Iowa Hawkeyes at Kinnick Stadium
Iowa City, Iowa, is the proud home of one of the top programs in the Big Ten West, the Iowa Hawkeyes. Iowa has been a member of what is now known as the Big Ten Conference since 1900, and has claimed four national championships: In 1921, 1956, 1958 and 1960. The Hawkeyes are coached by Kirk Ferentz, who has led the team since 1999 and is currently the longest-tenured head coach in the FBS. They play at Kinnick Stadium, which opened in 1929 as Iowa Stadium and seats 69,250.
Iowa Hawkeyes Football History
Football on the University of Iowa campus was first played as early as 1872, with a varsity program first formed in 1889. Halfback Nile Kinnick won the 1939 Heisman Trophy while with the Hawkeyes, only to be killed during a training exercise off the coast of Venezuela as he served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. In 1972, the University of Iowa renamed Iowa Stadium in Kinnick's honor. Forest Evashevski led Iowa to three national titles in nine seasons as coach from 1952 to 1960, while Hayden Fry led the Hawkeyes to Big Ten championships in 1981, 1985 and 1990. Under Kirk Ferentz, Iowa has continued to be a force in college football, winning two Big Ten titles and finishing in the AP Top 25 ten times since 1999.
Each year, the Hawkeyes battle their in-state rivals Iowa State for the Cy-Hawk Trophy. Floyd of Rosedale, a live pig once wagered on between the governors of Iowa and Minnesota before their schools' 1935 contest, lives on as a bronze trophy bearing the original hog's likeness. Other rivals include Wisconsin, who they compete with for the Heartland Trophy, and Nebraska, who they play against for the Heroes Trophy. A new tradition, known as the Kinnick Wave, was established in 2017 and involves Iowa fans waving between the first and second quarters toward the brand-new University of Iowa Children's Hospital, whose top-floor lounge has a perfect view of the field.
