Big Games on the Gridiron

March 13, 2006

Two games on the schedule for Coach Kirk Ferentz’s nationally ranked 2006 Iowa football team have found their way onto a list of the “75 Biggest Games of 2006,” a compilation created by Pete Fiutak of CollegeFootballNews.com and featured in FoxSports.com.

Iowa games at Michigan on Oct. 21 is ranked No. 31 by Fiutak. The Hawkeyes’ Sept. 30 date with Ohio State ranks No. 23. If recent history is any guide, both games figure to played before sellout crowds in front of national television audience and will likely have a bearing on the race for the 2006 Big Ten Conference championship and the league’s berth in the 2007 Rose Bowl.

Click HERE to review the entire list.

The Ohio State game is one of seven on the home schedule for the 2006 Hawkeyes. Iowa will entertain non-conference opponents Montana, Iowa State and Northern Illinois, and Purdue, Northwestern and Minnesota in addition to the Buckeyes in conference action.

Ferentz’s squad will open its spring practice later this month. The Hawkeyes will not stage a spring game or a public practice this spring because of the ongoing renovation work at historic Kinnick Stadium. As was the case a year ago, Ferentz hopes the construction schedule will allow for an opportunity for fans of the Hawkeyes to watch a team practice inside the historic home of the Iowa football program prior to the 2006 season opener Sept. 2 against Montana.