Game week is right around the corner for the Iowa Hawkeyes. Head coach Kirk Ferentz said there is a lot of optimism within the Iowa program.

“Just pleased overall with the camp,” Ferentz said. “It was a really good preseason and productive. We’re really pretty healthy right now. I don’t anticipate at this point affecting us preparation for the first game. We’ll break a little bit and be back in here Sunday and get into a normal game routine so, ya know, it’s been good. Everything’s got its time, it’s rhythm. I think the guys worked hard and got a lot accomplished.”

There has been a lot of talk about the Iowa linebackers this offseason, and coach Ferentz confirmed two Quad Cities standouts are in the mix.

“You also got guys like (Nolan) DeLong, (Jayden) Montgomery. You know a lot of guys did a really good job,” Ferentz said. “You got to throw (Cam) Buffington in there, too. Last year, they were on scout team and they’re trying to figure out what’s going on, but now you’re 20 days into it where those guys have a lot more experience and spring was good for them for exposure. Now you’re starting to see those guys starting to show up a little bit the way you would think they might.”

Iowa opens the season against Albany at Kinnick Stadium on Aug. 30. The game starts at 5:00 p.m., and you can watch it on FS1 and in the Fox Sports app.