Where do the Iowa Hawkeyes and their 2022 opponents rank in ESPN’s final SP+ projections?
Week zero is officially upon us, which means the season is essentially here. That also means it’s the last chance for any final preseason rankings. ESPN’s final SP+ rankings from Bill Connelly are here.
Back in May, the Iowa Hawkeyes checked in with the nation’s No. 27 SP+ ranking. Has that changed at all? How have the Hawkeyes’ opponents rankings altered in the months since?
Real quick, here’s a reminder on what exactly the SP+ ranking from ESPN is and how exactly it works.
SP+ is a tempo- and opponent-adjusted measure of college football efficiency. It is a predictive measure of the most sustainable and predictable aspects of football, not a résumé ranking, and, along those same lines, these projections aren’t intended to be a guess at what the AP Top 25 will look like at the end of the year. These are simply early offseason power rankings based on the information we have been able to gather to date. – Connelly, ESPN.
SP+ rankings are created using three primary factors: returning production, recent recruiting and recent history. Keep in mind that South Dakota State will not appear in these rankings as the Jackrabbits are an FCS opponent. Without further ado, let’s take a look at where Iowa and all of the Hawkeyes’ opponents are ranked in ESPN’s final preseason SP+ rankings.
Iowa State Cyclones
AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack
SP+ rating: 6.9
Projected win total: 6.3
Overall: No. 48
Difference from May: +8
Nevada Wolfpack
Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
SP+ rating: -13.4
Projected win total: 4.4
Overall: No. 116
Difference from May: +1
Rutgers Scarlet Knights
Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports
SP+ rating: -2.7
Projected win total: 4.2
Overall: No. 80
Difference from May: -2
Michigan Wolverines
Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images
SP+ rating: 21.4
Projected win total: 9.6
Overall: No. 6
Difference from May: -2
Illinois Fighting Illini
Ron Johnson-USA TODAY Sports
SP+ rating: -2.4
Projected win total: 4.4
Overall: No. 79
Difference from May: +3
Ohio State Buckeyes
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
SP+ rating: 29.7
Projected win total: 10.4
Overall: No. 3
Difference from May: -2
Northwestern Wildcats
David Banks-USA TODAY Sports
SP+ rating: -5.6
Projected win total: 3.5
Overall: No. 89
Difference from May: -4
Purdue Boilermakers
Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports
SP+ rating: 9.9
Projected win total: 7.6
Overall: No. 34
Difference from May: +1
Wisconsin Badgers
MARK HOFFMAN/MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL / USA TODAY NETWORK
SP+ rating: 15.6
Projected win total: 8.4
Overall: No. 17
Difference from May: -7
Minnesota Golden Gophers
Harrison Barden-USA TODAY Sports
SP+ rating: 12.4
Projected win total: 8.1
Overall: No. 31
Difference from May: -10
Nebraska Cornhuskers
AP Photo/Rebecca S. Gratz
SP+ rating: 8.3
Projected win total: 6.9
Overall: No. 44
Difference from May: -15
The rest of the Big Ten East
Matt Pendleton-USA TODAY Sports
No. 13: Penn State
No. 15: Michigan State
No. 54: Maryland
No. 86: Indiana
The full top 10
Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
No. 1: Alabama
No. 2: Georgia
No. 3: Ohio State
No. 4: Oklahoma
No. 5: Clemson
No. 6: Michigan
No. 7: Notre Dame
No. 8: Texas A&M
No. 9: Ole Miss
No. 10: Tennessee
Iowa Hawkeyes
Quinn Harris-USA TODAY Sports
SP+ rating: 13.3
Projected win total: 7.6
Overall: No. 27
Difference from May: None
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