Game week is here as Iowa, Iowa State and UNI get ready to open the college football season. The cyclones kick it off on Thursday night with a matchup against North Dakota State. It will be the first game for new ISU coach Paul Rhoads and the cyclones hope to better last years 2-10 mark.North Dakota state was 6-5 a year ago and is receiving votes in the pre-seaason FCS poll.
Iowa and UNI come into the season with high hopes and they will matchup Saturday in Kinnick stadium. The Hawkeyes have several starters back from last year’s team that finished with a 9-4 record and beat South Carolina in the Outback bowl. A question mark is at running back where Jewell Hampton aggravated a knee injury he suffered this past summer and his immediate future is unclear. He was not listed on the latest two deep released by the coaching staff.
After making it to the semifinal round of the national playoffs in 2008 the Panthers enter this season fourth ranked in the national poll and they are the precession favorite in the Missouri Valley race.