Iowa fans are very confident in their offense heading into a top-25 matchup against Michigan football.
The Hawkeyes ran for over 400 yards last week against Northern Iowa. Michigan isn't Northern Iowa, though. The Wolverines defensive line is far better than any Iowa has seen this season.
Michigan's defensive line might be the best Iowa will face its season. Iowa certainly won't see another team with better corners, even though the Hawkeyes' have wideouts talking about how excited they are to sqaure off with Michigan in man coverage.
Through two games, Hank Brown has been solid. He's got three touchdown passes and is ranked 53rd in QBR. Brown threw for under 200 yards against Iowa State.
Brown has 473 passing yards. Underwood has 504. Bryce has turned the ball over more, so his QBR is a little bit lower. He's ranked 65th, but Underwood has played two teams better than anyone Iowa has faced.
Iowa scored only 16 points against Iowa State, so let's cool our jets before we start acting like this is the greatest show on turf.
Hank Brown will have to deal with multiple challenges he's never faced before against Michigan football
For starters, Brown, a former Auburn quarterback, has never started a road game. Michigan Stadium can be a little silent sometimes, but it won't be on Saturday. Look back at the game against USC in 2024 if you doubt the crowd noise.
Until you play in that enviornment, it's hard to know how you will handle it. Bryce Underwood was certainly been much better at home than on the road. Most quarterbacks are.
Few interesting tidbits on Iowa QB Hank Brown from our board (users Deeg1987/rharter22):
— Steve Lorenz (@TremendousUM) September 22, 2026
- Brown has never played in a true road game
- He has never been sacked
- He has only been hit twice while attempting a pass
According to post from Steve Lorenz of The Michigan Insider, this will be the first road game for Brown, who has also never been sacked and has only been hit twice while throwing the ball.
If the offensive line can keep that up, Iowa will likely win the game. However, blocking Michigan, the program that leads the Big Ten in sacks and tackles for loss, with 35 combined, is a lot different than Iowa State or Northern Iowa.
Brown is going to get hit. He's likely going to get sacked. How will he respond? if it's poorly, as it is with most quarterbacks, that will be advantgage Wolverines.
Stopping the run will be key. If that happens, in order to beat Michigan, Brown will have to do something he has never done before: Win on the road and win against a defense that is able to apply pressure.
We'll see the result on Saturday.
Add us as a preferred source on Google