If you’re looking for the latest iowa hawkeyes football score, you probably already know that the 2025 season wrapped up with a bang in Tampa. On December 31, 2025, the Hawkeyes took down No. 14 Vanderbilt with a 34-27 victory in the ReliaQuest Bowl.
It was a statement.
Honestly, it wasn't just another bowl win for Kirk Ferentz. By beating the Commodores at Raymond James Stadium, Ferentz officially notched his 11th bowl victory, passing Joe Paterno for the most bowl wins by any coach in Big Ten history. That’s a massive milestone that sorta flew under the radar because of the madness of the expanded College Football Playoff.
The game itself was a roller coaster. Iowa jumped out early with a 72-yard touchdown drive on their opening possession—completely on the ground. Then, quarterback Mark Gronowski, who ended up being the MVP, really found his rhythm. He went 16-of-22 for 212 yards and two touchdowns, plus he added another score on a quarterback sneak.
The Numbers Behind the Iowa Hawkeyes Football Score
When you look at the final tally, a 9-4 record (6-3 in the Big Ten) looks like a standard Iowa season. But the context is everything.
You’ve got to realize how close this team was to a truly historic run. During the regular season, the Hawkeyes lost four games by a combined total of only 15 points. Every single one of those losses was to a team ranked in the top 20 at the time. We’re talking about a field goal here, a missed conversion there.
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2025 Regular Season Highlights and Heartbreaks
Iowa’s path to that final iowa hawkeyes football score in Tampa was anything but linear.
- The Cy-Hawk Stumble: Losing 13-16 to Iowa State early in September stung. It’s a rivalry game where the margin is always razor-thin, and this year was no different.
- The Wisconsin Shutout: On October 11, the Hawkeyes went into Madison and absolutely dismantled the Badgers 37-0. It was peak "Phil Parker defense."
- The November Slide: Back-to-back losses to Oregon (16-18) and USC (21-26) effectively knocked Iowa out of the Big Ten title race and CFP contention.
- The Nebraska Rout: They finished the regular season by crushing the Cornhuskers 40-16 in Lincoln, which basically set the stage for the bowl invite.
Why Mark Gronowski and Kamari Moulton Changed the Narrative
For years, the joke was that Iowa's offense was where drives went to die. But 2025 felt different under offensive coordinator Tim Lester. Basically, the Hawkeyes actually started moving the ball through the air.
DJ Vonnahme emerged as a legitimate threat, hauling in seven catches for 146 yards in the bowl game. And let's talk about Kamari Moulton. He finished the season as the lead back and put up 95 yards and a touchdown against Vanderbilt.
It wasn't just "three yards and a cloud of dust" anymore. There was a flea-flicker for a touchdown. A flea-flicker! In an Iowa game! That 21-yard strike from Gronowski to Vonnahme in the third quarter was probably the highlight of the entire season for most fans.
Looking Ahead to 2026
The dust hasn't even settled on the ReliaQuest win, and the roster is already shifting. Iowa just landed L.J. Phillips Jr., a transfer running back from South Dakota who put up nearly 2,000 yards last year.
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He’s a smaller back—5'9", 225 pounds—but he’s a literal bowling ball. With Moulton returning and the addition of Phillips, the ground game for 2026 looks terrifyingly efficient.
The defense is losing some veterans, as it always does, but the system Phil Parker has built is so plug-and-play at this point that nobody is really worried. They finished the 2025 season ranked 8th in the country in scoring defense, giving up just 16.1 points per game.
Breaking Down the Final 2025 Stats
If you're a person who lives for the box score, the final season metrics tell a story of a team that was elite on one side and "good enough" on the other.
The Hawkeyes averaged 29.3 points per game. That’s a huge jump from the previous two seasons. Defensively, they allowed only 209 points across 13 games.
Kicker Drew Stevens was also a quiet hero. He went 2-for-2 in the bowl game, including a 44-yarder that essentially iced it. He finished the year with 22 made field goals, a career-best.
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What to Do Now
If you're looking to track the Hawkeyes through the off-season, here are the moves you need to make to stay ahead of the curve.
First, keep an eye on the transfer portal. While the Phillips signing is big, Iowa is still looking for depth in the secondary after a few seniors graduated.
Second, if you’re a season ticket holder, the renewal window is open until March 31, 2026. Given how they finished the year, Kinnick is going to be rocking for the opener against Northern Illinois on September 5.
Finally, bookmark the official athletics site for the spring game schedule. That’s usually our first look at how the quarterback competition will shake out for the post-Gronowski era, though with the way he played in the bowl, he’s clearly the man to beat if he uses his remaining eligibility.
The 34-27 iowa hawkeyes football score against Vanderbilt wasn't just a win; it was the bridge to what looks like a very promising 2026.
Check the 2026 schedule:
- September 5 vs. Northern Illinois
- September 12 vs. Iowa State (The Cy-Hawk trophy is currently in Ames, time to bring it home)
- September 19 vs. Northern Iowa
Keep your eyes on the spring practices starting in late March for updates on the offensive line, which actually won the Joe Moore Award this past season. That's a huge foundational piece that shouldn't be overlooked.