Here is a close up. Thanks again!

Not sure if this applies to your situation, but I just reseeded my lawn, and I spread new topsoil overtop of an area that looked like your dead grass, and it came in pretty good. For what its worth, in the areas that didn't get any fresh topsoil and got seeded looking like what you have, no new grass grew.

One more note, I don't use any chemicals in my yard, I am a certified wildlife habitat by the NWF, so when I reseed that is a consideration. I do have a local source that sells seed by the pound if those look like good choices, the link is below. I also apologize for typos in my first comment, I type too quickly. I wish we could edit our comments after posting!

Here is a link that might be useful: Tri-County Stockdale

So you just raked it over the top, samlawn? How thick would you say the layer of new topsoil was? I would imaging what was underneath would eventually decompose and probably add something good to the soil too.

First off, its never bad to topdress a lawn with compost.
This summer has been one of the hottest on record and the mid-west has received far less than the usual moisture which resulted in many lawns paying the price.
But, most of these have been put in a dormant state---they are not dead--they will come back IF the lawn has the capacity to do so. The soil hopefully has the ability to rewnew what is in it.
I speak of nourishment. If the soil has the ability to grow again what is there then it'll happen. Unfortunately, many lawns did not get fed at their optimum time and used up what energy it had trying to fend off drought and heat.

With the coming cooler weather, accompanied by rain, the lawns will come back.
Its a little late in the season to think fertilizing.
We want our lawns to go dormant along with our plants and feeding fertilizer at this time can encourage soft growth which, if frost is early, can kill the new stuff.
Instead of feeding it an inorganic nitrogen based fertilizer give it a topdressing of compost, composted cattle or sheep manure. It helps feed the soil organic matter which will help it retain moisture and the small measure of nitrogen in it will encourage grass roots to grow strong.

A topdressing of compost or triple mix can be given those bare spots....along with the rest of the lawn, then an overseeding with a combination grass seed type can help bring the lawn back.

A simple raking over the area, then seeding before or after a topdressing will help bring the area back to its old self.

Don't till. You should rake the dead grass up to get to bare soil or thatch the area to accomplish the same. If it wasn't already so matted down I'd say scalp and mulch mow to use the organic content of the dead grass, but by the looks that's not going to work. You could add some soil over it, but I wouldn't.

Dormant grass will recover once cooler temps and rain returns. Dead is dead. Seed needs to contact soil to grow. Remove the dead grass (machine, dethatch rake, or garden rake, then scalp as low as possible and rake again)) to expose bare soil. Apply seed, topdress with thin layer of peat, peat moss or compost, apply starter fertilizer, keep seed moist-not wet until germination then water as needed.

Thanks everyone!

Just to be sure I understand, it is dead not dormant, right? I posted the second picture to show what happens if I tug on a chunk of it - it comes out roots and all and is mushy.

I need to rake up everything that is dead down to the dirt with a regular rake so I can pull out that whole layer?

I am assuming scalp means to cut the grass really low, but there is nothing really there to cut, plus I have a reel mower and I don't think that would work. It also seems like the area that I pull all the old grass out of will be lower, so that is where the layer of compost/topsoil comes in.

I am not sure if there is an organic starter fertilizer, I have been using corn gluten meal when I can get it, but I think I need to wait until the seeds have germinated and grown a bit before I can use it.

If I got any of this wrong, please correct me. Thanks again!

That's unusual that the sod would pull up from drought die-off. You should check for grubs. Normally drought die off does not result in lose sod and you can rake off the dead matter, expose the soil beneath and seed over the grass "stubs" and roots as they make a good seed bed. If you determine you don't have a grub or disease problem, you can rake all the lose sod off. Shake the soil off the roots and level the area. If the soil is still lower than the surrounding soil level you can add topsoil or sharp sand to level. Compost is not a substitute for soil as it will decompose.

I never even thought of that, I had no idea they could damage such a large area. Every time I dig in the yard or one of the garden beds I always come across white grubs, but I have for years and nothing like this has ever happened. I also noticed a bunch of dead grub looking things in this area, but they are kind of brown, could those be dead grubs? If that is my problem, how do I know for sure, and what should I do differently to fix it. Is it possible without pesticides?

dchall would be the person to answer your chemical/organic concerns. Hopefully he'll drop in. He also knows more about crawly things and their life cycles than most people should.

Thanks, I hope he stops in. Meanwhile, do you think even if it grubs I should try to rake up all the sod I can and then seed? I did have it aerated in the spring and the holes are still visible, I don't know if that is helpful or not.

I'm on thin ice here. I do know that certain products like Grubex are only effective if applied in June-July during a specific period of the grub life cycle. Whether that is because the grub is young or because the grub is actively feeding, I have no idea. So maybe the grubs at this stage are no longer a threat until next year. There may be other insecticide products (Bayer?) that will kill them in their late life cycle, I don't know. If there are organic products that will work, and whether any cure is not compatable with seeding, I have no clue. As the best time to seed is late August/early September, you have some time to wait for advice on this. I don't see any problem with you going ahead and removing the lose sod and preparing the area for seed in the meantime. To protect the area from erosion you could cover the area with straw or spun fabric. Sorry I can't be of more help on this. If you don't get an answer, I'd go ahead and seed in early Sept. and address the grubs next year with Grubex--but I'm not a pure organic person.