Likes, dislikes from Iowa football's win over Northwestern

EVANSTON, Illinois — Iowa football never trailed in its 24-10 victory at Northwestern on Nov. 7.

The Hawkeyes improved to 7-2 overall and 4-2 in Big Ten play this season.

Here are likes and dislikes from Iowa’s decisive victory over Northwestern.

Likes

Phil Parker wins matchup with Chip Kelly: The battle between Iowa’s defensive coordinator and Northwestern’s offensive coordinator was compelling. Granted, Northwestern was without its usual starting quarterback Aidan Chiles, but nonetheless Parker’s unit got the best of Kelly’s. Iowa’s defense held Northwestern to a season-low 10 points. The Wildcats’ previous low in 2026 was 23 against Indiana. Since coming off the bye week, Iowa’s defense has been smothering, holding opponents to an average of 7.7 points the last three games.

L.J. Phillips Jr.: Phillips delivered his best game of the season in his first start as a Hawkeye. After rushing for nearly 2,000 yards last season at South Dakota, Phillips got off to a slow start in 2026, partly because of an injury. Entering the game against Northwestern, Phillips had rushed for just 115 yards this season. Needing a spark at running back with Kamari Moulton done for the season, Phillips rushed 21 times for 128 yards against the Wildcats, including an explosive 45-yard run in the first quarter. He ran with force and physicality.

Braeden Jackson: After Iowa’s offense had slowed down and Northwestern cut the deficit to 11, special teams came to the rescue and padded the Hawkeyes’ lead. Jackson accelerated for a 96-yard kickoff-return touchdown to extend Iowa’s advantage to 21-3. It was the second time this season that Jackson returned a kickoff for a touchdown — the last time being a crucial touchdown in the win over Michigan.

Putting it out of reach: Northwestern finally found some semblance of life when it kicked a field goal to make it 14-3 in favor of Iowa. But the Hawkeyes didn’t let that last long. Iowa responded by scoring 10 points in a row to shut the door.

Fast start for Iowa’s offense and Hank Brown: Brown got off to a sizzling start, completing 11 of his first 12 passes for 102 yards and two total touchdowns (one rushing, one passing). Brown rushed for a 21-yard touchdown on Iowa’s first possession of the game and later connected with Tony Diaz for a 24-yard touchdown before the end of the first quarter. That allowed the Hawkeyes to jump out to an early 14-0 lead.

Iowa’s linebackers: Cam Buffington and Jayden Montgomery were incredibly disruptive against Northwestern, combining for 21 tackles. Iowa’s linebacker play continues to be sensational this season.

Caden Buhr: Two games in a row now that Buhr has made a field goal of more than 50 yards. He hit a career-high 54 yarder against Wisconsin and then nailed a 52-yarder at Northwestern to extend Iowa’s lead to 24-3.

Iowa’s offensive line: The Hawkeyes were operating without Cael Winter, who started the first eight games of the season at center. But even without Winter, Iowa was still able to run the ball very effectively, averaging 5.2 yards per carry. Credit veteran Michael Myslinski for stepping in and making his first career start at center.

Response since Minnesota: Iowa’s loss at Minnesota was ugly and frustrating, but the Hawkeyes’ response has been emphatic. Iowa has won its last two games and outscored its opponents by a combined 54-10. The Hawkeyes have done a commendable job picking themselves off the mat after the letdown in Minneapolis.

Road Hawks: Iowa is now 3-1 on the road — with wins at Michigan, Washington and Northwestern. The Hawkeyes handed the Wildcats their first home loss of the season. The loss at Minnesota stings, but for the most part the Hawkeyes have been successful away from Kinnick Stadium. The lone road game left during the regular season is at Illinois.

College Football Playoff hopes stay alive: There is still more work to be done, but Iowa remains in the CFP hunt with the win over Northwestern. The Hawkeyes will have to win their next three games — Purdue (home), Illinois (away) and Nebraska (home) — to have a legitimate case to the make the 12-team field. 

Dislikes

Turnovers: Both of the Hawkeyes’ turnovers came in the second half. Brown threw an interception on a bad-decision pass, and Tony Diaz later fumbled. Fortunately, those mistakes did not bite the Hawkeyes like in their losses to Ohio State and Minnesota. Iowa has struggled with ball security the last few games and that persisted against Northwestern. L.J. Phillips also fumbled late in the fourth quarter, but he was able to recover it.

Penalties: The penalty battle tilted in Northwestern’s favor. Iowa committed five penalties for 45 yards, while Northwestern had three for 20. One might have thought that Iowa wouldn’t be in good shape if they lost the turnover and penalty battles against Northwestern, but that didn’t turn out to be the case.

Iowa’s offense after first quarter: The Hawkeyes’ offense scored two touchdowns in its first three possessions, but then slowed down significantly. You can chalk that up to the fact that they built a lead and didn’t need to be as aggressive. Also, they got a boost (and one less possession) because of Jackson’s kickoff return touchdown. But for as well as Iowa’s offense started, they sputtered to the finish line, producing just three points in the final three quarters.

Hank Brown’s finish: This goes hand in hand with the trajectory of Iowa’s offense as a whole. After starting the game 11-of-12 through the air, Brown went just five for his final nine, including an interception. But it wasn’t like Brown’s finish was devastating for the Hawkeyes, who got plenty of help from their defense and special teams. Overall, Brown still had a solid performance: 16-of-21 passing for 126 yards, two total touchdowns and one interception.

Follow Tyler Tachman on X @Tyler_T15, contact via email at TTachman@usatodayco.com

This article originally appeared on Hawk Central: Likes, dislikes from Iowa football’s win over Northwestern