Most likely Iowa football 2026 College GameDay dates

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.