Dakota State, obviously did a great job on the field. All the things that we thought were positives about him, we’ve gotten to see them first hand.”
Coach Ferentz hasn’t been able to see his quarterback in live action at practice quite yet, as Gronowski was recovering from a shoulder injury at the time of spring practice.
“We’re really looking forward to seeing him be in the huddle and actually take snaps with our team,” Ferentz said.
Gronowski also got lots of praise from his center, Logan Jones.
“He’s been a great leader for a lot of guys,” Jones said. “He didn’t try and just take over the reins and be a leader. He earned that when he got here. He’s done a great job and so many young guys look up to him in that way.”
One steady aspect of Iowa football over the years has been its defense. The Hawkeyes were ranked number 11 in all of college football in scoring defense in 2024, a step back from fourth in 2023.
Despite the decline in defensive rankings, the Hawkeyes have consistently been a top 15 defense year in and year out under defensive coordinator Phil Parker. Parker’s old school philosophy mixed with intensity makes his players want to compete at a much higher level.
“I think what makes coach Parker so great is his attention to detail,” fourth-year defensive back Koen Entringer said at Big Ten media days. “He demands excellence, regardless of what position you are, regardless of where you are on the depth chart.”
“He has the same standard of performance for everybody,” Entringer added. “I think I can speak for everybody, it’s just an honor to play for coach Parker, he’s such a great coach.”
It’s almost a certainty that the Iowa defense will be just as good, if not better than last year’s group in the 2025 season. The uncertainty with the Hawkeyes lies on the offense, a group that saw a massive increase in production last season.
In 2024, Iowa scored 27 points per game, 12 points higher than the 2023 average. Most of the 2024 production came from the legs of running back Kaleb Johnson, who rushed for 1,537 yards and 21 touchdowns. Johnson was responsible for 53 percent of the Hawkeyes’ touchdowns last season.
Johnson constantly credited his offensive line for his performance in 2024, and the unit in 2025 could be even better with leadership from center Logan Jones.
“We know what we want to do,” Jones said at Big Ten media days. “We’re going to be the most physical team you play, every game. That’s what we’re going to do every single game.”