CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2017 Iowa

8–⁠5 (4–⁠5 Big Ten), coached by Kirk Ferentz.

Schedule and results

Iowa in 2017, game by game: won vs. Wyoming 24–3; won at Iowa State 44–41; won vs. North Texas 31–14; lost vs. No. 4 Penn State 19–21; lost at Michigan State 10–17; won vs. Illinois 45–16; lost at Northwestern 10–17; won vs. Minnesota 17–10; won vs. No. 3 Ohio State 55–24; lost at No. 6 Wisconsin 14–38; lost vs. Purdue 15–24; won at Nebraska 56–14; won vs. Boston College 27–20+42−24Won 24–3 vs. Wyoming+21WyomingWon 44–41 at Iowa State+3Iowa StateWon 31–14 vs. North Texas+17North TexasLost 19–21 vs. No. 4 Penn State-2No. 4 Penn StateLost 10–17 at Michigan State-7Michigan StateWon 45–16 vs. Illinois+29IllinoisLost 10–17 at Northwestern-7NorthwesternWon 17–10 vs. Minnesota+7MinnesotaWon 55–24 vs. No. 3 Ohio State+31No. 3 Ohio StateLost 14–38 at No. 6 Wisconsin-24No. 6 WisconsinLost 15–24 vs. Purdue-9PurdueWon 56–14 at Nebraska+42NebraskaWon 27–20 vs. Boston College+7Boston College
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 2vsWyomingW 24–⁠371%
Sep 9atIowa StateW 44–⁠4160%
Sep 16vsNorth TexasW 31–⁠1483%
Sep 23vs4Penn StateL 19–⁠2149%
Sep 30atMichigan StateL 10–⁠1753%
Oct 7vsIllinoisW 45–⁠1676%
Oct 21atNorthwesternL 10–⁠1747%
Oct 28vsMinnesotaW 17–⁠1062%
Nov 4vs3Ohio StateW 55–⁠2434%
Nov 11at6WisconsinL 14–⁠3825%
Nov 18vsPurdueL 15–⁠2477%
Nov 24atNebraskaW 56–⁠1457%
Dec 27Bowls & playoffvsBoston CollegePinstripe BowlW 27–⁠2055%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Boston College 27–⁠20 in the Pinstripe Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 7th in the Big Ten.

In program history: The 32nd-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 133 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 11: 25

2 consensus All-AmericansJosey Jewell, LB; Josh Jackson, DB

Record
8–⁠5
Conference
4–⁠5 tied for 7th in Big Ten
AP final
Unranked peak No. 25
Points
367–⁠259
Coach
Kirk Ferentz
Elo
1632 +58 this season
SP+ rating
9.8 No. 35 of 128; offense No. 69, defense No. 21, special teams No. 38
SRS
15.0 No. 13 of 130 in FBS
Returning
30% of last season’s EPA, No. 113 of 128
Recruiting class
No. 41 roster talent No. 49 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Brian Ferentz
Defensive coordinator
Phil Parker
Offense
Multiple
Defense
4–⁠3

How good, play by play

  • Offense80th of 130
  • Defense8th of 130
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted55th of 130
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted10th of 130
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0740%1.1380th of 130
Defense-0.0542%1.088th of 130
Opponent-adjusted0.10 off
-0.04 def		42% off
41% def		—55th off
10th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.7own 3118% allowed
Defense2.2own 3218% caused

CORE rating 6.5, 37th of 130 (offense -0.1, defense -6.6).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsNathan Stanley QB2,437 yds
Passing touchdownsNathan Stanley QB26 TD
Rushing yardsAkrum Wadley RB1,109 yds
Rushing touchdownsAkrum Wadley RB10 TD
Receiving yardsNick Easley WR530 yds
Receiving touchdownsNoah Fant TE11 TD
TacklesJosey Jewell 132 tkl
SacksAnthony Nelson DE7.5 sacks
InterceptionsJoshua Jackson DB8 INT

Top recruits in the 2017 class

A.J. Epenesa SDE★★★★★No. 27
Tristan Wirfs OT★★★★No. 322
Mark Kallenberger OT★★★★No. 347
Djimon Colbert CB★★★No. 651
Peyton Mansell DUAL★★★No. 651

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2017 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks22.50.821
Running backs23.00.853
Receivers33.00.837
Offensive line24.00.893
Defensive line43.50.871
Linebackers13.00.804
Defensive backs73.00.836
Athletes and specialists22.50.818
Whole class233.10.844

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2018

The 2018 draft
Rd 2James Daniels CChicago Bears
Rd 2Josh Jackson CBGreen Bay Packers
Rd 4Josey Jewell ILBDenver Broncos

Roster 117

The 2017 roster

117 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2017 line; 61 have a stat line. See the roster

All-Big Ten

3 first team

First team

From Wikipedia’s 2017 all-conference team article, with the selectors that named each player (AP-1: the Associated Press’s first team).

2017 Big Ten standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Wisconsin9–⁠013–⁠17
Ohio State8–⁠112–⁠25
Penn State7–⁠211–⁠28
Northwestern7–⁠210–⁠317
Michigan State7–⁠210–⁠315
Michigan5–⁠48–⁠5
Iowa4–⁠58–⁠5
Purdue4–⁠57–⁠6
Rutgers3–⁠64–⁠8
Nebraska3–⁠64–⁠8
Minnesota2–⁠75–⁠7
Indiana2–⁠75–⁠7
Maryland2–⁠74–⁠8
Illinois0–⁠92–⁠10

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.