Iowa Hawkeyes football

Iowa Hawkeyes football
2015 Iowa Hawkeyes football team
First season 1889
Athletic director Gary Barta
Head coach Kirk Ferentz
17th year, 127–87 (.593)
Stadium Kinnick Stadium
Seating capacity 70,585
Field surface Field Turf
Location Iowa City, Iowa
NCAA division NCAA Division I FBS
Conference Big Ten
Division West
Past conferences WIUFA (1892–1897)
Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association (1907–1910)
All-time record 625–543–39 (.534)
Bowl record 14–14–1 (.500)
Claimed nat'l titles 1 (1958)
Unclaimed nat'l titles 4 (1921, 1922, 1956, 1960)
Conference titles 13 (11 Big Ten, 1 MVIC, 1 WIUFA)
Division titles 1 (2015)
Heisman winners 1
Consensus All-Americans 25
Current uniform
Colors Black and Gold[1]
         
Fight song Iowa Fight Song
Mascot Herky the Hawk
Marching band Hawkeye Marching Band
Outfitter Nike
Rivals Iowa State Cyclones
Minnesota Golden Gophers
Nebraska Cornhuskers
Wisconsin Badgers
Website hawkeyesports.com

The Iowa Hawkeyes football team is the college football team representing the University of Iowa, located in Iowa City, Iowa. The Hawkeyes are currently coached by Kirk Ferentz, who has begun his 17th season as the head coach and is also tied for the second-longest current tenured coach in NCAA Division I FBS (he is tied with University of Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops). The Hawkeyes compete in the West division of the Big Ten Conference (Big Ten). They have been a member of the Big Ten since 1899, and are currently a Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) member of the NCAA. The Hawkeyes play their home games at Kinnick Stadium, with a capacity of 70,585.

History

Football was first played as a club sport at Iowa in 1872, with intramural games against other colleges played as early as 1882, but it was not until 1889 that the University of Iowa first officially recognized a varsity football team. In 1899, Iowa completed its first undefeated football season, which led to an invitation to join the Western Conference, now known as the Big Ten Conference. In 1900, the Hawkeyes secured another undefeated season and won a share of the Western Conference title in their first year of league play. In 1907 Iowa helped form the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association. They participated in football in the new league for four seasons, while retaining their existing membership in the Western Conference. Iowa tied with Nebraska in 1907 for the league championship in its first season of competition. They would leave the conference after the 1910 football season.[2]

Iowa claimed consecutive Big Ten titles in 1921 and 1922. The Hawkeyes won 20 straight games in the early 1920s under the guidance of Hall of Fame coach Howard Jones. Jones soon left Iowa and established a powerhouse at Southern California, and the Hawkeyes were abysmal for most of the 1930s. As a result, little was expected of Iowa’s 1939 team, led by new coach Eddie Anderson. Nicknamed the “Ironmen”, the 1939 Hawkeyes scored several upset victories and vaulted into the national rankings. Though Iowa fell a game short of the Big Ten title, team MVP Nile Kinnick won almost every major national award, including the 1939 Heisman Trophy.

Forest Evashevski was hired as Iowa’s head coach in 1952. He lured Calvin Jones to Iowa, where Jones became the first Hawkeye – and the first African-American – to win the Outland Trophy in 1955. From 1956 to 1960, Evashevski led Iowa to four finishes in the top five of the national rankings, three Big Ten Conference titles, two Rose Bowl victories, and the 1958 FWAA national championship. After the 1960 season, Evashevski left coaching to become Iowa’s athletic director, and his various successors thereafter went nineteen consecutive seasons from 1962 through 1980 without a winning record.

Hall of Fame coach Hayden Fry was hired after the 1978 season to try to reverse Iowa’s fortunes. After decades of losing, Fry revived the Iowa program. In 20 years at Iowa, he led the Hawkeyes to 14 bowl games, including three Rose Bowl appearances, and won three Big Ten titles. Among the legends that Fry left behind is the iconic pink visitors locker room, as well as a statement he made the day he started as Iowa Head Coach that he would take the team to a bowl game within four years, or he would step down. He would not only succeed in his boast, by sending Iowa to the 1982 Rose Bowl, he would do it in three years, besting his ambitious prognostication by one year. Fry retired in 1998, turning the program over to his former assistant Kirk Ferentz. Ferentz led Iowa to three consecutive top ten finishes from 2002 to 2004 and two Big Ten titles. The Hawkeyes have played in eight bowl games in the past nine seasons and in 22 bowl games over the last 29 seasons. Iowa has cracked the top 25 at the end of the season six times during the Kirk Ferentz era - No. 8 in 2002–04, No. 20 in 2008, No. 7 in 2009, and No. 5 in 2015. In 2015, Iowa began its 127th season of football, and its 116th season in the Big Ten.

Some good and some "lean" years

Iowa has had several successful coaches. Forest Evashevski won the Rose Bowl twice (in 1957 and 1959) when he coached from 1952 through his retirement following the 1960 season. Hayden Fry came to Iowa in 1979 following many years of losing seasons, and is widely credited for resurrecting the program as he led Iowa to several league titles and Rose Bowl berths in 1982, 1986 and 1991. Kirk Ferentz has been the head coach since Hayden Fry's retirement after the 1998 season, and has led the team to a number of Bowl appearances, including two Orange Bowls and the 2016 Rose Bowl.

In the 18 seasons between the tenures of Evashevski and Fry, however, the Hawkeyes went without a single winning season. After Evashevski retired, Jerry Burns coached from 1961 though 1965. He had a 16-27-2 record. Ray Nagel followed from 1966-1970 with a 16-32-2 record. Frank Lauterbur followed, coaching from 1971 -1973 with a 4-28-1 record, with a 0-11 record in 1973. Bob Commings coached the Hawkeyes from 1974-1978. His record was 18 wins and 37 losses.

All-time record vs. Big Ten opponents

This is the Hawkeyes football record against current Big Ten Conference opponents. This list takes into effect games against current Big Ten teams before they were members of the Big Ten.

School Total Games W L T Pct. PF PA First Year Last Year Streak
Illinois 71 31 38 2 .451 1086 1389 1899 2015 Won 2
Indiana 76 44 28 4 .605 1756 1266 1912 2015 Won 2
Maryland 2 1 1 0 .500 62 53 2014 2015 Won 1
Michigan 59 14 41 4 .271 841 1462 1900 2013 Won 1
Michigan State 46 23 21 2 .522 891 979 1954 2015 Lost 2
Minnesota 109 45 62 2 .422 1847 2463 1891 2015 Won 1
Nebraska 46 14 29 3 .337 528 774 1891 2015 Won 1
Northwestern 77 50 24 3 .669 1963 1103 1897 2015 Won 3
Ohio State 64 14 47 3 .242 893 1677 1922 2013 Lost 5
Penn State 25 12 13 0 .480 420 594 1930 2012 Lost 1
Purdue 86 37 46 3 .448 1483 1635 1910 2015 Won 3
Rutgers 0 0 0 0 – 0 0 N/A N/A N/A
Wisconsin 89 43 44 2 .494 1511 1572 1894 2015 Won 1
14 Opponents 750 328 394 28 .456 13,261 14,957 1900 2015 117 Seasons

The University of Chicago was a Big Ten Conference member from 1896-1946.

School Total Games W L T Pct. PF PA First Year Last Year
Chicago 14 3 9 2 .286 106 243 1894 1938

Championships and rankings

National championships

Iowa finished the 1958 regular season ranked #2 in the AP and Coaches Polls, behind 11–0 Louisiana State, although both votes were taken before the bowl games. Iowa convincingly won the 1959 Rose Bowl, 38–12, setting or tying six Rose Bowl records. The Football Writers Association of America gave their national championship trophy, the Grantland Rice Trophy, to Iowa.

Year Coach Selector Record Bowl Game
1958 Forest Evashevski Football Writers Association of America 8–1–1 Rose Bowl

Conference championships

Iowa has won 13 major conference championships in school history. Iowa was a member of the Western Interstate University Football Association prior to joining the Western Conference, now known as the Big Ten Conference, in 1900. Iowa was also a concurrent member of the Missouri Valley Conference from 1907– 1910. Iowa currently claims 11 Big Ten Conference championships:

Year Coach Conference Record Overall Record Outright/Shared Bowl Game
1896 Alfred E. Bull1 3–0–1 7–1–1 Outright
1900 Alden Knipe 2–0–1 7–0–1 Shared
1907 Mark Catlin, Sr.2 1–0–0 3–2–0 Shared
1921 Howard Jones 5–0–0 7–0–0 Outright
1922 Howard Jones 5–0–0 7–0–0 Shared
1956 Forest Evashevski 5–1–0 9–1–0 Outright Won Rose Bowl
1958 Forest Evashevski 5–1–0 8–1–1 Outright Won Rose Bowl
1960 Forest Evashevski 5–1–0 8–1–0 Shared
1981 Hayden Fry 6–2–0 8–4–0 Shared Lost Rose Bowl
1985 Hayden Fry 7–1–0 10–2–0 Outright Lost Rose Bowl
1990 Hayden Fry 6–2–0 8–4–0 Shared Lost Rose Bowl
2002 Kirk Ferentz 8–0–0 11–2–0 Shared Lost Orange Bowl
2004 Kirk Ferentz 7–1–0 10–2–0 Shared Won Capital One Bowl
11-time Big Ten Champions

1 Iowa was a member of the Western Interstate University Football Association.
2 Iowa was a member of the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association.[3]

Appearances in the final Associated Press Poll

Iowa has made 301 appearances in the Associated Press poll over 38 seasons, including 116 weeks in the top 10.[4] Iowa has finished the year ranked in the final Associated Press poll of the season 22 times:

Year Ranking Record
1939 96–1–1
1953 95–3–1
1956 38–1
1957 67–1–1
1958 27–1–1
1960 38–1
1981 188–4
1983 149–3
Year Ranking Record
1984 168–4–1
1985 1010–2
1986 169–3
1987 1610–3
1990 188–4
1991 10 10–1–1
1995 25 8–4
Year Ranking Record
1996 18 9–3
2002 8 11–2
2003 8 10–3
2004 8 10–2
2008 20 9–4
2009 7 11–2
2015 9 12–2

The forgotten season

In 1960 the Hawkeyes held on to the #1 ranking for much of the season. The Hawkeyes defeated #8 Ohio State, #15 Michigan State, and #10 Purdue. Iowa lost to rival #3 Minnesota. The game was the only loss of the year for the 1960 Hawkeyes and they shared the Big Ten title with Minnesota. However, at that time, the Big Ten did not allow their teams to go to any bowl except for the Rose Bowl. As such, Minnesota was picked over Iowa to go to Pasadena and Iowa was left out, despite a #2 ranking in the Coaches' Poll and a #3 ranking in the AP. Minnesota went on to win the National Championship. This season is known as the "Forgotten Season", for despite ending the season with a #2/3 ranking and a share of the Big Ten title, the Hawks were left out of January play.[5]

All-time records

Season records

The Hawkeyes began playing football as a club sport in 1872, and began playing intramural games against other colleges in 1882, but it was not until 1889 when Iowa challenged Iowa College to an interscholastic varsity football game. Since then, the Hawkeyes have played over 1,200 games, including 29 bowl games.

Head coaching records

Bowl games

Iowa has appeared in 29 bowl games, including 27 bowl games since 1982. In bowl games, Iowa has a 14–14–1 record:

Date Bowl W/L Opponent PF PA
January 1, 1957 Rose Bowl W Oregon State 35 19
January 1, 1959 Rose Bowl W California 38 12
January 1, 1982 Rose Bowl L Washington 0 28
December 31, 1982 Peach Bowl W Tennessee 28 22
December 30, 1983 Gator Bowl L Florida 6 14
December 16, 1984 Freedom Bowl W Texas 55 17
January 1, 1986 Rose Bowl L UCLA 28 45
December 30, 1986 Holiday Bowl W San Diego State 39 38
December 30, 1987 Holiday Bowl W Wyoming 20 19
December 31, 1988 Peach Bowl L North Carolina State 23 28
January 1, 1991 Rose Bowl L Washington 34 46
December 30, 1991 Holiday Bowl T BYU 13 13
December 31, 1993 Alamo Bowl L California 3 37
December 29, 1995 Sun Bowl W Washington 38 18
December 29, 1996 Alamo Bowl W Texas Tech 27 0
December 31, 1997 Sun Bowl L Arizona State 7 17
December 29, 2001 Alamo Bowl W Texas Tech 19 16
January 2, 2003 Orange Bowl L Southern California 17 38
January 1, 2004 Outback Bowl W Florida 37 17
January 1, 2005 Capital One Bowl W LSU 30 25
January 2, 2006 Outback Bowl L Florida 24 31
December 29, 2006 Alamo Bowl L Texas 24 26
January 1, 2009 Outback Bowl W South Carolina 31 10
January 5, 2010 Orange Bowl W Georgia Tech 24 14
December 28, 2010 Insight Bowl W Missouri 27 24
December 30, 2011 Insight Bowl L Oklahoma 14 31
January 1, 2014 Outback Bowl L LSU 14 21
January 2, 2015 TaxSlayer Bowl L Tennessee 28 45
January 1, 2016 Rose Bowl L Stanford 16 45
Total 29 Bowl Games 14–14–1 699 716

Notable games

1953: #20 Iowa vs #1 Notre Dame

On Nov. 21, 1953 undefeated and #1 Notre Dame were set to face the Hawkeyes in South Bend. The score was 0-0 when, in the first quarter, Iowa defensive back Dusty Rice intercepted the Irish. The Hawkeyes drove the ball 72-yards for an Iowa touchdown and a 7-0 lead. With only 2 seconds left in the first half, Irish tackle Frank Varrichione fell down with an injury. This stopped the clock (Notre Dame had no time outs left). Varrichione went in that same play and the Irish scored on a touchdown pass to Dan Shannon, to tie the game 7-7 at the half. With the score still deadlocked late into the fourth quarter, Iowa intercepted a pass on their own 48-yard line. The Hawkeyes then scored on a touchdown pass to end Frank Gilliam to give the Hawkeyes a 14-7 lead with 2:06 left in the game, with Notre Dame having no time outs remaining. With only 6 seconds left and the clock ticking away Frank Varrichione came down with another injury which stopped the clock (again he went back in that very same play). Notre Dame then scored a touchdown to tie the game up and stay unbeaten. After the game, sportswriters such as Grantland Rice and others were infuriated calling it unfair, and the Irish earned the label: "The Fainting Irish of Notre Dame". Iowa head coach Forest Evashevski said after the game: "When the One Great Scorer comes to write against our name, He won't write whether we won or lost, but how come we got gypped at Notre Dame". The Hawkeyes, who were ranked #20 before the game, jumped teams with better records to gain the #9 ranking. Varrichione has since admitted that the injuries were fake, in Steve Delsohn’s book, TALKING IRISH. In addition, Notre Dame Heisman winner Johnny Lattner praised his team's tactics calling it "Pretty smart thinking, wasn't it?".[6] Because of this game, the NCAA changed the rules making players sit out at least one down before returning to the game.

1959 Rose Bowl

Main article: 1959 Rose Bowl

With their win in the Rose Bowl in 1959, the Iowa Hawkeyes won their first, and only, National Championship. However, although Iowa won the Grantland Rice Trophy as awarded by the Football Writers Association of America following the Bowl games, LSU was voted #1 in both major polls, the AP and Coaches polls, which were tallied before the Bowl games were played.

This game was lopsided and by the end of the third quarter, with a 22-6 advantage over the California Golden Bears, Iowa could smell victory. The championship, however, is disputed. The AP, whose poll came out before the bowl games, had picked LSU as their National Champion. In addition, the 1958 LSU team refused to play teams with any African Americans , leaving fewer and inferior available opponents. Because of this, many believe that the Iowa Hawkeyes rightfully hold the 1958 National Championship.[7]

1960: #1 Iowa at #3 Minnesota

The battle for Floyd of Rosedale between the Big Ten's two 6-0-0 teams, Iowa against Minnesota, took place in Minneapolis, The top-ranked Hawkeyes lost to #3 Minnesota, 27-10. With both the AP and UPI finishing their voting before the bowl games, the national championship ultimately was determined in December. The AP writers divided among Minnesota (8-1-0), Mississippi (9-0-1) and Iowa (8-1-0), and some voters split their choices. As such, the Minnesota Gophers received 17½ votes for #1, Mississippi got 16, and Iowa 12½. Minnesota had 433½ poll points, ahead of 411 for Ole Miss and 407½ for Iowa. Minnesota was also the #1 choice in the UPI coaches poll. Minnesota was awarded the berth in the 1961 Rose Bowl.

1981: #7 Nebraska vs Iowa

Official recap—There weren't many among the 60,160 who jammed Iowa's Kinnick Stadium who thought they were watching a matchup of the eventual Midwest entries in the Rose and Orange Bowls. There probably weren't a whole lot more who thought Iowa would avenge a 57-0 slaughter the Hawkeyes had suffered in Lincoln the year before. However, Iowa took advantage of excellent field position to jump to a 10-0 first-half lead, then held on to win a 10-7 stunner over the seventh-ranked Huskers.

The Hawkeye defense held the Huskers to their lowest total offense output of the season—234 yards—and stopped the Nebraska offense three straight times in Iowa territory after Roger Craig's one-yard TD had pulled the Huskers within 10-7 early in the final period. NU was stymied in the fourth quarter by a missed 30-yard field goal, a fumble, and Lou King's diving interception, which secured Iowa's victory with 39 seconds remaining.

In the first half, the Hawkeyes capitalized on a short punt and an interception to set up a two-yard TD run by Eddie Phillips and a 35-yard field goal by Lon Olejniczak. Meanwhile, the Huskers were held scoreless through three quarters for the first time since 1973 and didn't get out of their own territory until late in the second period, partly because of Iowa punter Reggie Roby's 50-plus yard average. NU quarterbacks Mark Maurer and Nate Mason completed only 8-of-18 passes for 81 yards and rushed 12 times for minus-2 yards.

Iowa used its upset win as a launching pad to defeat such teams as UCLA, Michigan and Purdue and post its first winning season since 1961.[8]

“At this minute, this is the greatest victory of my life," Iowa coach Hayden Fry said. "I’m getting to be an old man and I don’t want to hurt any of my other teams that pulled off some upsets. But while I’ve been at Iowa, this is far and away the greatest victory.

“If you stay with this game long enough, the worm is bound to turn. Don’t think we didn’t earn this one, either. We did it fair and square, plus we showed a lot of character.” [9]

1985: #2 Michigan vs #1 Iowa

The Hawkeyes trailed 10-9 late in the fourth quarter, in what may be considered the greatest game ever played at Kinnick Stadium. Iowa got the ball, with 5:27 left, on their own 22-yard line. Led by their All-American Quarterback, Chuck Long, Iowa drove the ball to the Michigan 12-yard line. As the clock expired, kicker Rob Houghtlin sent one through the uprights, to give Iowa the win. The Hawkeyes would go on to accept an invitation to the 1986 Rose Bowl.[10]

2003: #15 Miami (OH) vs #12 Iowa

RedHawks were led by their Heisman Trophy hopeful, and future two time Super Bowl Champion, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. The Hawkeyes defeated the Redhawks, 21-3. However, the game is significant in that the Hawkeyes held Roethlisberger to no touchdown passes. In addition, the Hawkeyes, intercepted this future NFL great a total of 4 times. The RedHawks went unbeaten after the loss to Iowa. However, that loss kept them out of a BCS Bowl Game and Roethlisberger out of Heisman contention.[11]

2005 Capital One Bowl: Iowa vs. LSU ("The Catch")

Main article: 2005 Capital One Bowl

The game has gone down in Hawkeye history known simply as "The Catch". Iowa was set to play the defending National Champion LSU Tigers. Despite leading the entire game, Iowa found itself down 24-25 and got the ball with only 46 seconds left on the clock. With only a few seconds left in the game, Iowa found itself on their own 44-yard line facing a 2nd and 6. Iowa Quarterback Drew Tate threw the ball 56 yards to Warren Holloway for an Iowa touchdown that gave the Hawkeyes a 30-25 victory over Nick Saban's defending champion Tigers. The touchdown was Holloway's first and only career touchdown.[12]

2008: #3 Penn State vs. Iowa

The undefeated Penn State Nittany Lions came into the game ranked #3 in the country with hopes of a BCS national championship. The Hawkeyes, on the other hand, were 5-4 and coming off a tough loss at Illinois. The Hawkeyes jumped out to an early lead following a Penn State fumble on their first drive, but the Nittany Lions would come back to take a 13-7 lead into halftime. With less than four minutes left in the game, and trailing 23-21, Iowa strong safety Tyler Sash intercepted Penn State quarterback Daryll Clark's pass inside Iowa territory. The Hawkeyes drove to within field goal range where kicker Daniel Murray made a 31-yard field goal with :01 left to play. Iowa would go on to win 24-23 and hand Penn State its only regular season loss of the year. The Hawkeyes would go on to beat South Carolina in the Outback Bowl. The win would be the first in a 13-game winning streak for Iowa stretching into the 2009 season.

2015 Big Ten Championship Game: #5 Michigan State vs. #4 Iowa

Positioned as a de facto play-in game for the College Football Playoff, the 2015 Big Ten Championship Game between #5 Michigan State (11-1) and #4 Iowa (12-0) was a classic conference title matchup for the ages. The Spartans won the East Division title with gutsy road victories at Michigan and Ohio State, while the Hawkeyes won the West Division after completing their first unbeaten regular season in 93 years.

Iowa turned the ball over twice in the first half - a fumble leading to the Spartans first points and an interception in the end zone - but led 6-3. Michigan State dominated the third quarter in time of possession and yardage, and tacked on two field goals to lead 9-6. Trailing entering the 4th quarter for the first time all season, the Hawkeyes responded in a big way with an 85-yard touchdown pass from C.J. Beathard to Tevaun Smith that gave Iowa a 13-9 lead with 14:49 remaining. After exchanging punts, Michigan State marched 82 yards in an epic 22-play drive that took 9:04 off the clock. The game-winning score came on a 1-yard touchdown run with 27 seconds left. The Spartans converted five third downs and a fourth down on the drive to win 16-13.

Michigan State was selected as the #3 seed for the 2015 College Football Playoff, while Iowa was rewarded with its first Rose Bowl appearance in 25 years.

Individual honors

Retired numbers

Iowa Hawkeyes retired numbers
No. Player Position Tenure
24 Nile Kinnick QB 1936-39
62 Cal Jones OG 1952-55

Over the course of the team's history, individual Hawkeye players of exceptional ability have received many accolades. Iowa has had several players inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, College Football Hall of Fame, Canadian Football Hall of Fame, and Iowa Sports Hall of Fame. Individual Hawkeyes have won many prestigious national awards, including the Outland Trophy, the Davey O'Brien Award, Doak Walker Award, Jim Thorpe Award, and the Heisman Trophy. 96 Hawkeyes have been named a first-team or second-team All-American, and 22 have been named consensus first-team All-Americans.

The Iowa Hawkeyes have had ten players win the Big Ten Most Valuable Player Award, and 226 Hawks have earned All-Big Ten recognition. Iowa has had 268 NFL draft picks, and several former Hawkeye players have gone on to become NFL head coaches or Division I college head coaches.

The only two players to have their numbers retired by the Hawkeye football program are Nile Kinnick #24 and Cal Jones #62. Kinnick won the University of Iowa's only Heisman Trophy in 1939, while Jones was the first African-American to win the Outland Trophy in 1955. Neither Kinnick, or Jones saw the retirement of their numbers, having died long before, Kinnick's number 24 was retired in 1972, 30 years after his death in a training accident in the Caribbean (the same year that Iowa Stadium changed its name to Kinnick Stadium), and Jones number 62 was retired in 1985, 30 years after his death in a plane crash near Hope, British Columbia, Canada.

Heisman voting

Ten Hawkeyes have finished in the top ten for the Heisman Trophy. Iowa has only one winner, four have come in second.[13]

Season Player Heisman Finish
1939 Nile Kinnick First
1955 Cal Jones Tenth
1956 Ken Ploen Ninth
1957 Alex Karras Second
1958 Randy Duncan Second
1984 Chuck Long Seventh
1985 Chuck Long Second
1997 Tim Dwight Seventh
2002 Brad Banks Second
2008 Shonn Greene Sixth

Current Iowa Hawkeyes football team

Current coaching staff

Name Position Seasons Alma Mater
Kirk Ferentz Head Coach 17 Connecticut (1978)
Greg Davis Offensive Coordinator/ Quarterbacks Coach 4 McNeese State (1977)
Phil Parker Defensive Coordinator 17 Michigan State (1986)
Brian Ferentz Offensive Line Coach 4 Iowa (2006)
Bobby Kennedy Wide Receivers Coach 3 Northern Colorado (1989)
Reese Morgan Defensive Line Coach 16 Wartburg College
Jim Reid Defensive Assistant 3 Maine (1973)
Seth Wallace Defensive Assistance Coach/ Recruiting Coordinator 4 Coe College (2001)
Chris White Running Backs and Special Teams 3 Colby College (1990)
LeVar Woods Linebackers Coach 8 Iowa (2000)
Chris Doyle Strength and Conditioning 17 Boston University (1990)
Nick DiMarco Fitness Coach 1 William Penn (2014)

[14]

Uniforms

Iowa's home jersey is black with white numerals, with gold and white stripes on the sleeves. The away jersey is white with black numerals, and gold stripes on the sleeves. Players' names are located above the numerals on the back of the jersey. Gold pants with a black stripe are worn with both the home and away jersey. Iowa's helmets are black with a black facemask. They also have a gold stripe and the gold Iowa Hawkeye logo included on both sides of the helmet.

In 1979, Hayden Fry helped to create the Tiger Hawk, the logo seen on Iowa's football helmets.[15] Since both teams shared the colors of black and yellow gold, Fry sought and gained permission from the Pittsburgh Steelers, the dominant National Football League (NFL) team of the 1970s, to overhaul Iowa’s uniforms in the Steelers’ image. Fry's idea was that if the team were going to act like winners, they first needed to dress like winners. Fry had originally asked Steelers defensive tackle "Mean" Joe Greene for a replica helmet and home jersey; Greene was able to send Fry to one of the team owners, and three days later, the owners sent Fry reproduction copies of the home and away uniform of Steelers quarterback Terry Bradshaw, making Iowa one of only a few schools to use the uniform scheme of an NFL team; others include the Blue Devils of Duke University whose football uniforms resemble those of the Indianapolis Colts. Although the uniforms appear substantially the same, there are subtle differences, mainly in the font of the numerals, the scheme of the white away jerseys, and the width of the jersey stripe, while the Steelers jerseys have the player names in yellow and the Hawkeyes use black or white.[16]

The Hawkeyes have removed the Tiger Hawk helmet logo and the single yellow gold stripe from their game helmets on several occasions as a symbolic gesture of mourning. The first instance was on November 2, 1991, in recognition of the six victims of a fatal campus shooting. The second occasion was for a December 29, 1996, appearance in the Alamo Bowl. It served to commemorate the family of linebacker Mark Mitchell, who were involved in a fatal vehicle accident while en route to the game. The accident resulted in the death of Mitchell's mother and severe injuries to his father and two brothers.[17] Third, being on Veterans' Day 2011 when they used a red, white, and blue tiger hawk on one side and left the other side blank in honor of our fallen heroes against Michigan. All three games resulted in Iowa victories. Fourth, and most recent September 12, 2015 when they honored #9 Tyler Sash, former Iowa Safety and NFL Veteran, who had passed away on September 8, 2015. During this last removal of the helmet logo, only one side was removed, while the other had a large #9 placed, honoring the jersey number Sash wore while he played at Iowa.

The Iowa Athletic Director has okayed only five stickers on the helmets over the last thirty years, the first, in 1985, when a gold disk appeared, with the black letters "ANF," Which stands for America Needs Farmers, this sticker has remained in place since it was first placed onto the helmet. The second was a small black sticker on the back of the helmet, with white letters that spelled out "EVY," the nickname of legendary Iowa head coach, and Athletic Director, Forest Evasheski, to commemorate his passing in 2009. The third was in memory of Iowa high school football coaching legend Ed Thomas, who was killed in his team's weight room by a former player. A small gold sticker with the black letters "FFF" placed near the crown of the helmet represents Faith, Family, Football, a motto Coach Thomas preached to his players to represent what his players priorities should be not only through the season, but throughout life. The fourth being a small green sticker, with the number 30 on it to honor former Hawkeye Safety Brett Greenwood, who had recently fallen into a coma while working out at his old high school. The final sticker is a small black sticker with a gold "TS", worn on the back of the helmet to commemorate the passing of former Hawkeye safety Tyler Sash.

Kinnick Stadium

Main article: Kinnick Stadium

Kinnick Stadium, formerly known as Iowa Stadium, is the home stadium of the University of Iowa Hawkeyes in Iowa City, Iowa. It opened as Iowa Stadium in 1929; prior to that time, Iowa played its home games at Iowa Field. Iowa Stadium was renamed Kinnick Stadium in 1972 in honor of Nile Kinnick, the 1939 Heisman Trophy winner and the only Heisman winner in university history, who died in service during World War II. It currently holds up to 70,585 people, making it the 27th largest college football stadium in America and the 86th largest sports stadium in the world.

Trophy Games

Iowa plays trophy games against Iowa State, Minnesota, Nebraska and Wisconsin.

Iowa State

Iowa plays Iowa State annually for the Cy-Hawk Trophy, which began in 1977. The teams first meeting was in 1894. The teams quit meeting after the 1934 season until they renewed their rivalry in 1977. It was in 1977 when the tradition of the Cy-Hawk Trophy began, when the Des Moines Athletic Club donated a trophy dedicated to the rivlary. It was quickly dubbed the "Cy-Hawk Trophy". Iowa leads the overall series 41-22, and Iowa also leads the trophy series 25-14.

Minnesota

Iowa plays Minnesota annually for the Floyd of Rosedale, which is Iowa's oldest trophy that began in 1935. The teams first meeting was in 1891. Minnesota leads the overall series 62-45-2, and also leads the trophy series 42-36-2. Floyd of Rosedale was created in 1935 after Minnesota Governor Floyd Olson bet a prize pig that the Gophers would win the game, a goal which the Gophers would accomplish that year. After the death of the pig, its image was cast in bronze, and the Floyd of Rosedale trophy was created.

Nebraska

Iowa plays Nebraska annually for the Heroes Trophy, which began when Nebraska joined the Big Ten Conference in 2011. Iowa won the most recent meeting on November 27, 2015, defeating Nebraska in Lincoln by a score of 28-20. Nebraska leads the overall series 29-14-3, and also leads the trophy series at 3-2.

Wisconsin

Iowa has played Wisconsin for the Heartland Trophy since 2004. The teams' first meeting was in 1894. Wisconsin leads the overall series 44-43-2, and Iowa leads the trophy series 5-4.

Traditions

Songs

Iowa's official fight song is the Iowa Fight Song which is sung by the marching band and the fans. Iowa's school song is On Iowa. Iowa also plays a third fight song, entitled Roll Along Iowa. After victories the band plays the Im Himmel gibt's kein Bier Polka, which translates to "In Heaven There is No Beer". Before the game (since 2005) the team has exited the tunnel together to Back in Black by AC/DC before joining hands and running onto the field in unison to Enter Sandman by Metallica.[18]

Mascot

Iowa's mascot is Herky the Hawk, a black and gold caricature of a Hawk. Herky was created as a cartoon in 1948, and first appeared at a sporting event in 1959. Herky was actually named after the Greek God Hercules. The term "Hawkeye" originally appeared in the book The Last of the Mohicans and was later used in its plural form to describe the people of Iowa. The University of Iowa adopted this as the nickname for its athletic teams.

Hawkeye Marching Band

Originally founded in 1881, the Hawkeye Marching Band now performs at all Iowa Hawkeye home football games. The band also travels with the team to usually one away game per year and any post-season bowl games.

Iowa and the NFL

Current NFL players

This list includes players on active team rosters, this list does not include free agents or players on practice squads.

Name Year Debuted Position Team
Jonathan Babineaux 2005 DT Atlanta Falcons
Bryan Bulaga 2010 OT Green Bay Packers
Scott Chandler 2007 TE New England Patriots
Adrian Clayborn 2011 DE Atlanta Falcons
Mike Daniels 2012 DT Green Bay Packers
Carl Davis 2015 DE Baltimore Ravens
Andrew Donnal 2015 OT St. Louis Rams
James Ferentz 2014 C Denver Broncos
C. J. Fiedorowicz 2014 TE Houston Texans
Charles Godfrey 2008 S Atlanta Falcons
Chad Greenway 2006 LB Minnesota Vikings
Anthony Hitchens 2014 LB Dallas Cowboys
Micah Hyde 2013 S Green Bay Packers
Christian Kirksey 2014 LB Cleveland Browns
Karl Klug 2011 DE Tennessee Titans
Tony Moeaki 2010 TE Atlanta Falcons
Brandon Myers 2009 TE Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Riley Reiff 2012 OT Detroit Lions
Allen Reisner 2011 TE Baltimore Ravens
Brandon Scherff 2015 OT Washington Redskins
Matt Tobin 2013 OT Philadelphia Eagles
Julian Vandervelde 2011 C Philadelphia Eagles
Marshal Yanda 2007 OG Baltimore Ravens

Pro Football Hall of Fame

Three Hawkeyes have been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame:[19]

Inducted Player Position Teams
1967 Emlen Tunnell Defensive back New York Giants, Green Bay Packers
1998 Paul Krause Safety Minnesota Vikings, Washington Redskins
2008 Andre Tippett Linebacker New England Patriots

NFL draft picks

Iowa has had at least one player drafted in every NFL Draft since 1978. Through the 2015 NFL Draft, Iowa has had 277 draft picks. 249 in the NFL, 21 in the AFL, and 7 in the AAFC (the AFC and AAFC both merged with the NFL). and 75 players have gone in the first three rounds of the NFL Draft. Iowa has had 20 first round NFL Draft selections:[20]

Season Player Team Selection
1936 Dick Crayne Brooklyn Dodgers 4th
1958 Alex Karras Detroit Lions 10th
1959 Randy Duncan Green Bay Packers 1st
1966 John Niland Dallas Cowboys 5th
1973 Craig Clemons Chicago Bears 12th
1976 Rod Walters Kansas City Chiefs 14th
1982 Ron Hallstrom Green Bay Packers 22nd
1984 John Alt Kansas City Chiefs 21st
1986 Chuck Long Detroit Lions 12th
1986 Ronnie Harmon Buffalo Bills 16th
1986 Mike Haight New York Jets 22nd
1997 Tom Knight Arizona Cardinals 9th
1997 Ross Verba Green Bay Packers 30th
2003 Dallas Clark Indianapolis Colts 24th
2004 Robert Gallery Oakland Raiders 2nd
2006 Chad Greenway Minnesota Vikings 17th
2010 Bryan Bulaga Green Bay Packers 23rd
2011 Adrian Clayborn Tampa Bay Buccaneers 20th
2012 Riley Reiff Detroit Lions 23rd
2015 Brandon Scherff Washington Redskins 5th

NFL coaches

Name Team Position Ties to Iowa
Charlie Bullen Miami Dolphins Assistant Defensive Line Coach Grad Assistant from 2009-2011
Jim Caldwell Detroit Lions Head Coach Played Defensive Back from 1973-1976, Grad Assistant 1977
Mike Devlin Houston Texans Offensive Line Coach Played Offensive Line from 1989-1992
Pat Flaherty New York Giants Offensive Line Coach Tight Ends/Special Teams/Recruiting 1999
Jonathan Hayes Cincinnati Bengals Tight Ends Coach Played Tight End from 1981-1984
Ken O'Keefe Miami Dolphins Senior Offensive Assistant Offensive Coordinator from 1999-2011

Future non-conference opponents

Announced schedules as of January 8, 2014

2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
vs Miami (OH) vs Wyoming vs Northern Illinois vs Miami (OH) vs Northern Illinois
vs Iowa State at Iowa State vs Iowa State at Iowa State vs Iowa State
vs North Dakota State vs North Texas vs Northern Iowa

[21]

References

  1. ↑ "Colors - Guidelines and graphics for print and Web". University Brand Manual: Guidelines for Marketing and Communication. University of Iowa. June 25, 2015. Retrieved November 27, 2015.
  2. ↑ http://bigeightsports.com/Schools/Iowa/Football/IowaFootball.htm
  3. ↑ http://bigeightsports.com/Sports/Football/FootballChampionships.htm
  4. ↑
  5. ↑ http://www.enotes.com/topic/1960_Iowa_Hawkeyes_football_team
  6. ↑ http://www.leatherhelmetillus.com/v_four_fainting/faint.html
  7. ↑ http://www.hawkeyenation.com/forum/football/29381-iowa-1958-national-champion.html
  8. ↑ http://www.huskermax.com/games/1981/01iowa.html
  9. ↑ http://thegazette.com/2008/04/14/iowa-gets-revenge-hawks-stun-nebraska-before-record-crowd/
  10. ↑ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLzSpaEnA64
  11. ↑ http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/boxscore?gameId=232422294
  12. ↑ http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/playbyplay?gameId=250012294&period=4
  13. ↑ http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/magazine/features/si50/states/iowa/
  14. ↑ http://www.hawkeyesports.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/staff.html
  15. ↑ Wine, George (August 31, 2009). "Tigerhawk Turns 30". Iowa Hawkeyes. Retrieved November 27, 2015.
  16. ↑ Wine, George (December 7, 2009). "Wine Online: The Beach To Turn Black and Gold". Iowa Hawkeyes. Retrieved November 27, 2015.
  17. ↑ 1996 Alamo Bowl
  18. ↑ http://www.thegazette.com/2011/11/11/back-in-black-now-a-hawkeye-gameday-tradition
  19. ↑ http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/colleges.aspx
  20. ↑ http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/iowa/sports/m-footbl/auto_pdf/2011-12/misc_non_event/Factbook11.pdf
  21. ↑ "Iowa Hawkeyes Football Schedules and Future Schedules". fbschedules.com. Retrieved 2014-08-23.

18. http://tourtheten.com/iowa/traditions/game-day-traditions/nile-kinnick-statue/#.U_PG5dxOnFo

Additional sources

External links

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