Has Iowa ever been top tier competitive? Very few programs are top tier. OSU, Ala, Georgia, and maybe Clemson have recently been in the top tier. Oklahoma has been close. We'll see what USC can do. LSU had a super year with Burrow et al.
I think Iowa fans who expect that level of performance will forever be gnashing their teeth. It ain't gonna happen for a lot of reasons.
Being at the level of tOSU or Georgia might involve adding several million in population to the state, changing our recruiting, being willing to bend a lot of rules, and possibly locating the entire state in the deep south.
OSU has always been in the top tier, and every year they recruit top 5 nationally. Sometimes #1. They recruit California, Florida, Texas, and their own populous state. Nobody else in the big ten comes close to them, unfortunately. OSU likely should've beaten Georgia, and could be celebrating a natty right now. Michigan beat them two years in a row, but when push comes to shove, they aren't it.
While I'm sad that Iowa can't close the gap to Georgia, I'm more saddened by the fact that no one will catch these top teams for quite some time. It makes college football boring.