1983

Kinnick Stadium was remodeled over the summer. Seating in the north end zone was expanded to allow a total capacity of 67,700. Women fans were particularly happy that the remodeling included the addition of four restrooms.

But many were incensed when Hayden Fry told how he’d received $15 a month for “laundry money” while he was a student-athlete at Baylor. “That wasn’t any big deal,” he said, “because you could find a little dumplin’ to do the wash and then take her out to eat.”

The “little dumpling” remark turned out to be a bigger deal than Hayden expected and he later apologized.

Caught in a mass of Cyclone linemen, running back Paul McCarty attempts to return a pass. The Hawks beat Iowa State by 41 points during a nationally televised game.

October 29
In a record-breaking game against Indiana, wide receiver Dave Moritz caught 11 passes for 192 yards. The flap came when third-string Hawkeye quarterback Cornelius Robertson threw a 10-yard touchdown pass with ten seconds left in the game. The already lopsided score became even more so and some fans on both sides of the fray accused Hayden of “running up the score,” which ended up at 49-3. “What am I supposed to do?” Fry asked. “Put them in the game and tell them not to do what they do best?”

November 19
The Hawkeyes romped to their ninth victory of the season, beating Minnesota, 61-10. Only the 1903 team before them had accumulated so many victories during the regular season.

December 27
For the third year running, the Alumni Association hosted the official bowl tour. With over 1,000 travelers in tow, planes landed in Jacksonville, Florida, after the coldest snap the state had seen in a century. Broken water pipes awaited the crowd at Amelia Island Plantation. Was this an omen of things to come?

December 30
Yup. With the wind chill at 13 below, Iowa fans discovered that their seats were high in Gator Bowl Stadium—up where the prevailing winds blow. Aluminum benches conducted the cold that the wind hadn’t captured. Travelers soon donned plastic rain ponchos to deflect the rush of frigid air, making the Iowa cheering section look like a choir of stiff-armed golden angels.

It wasn’t a great game either. The Florida Gators won, 14-6.

1983
With the last game of the season played, the Hilgenberg era at the University of Iowa ended. Wilton native Jerry Hilgenberg started the tradition in the early 50s, playing center for Evashevski; his younger brother, Wally, came to Iowa almost a decade later to become a star guard and linebacker.

Then, there were Jerry’s sons—Jim, Jay, and Joel—who, from 1974 through 1983, played at center for the Hawkeyes.

According to Grady, “Through a span of 33 seasons, 1951 through 1983, Iowa had a Hilgenberg in its starting lineup for 17 of those years, and often in a starring role…. It would be difficult to find a family with such a rich football tradition at any school."

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