1985 Iowa Hawkeyes football team


The 1985 Iowa Hawkeyes football team represented the University of Iowa in the 1985 Big Ten Conference football season. The team was coached by Hayden Fry and played their home games at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa.

Season

declared that he would return for his senior season. He became an instant Heisman Trophy candidate, and Iowa was a preseason top five team. After three weeks in 1985, the Hawkeyes ascended to #1 in the national rankings for the second time in team history.
Three weeks later, in the sixth game of the season, #1 Iowa faced #2 Michigan in Kinnick Stadium. Iowa trailed 10-9 as the Hawkeyes regained possession of the football at their own 22-yard line with just 5:27 remaining in the game. Long drove the Iowa team to the 12-yard line with two seconds remaining to set up kicker Rob Houghtlin's game-winning field goal as time expired. After a rout of Northwestern, the Hawkeyes were upset by the #8 Ohio State Buckeyes in Columbus.
The loss to Ohio State cost Iowa their #1 ranking, but the Hawkeyes still won the Big Ten title outright for the first time in 27 years. Chuck Long won many major national awards as a senior, including the 1985 Maxwell Award, given to the nation's top player and the Davey O'Brien Award, given to the nation's top quarterback. He was the Big Ten Player of the Year and a consensus first team All-American. Finally, Chuck Long was the runner-up for the Heisman Trophy to Bo Jackson of Auburn in what used to be the closest margin in Heisman history, losing by just 45 points.
Iowa lost in Chuck Long's final game in the 1986 Rose Bowl. Long's Iowa teams compiled a 35-13-1 record. He graduated with 10,461 passing yards and 74 touchdowns on 782 completions.

Schedule

Roster

Rankings

Game summaries

Drake












The Hawkeyes earned the third of 15 consecutive wins over their in-state rivals. To date, this remains the largest margin of victory in the series. The convincing win vaulted Iowa to the #1 ranking in the country, a spot they would occupy for five consecutive weeks.

Michigan State











In their first game since ascending to the #1 ranking, the Hawkeyes survived a wild, back and forth thriller. The teams combined for well over 1,000 yards of total offense. Chuck Long scored the winning touchdown on a 2-yard bootleg with 27 seconds remaining.

at Wisconsin







The #1 Hawkeyes dominated the game statistically — holding major advantages in total yards, offensive plays, and time of possession — but could not find the end zone. Rob Houghtlin kicked a 29-yard field goal as time expired to lift the top-ranked Hawkeyes to victory over the #2 "Wolverdinks", as Houghtlin referred to them.

at Northwestern










On a windy day in Evanston, Chuck Long went 19-26 for 399 yards and a Big Ten record-tying 6 TDs. Bill Happel hauled in three touchdowns, finishing with 117 yards on 5 receptions.

at Ohio State








In the battle for the Floyd of Rosedale, Iowa beat the Golden Gophers in Lou Holtz's last game as Minnesota's head coach. Chuck Long, in his final game at Kinnick Stadium, became the first player in Big Ten history to eclipse 10,000 career passing yards.

vs. (Rose Bowl)

Awards and honors

PlayerPositionRoundPickNFL club
Chuck LongQuarterback112Detroit Lions
Ronnie HarmonRunning back116Buffalo Bills
Mike HaightTackle122New York Jets
Devon MitchellDefensive back492Detroit Lions
Larry StationLinebacker11287Pittsburgh Steelers

Future head coaches

Name1985 PositionSchoolTenure
Barry AlvarezLinebackers CoachWisconsin Badgers football1990–2005
Bill SnyderOffensive Coordinator/QB CoachKansas State Wildcats football1989–2005, 2009–2018
Bob StoopsVolunteer CoachOklahoma Sooners football1999–2016
Chuck LongQuarterbackSan Diego State Aztecs football2006–2008
Dan McCarneyDefensive Line CoachIowa State Cyclones football1995–2006
Jay NorvellDefensive backNevada Wolf Pack football2017–present
Kirk FerentzOffensive line coachIowa Hawkeyes football1999–present
Mark StoopsDefensive backKentucky Wildcats football2013–present