Things are trending up inside the walls of Kinnick Stadium for Iowa football. At least based on early reports.

The Hawkeyes finished 8-5 last fall, but most of victories were tenuous. The offense moved like molasses thanks to insufficient quarterback play. The defense continued to dominate, allowing Iowa to avoid a losing season.

Now OC Brian Ferentz is on the hot seat after AD Gary Barta slapped a 25-points-per-game addendum onto his contract. He knows the pressure is on him to impress with a new quarterback and revamped offensive unit. If he can hold up his end of the bargain, the Hawkeyes likely remain a top contender for the B1G West title.

How Kirk Ferentz’s 25th season turns out will hinge of making the most of the following 5 improved areas and minimizing (or turning around) 5 areas where regression is likely.

Better: Quarterback play

If Iowa regresses after Spencer Petras’ swan song season, there’s no reason for either Ferentz to enter the stadium. Petras threw for less than 100 yards 4 times in his final season in Iowa City.

Incoming transfer Cade McNamara, conversely, led Michigan to a Big Ten title and College Football Playoff berth in 2021. He’s proven that he can win at the highest level. His ability to keep drives alive was evident as the Wolverines finished top-2o in scoring that season. Most of all, McNamara finished with a 15-6 TD:INT ratio, often seeing his drives end with points instead of punts.

Iowa doesn’t need to rewrite chapters in its offensive bible. It simply requires a steady hand who will keep drives alive. Almost any QB could have been considered an upgrade over Petras, but McNamara fits the criteria like a glove.

Better: Red zone offense

Let’s not dog on Petras much longer, but his 5-5 TD:INT ratio speaks for itself. The Hawkeyes ranked 84th in turning red-zone trips into points and 124th (12-of-27) in producing TDs from inside the 20. Petras connected from inside the 20-yard line 3 times.

McNamara wasn’t the only Wolverine to switch divisions. Erick All joins Luke Lachey at tight end, forming what should be one of he better duos in the B1G. All had an instant connection with McNamara during their time in Ann Arbor. Lachey, a 6-6 bowling ball looking for a strike, should watch his role expand with Sam LaPorta now in the NFL. All will be an ideal complement. Not to mention, Iowa has weapons in Nico Ragaini, Kaleb Brown and Kaleb Johnson, all of whom can turn short passes into significant gains.

Iowa should find the end zone more often this season, from inside and outside of the red zone.

Better: Offensive line

We all know the gist of the stat lines from last season involving Iowa’s trench play. The Hawkeyes allowed 38 sacks, their most since 2007. But while stats shed light on part of the story, coaches often will fill in the blanks. And based on recent conversations, Iowa’s offensive line last year was too young in spots and dealing with nagging injuries in others.

Those problems seem to be fixed entering Week 1’s matchup against Utah State. Logan Jones and Connor Colby are a year older and seasoned playing inside. Mason Richman won’t be playing on 1 leg after undergoing surgery this spring to fix his knee. George Barnett, Iowa’s offensive line coach, also likes the depth he has behind the initial starting 5, so expect a much more cohesive unit blocking up front.

Better: Third-down conversions

An upgrade at quarterback should improve every aspect of the offense. Take for instance Iowa’s 3rd-down conversion rate, which ranked 129th nationally (27.8%). There were only 131 FBS programs in the sport in 2022, and the 2 that ranked below the Hawkeyes — Colorado State and New Mexico — combined for 5 wins.

More consistency on the offensive line presents more opportunities for the run game to flourish. If that fails, McNamara can target Ragaini, Diante Vines or one of his towering tight ends to move the sticks. It won’t rank among the elites, but it’ll suffice enough to at least put Iowa in field goal range — and out of the 100s in 3rd-down success.

Better: Interceptions

Most people wouldn’t expect much more if their team recorded 15 picks, but Iowa’s secondary is still one of the nation’s best. Yes, Phil Parker will need to replace Kaevon Merriweather and Riley Moss, but he still has Cooper DeJean and Quinn Schulte. Iowa also returns Jermari Harris, who missed all of last season due to injury.

DeJean, a Jim Thorpe Award favorite, recorded 5 picks in 2022. Harris registered 4 in 2021, while 4-star newcomer Xavier Nwankpa notched his first INT in the Music City Bowl against Kentucky. Parker believes that depth corners TJ Hall and Deshaun Lee will have prominent roles in coverage. I’m not saying Iowa breaks NCAA records, but 20 picks shouldn’t be off the table if all stay healthy. It’s a big number, but 2 teams hit it last year, including B1G West brethren Illinois, which led the nation with 24.

Worse: Linebackers

This is a simple supply and demand situation. Iowa supplied 2 standout linebackers to the NFL in Jack Campbell and Seth Benson. Now, it’s in demand for replacements. Campbell led Iowa and the B1G back-to-back years in stops (143 in 2021, 128 in ’22), hitting triple digits both times. Benson recorded 105 and 94 tackles those 2 seasons.

Now, senior Jay Higgins ranks as Iowa’s top returning tackler. He had 39 a year ago. No other linebacker finished with more than 7.

Maybe Higgins will become the next Butkus winner, but Iowa featured one of the best duos in the sport. For now, Higgins is riding solo.

Worse: Punt returns

Yes, DeJean can do just about anything on the football field, so saying he won’t be an exceptional return man is far-fetched. For now, let’s temper our expectations on his impact if he ends up being Arland Bruce’s primary replacement. Now at Oklahoma State (but inactive as betting charges are being investigated), Bruce averaged 6.47 yards per return (3rd in the B1G among 7 players with enough attempts to qualify), with a career-best 25-yarder against Nevada and a 19-yarder against Northwestern.

Would I be shocked to see DeJean return a few balls across the 50? Not at all. Would it be wild to think the man who looks destined to find the end zone whenever his hands touch the football eventually takes one to the house? Of course not. But I’ll need to see to believe it before saying No. 3 is getting special teams points on Saturdays. It’s also not clear he’ll have the full-time assignment.

Worse: Sack total

I’m mostly nitpicking at this point since there are far more positives than negatives in Iowa’s outlook this season. Perhaps the loss of Lukas Van Ness plays a factor in Iowa’s sack total declining a year after recording 34, 3rd among B1G programs.

Yes, the Hawkeyes return Deontae Craig and Joe Evans, who combined for 13.5 sacks, but Van Ness totaled 6 of his own. The now-Green Bay Packers pass-rusher also was credited with 10.5 tackles for loss. Iowa has up-and-comers such as Aaron Graves, Ethan Hurkett and Max Llewellyn, but the trio combined for just 4 sacks as rotational players. It’s not like Iowa won’t connect with QBs in the backfield for takedowns, but the total might take a slight dip.

Worse: Pass breakups

Again, just looking at last season’s numbers, there’s going to be a drop-off in the PBU department. Moss finished with a team-high 11 breakups while Merriweather was credited with 3. Terry Roberts broke up 3 balls, then took his talents to Michigan State in the offseason.

DeJean finished 2nd on the roster with 8 PBUs, so one should expect similar results from him. Harris might be able to record a few, and the same goes for Schulte and senior Sebastian Castro, who finished with 6 and 5 breakups, respectively. But the loss of Moss probably impacts the final stat line, so I’ll bet the under of 46 from last season.

Worse: Opponents 3rd-down conversions

Attacking the middle of the field might be opponents’ best way of keeping drives alive. Last season, opponents converted 30.6% of 3rd downs (Iowa ranked 11th nationally), thwarted mainly by the human tackling machine that was Campbell. And if the future Detroit Lion wasn’t getting his hands on the ball carrier, a swarm of Hawkeyes led by Benson or Merriweather usually was.

Until Iowa finds a quality No. 2 linebacker to pair alongside Higgins, this will be a weak point. Parker knows how to find talent and put it in position to succeed, but he first must find players that fit his system. Maybe Castro moves down closer to the line of scrimmage, or perhaps Schulte becomes a tackling machine. I expect this to be a moot issue by midseason, but the success rate is going to drop based on early struggles.