American college football season
The 1973 Iowa Hawkeyes football team represented the University of Iowa in the 1973 Big Ten Conference football season . This was Frank Lauterbur 's third and final season as head coach. The team played its home games at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa .
Despite the team's winless record (0–11), this team had players that experienced significant success in their football careers. Rod Walters was a first round draft pick, Joe Devlin was a second round pick and started 179 games in the NFL, and Jim Caldwell was an assistant coach on two Super Bowl champions and reached the Super Bowl as a head coach.[ 1]
Schedule Date Opponent Site Result Attendance Source September 15 No. 5 Michigan L 7–3152,105
September 22 at No. 18 UCLA * L 18–5534,456
September 29 at No. 6 Penn State * L 8–2759,980
October 6 Arizona * Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA L 20–2340,365 [ 2]
October 13 at Northwestern L 15–3125,194
October 20 Minnesota Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA (rivalry ) L 23–3155,137
October 27 at Illinois L 0–5048,864
November 3 Purdue Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA L 23–4839,120
November 10 at Wisconsin L 7–3555,560
November 17 at No. 1 Ohio State L 13–5587,447
November 24 Michigan State Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA L 6–1531,119
*Non-conference game HomecomingRankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
[ 3]
Game summaries
No. 5 Michigan
No. 5 Michigan at Iowa
1
2 3 4 Total
• No. 5 Wolverines
10
7 7 7
31
Hawkeyes
0
7 0 0
7
Date: September 15, 1973Location: Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA Game attendance: 52,105Game weather: 69 °F (21 °C), Cloudy, Wind W 5 mph (8.0 km/h)
Scoring summary 1 12:50 Mich Lantry 39-yard field goal Mich 3–0
6:53 Mich Heater 1-yard run (Lantry kick) Mich 10–0
2 9:28 Iowa Earl Douthitt 47-yard interception return (Kokolus kick) Mich 10–7
3:51 Mich Thornbladh 3-yard run (Lantry kick) Mich 17–7
3 9:33 Mich Chapman 12-yard run (Lantry kick) Mich 24–7
4 7:38 Mich Franklin 11-yard run (Lantry kick) Mich 31–7
[ 4]
at No. 18 UCLA
Iowa at No. 18 UCLA
1
2 3 4 Total
Hawkeyes
10
0 0 8
18
• No. 18 Bruins
3
21 10 21
55
Scoring summary 1 UCLA Herrera 24-yard field goal UCLA 3–0
Iowa Kokolus 45-yard field goal Tied 3–3
Iowa Rollins 11-yard pass from Skogman (Kokolus kick) Iowa 10–3
2 UCLA James McAlister 1-yard run (Herrera kick) Tied 10–10
UCLA Harmon 1-yard run (Herrera kick) UCLA 17–10
UCLA John Sciarra 2-yard run (Herrera kick) UCLA 24–10
3 UCLA Johnson 9-yard run (Herrera kick) UCLA 31–10
UCLA Herrera 44-yard field goal UCLA 34–10
4 UCLA Tyler 4-yard run (Lantry kick) UCLA 41–10
Iowa Skogman 5-yard run (Jenson pass from Skogman) UCLA 41–18
UCLA Raymond Burks 46-yard pass from John Sciarra (Herrera kick) UCLA 48–18
UCLA John Sciarra 7-yard run (Herrera kick) UCLA 55–18
[ 5]
at No. 6 Penn State
Iowa at No. 6 Penn State
1
2 3 4 Total
Hawkeyes
0
0 0 8
8
• No. 6 Nittany Lions
21
0 6 0
27
Scoring summary 1 11:36 PSU Cappelletti 16-yard run (Bahr kick) Penn State 7–0
5:20 PSU Herd 9-yard pass from Shuman (Bahr kick) Penn State 14–0
3:08 PSU Bland 32-yard pass from Shuman (Bahr kick) Penn State 21–0
3 PSU Herd 12-yard pass from Shuman (Bahr kick failed) Penn State 27–0
4 Iowa Jensen 7-yard pass from Caldwell (Caldwell run) Penn State 27–8
[ 6]
Arizona
Arizona at Iowa
1
2 3 4 Total
• Wildcats
7
3 10 3
23
Hawkeyes
7
3 3 7
20
Date: October 6, 1973Location: Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA Game attendance: 40,365Game weather: 69 °F (21 °C), Cloudy, Wind S 10 mph (16 km/h)
Scoring summary 1 Iowa Jensen 1-yard run (Kokolus kick) Iowa 7–0
Ariz Hamilton 20-yard run (Gorham kick) Tied 7–7
2 Iowa Gorham 33-yard field goal Ariz 10–7
Iowa Kokolus 41-yard field goal Tied 10–10
3 10:32 Ariz Upchurch 7-yard run (Gorham kick) Ariz 17–10
6:44 Iowa Kokolus 20-yard field goal Ariz 17–13
0:34 Ariz Gorham 28-yard field goal Ariz 20–13
4 12:54 Iowa Butch Caldwell 39-yard run (Kokolus kick) Tied 20–20
2:09 Ariz Gorham 23-yard field goal Ariz 23–20
[ 7]
at Northwestern
Iowa at Northwestern
1
2 3 4 Total
Hawkeyes
0
6 7 2
15
• Wildcats
14
10 7 0
31
Scoring summary 1 9:19 NW Jim Trimble 1-yard run (Blazevich kick) NW 7–0
7:51 NW Boykin 12-yard run (Blazevich kick) NW 14–0
2 14:57 NW Blazevich 21-yard field goal NW 17–0
10:16 NW Key 3-yard run (Blazevich kick) NW 24–0
5:41 Iowa Jensen 1-yard run (pass failed) NW 24–6
3 8:56 Iowa Schultz 35-yard pass from Skogman (Kokolus kick) NW 24–13
0:28 NW McNamara 29-yard pass from Anderson (Blazevich kick) NW 31–13
4 7:26 Iowa Safety, punt snap out of end zone NW 31–15
[ 8]
Minnesota
Minnesota at Iowa
1
2 3 4 Total
• Golden Gophers
6
16 2 7
31
Hawkeyes
14
3 6 0
23
Date: October 20, 1973Location: Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA Game attendance: 55,137Game weather: 71 °F (22 °C), Clear, Wind SE 5–7 mph (8.0–11.3 km/h)
[ 9]
at Illinois
Iowa at Illinois
1
2 3 4 Total
Hawkeyes
0
0 0 0
0
• Fighting Illini
6
13 3 28
50
[ 10]
Purdue
Purdue at Iowa
1
2 3 4 Total
• Boilermakers
14
14 14 6
48
Hawkeyes
7
0 0 16
23
Date: November 3, 1973Location: Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA Game attendance: 39,120Game weather: 47 °F (8 °C), Cloudy, Wind N 10 mph (16 km/h)
Purdue freshman Mike Northington ran for 146 yards and tied a Big Ten-record with five touchdowns on 31 carries. Also of note, the Boilermakers scored their final touchdown with just 39 seconds remaining, attempting a failed two-point conversion after the score.[ 11]
at Wisconsin
Iowa at Wisconsin
1
2 3 4 Total
Hawkeyes
0
0 7 0
7
• Badgers
21
7 0 7
35
Scoring summary 1 13:45 Wisc Marek 45-yard run (Lamia kick) Wisconsin 7–0
10:20 Wisc Marek 5-yard run (kick blocked) Wisconsin 13–0
0:18 Wisc Marek 32-yard run (Bohlig run) Wisconsin 21–0
2 2:09 Wisc Rhodes 31-yard pass from Bohlig (Lamia kick) Wisconsin 28–0
3 9:47 Iowa Fetter 6-yard run (Kokolus kick) Wisconsin 28–7
4 5:20 Wisc Marek 1-yard run (Lamia kick) Wisconsin 35–7
Wisconsin sophomore Billy Marek ran for 203 yards and 4 touchdowns.
at No. 1 Ohio State
Iowa at No. 1 Ohio State
1
2 3 4 Total
Hawkeyes
0
0 0 13
13
• No. 1 Buckeyes
14
13 21 7
55
Scoring summary 1 10:21 OSU Bruce Elia 1-yard run (Blair Conway kick)Ohio State 7–0
4:30 OSU Elia 1-yard run (Conway kick) Ohio State 14–0
2 2:27 OSU Cornelius Greene 1-yard run (kick failed)Ohio State 20–0
0:07 OSU Dave Hazel 41-yard run pass from Cornelius Greene (Conway kick) Ohio State 27–0
3 7:38 OSU Elia 3-yard run (Conway kick) Ohio State 34–0
2:49 OSU Archie Griffin 8-yard run (Conway kick)Ohio State 41–0
0:34 OSU Elia 3-yard run (Conway kick) Ohio State 48–0
4 14:48 Iowa Bill Schultz 78-yard pass from Butch Caldwell (Kokolus kick) Ohio State 48–7
8:22 Iowa Rod Wellington 2-yard run (pass failed) Ohio State 48–13
6:44 OSU Elmer Lippert 12-yard run (Tom Klaban kick) Ohio State 55–13
Ohio State sophomore Archie Griffin ran for 246 yards on 30 carries, establishing single-game and single-season school records for rushing yardage. Junior fullback Bruce Elia had 4 rushing touchdowns for the Buckeyes.[ 12]
Michigan State
Michigan State at Iowa
1
2 3 4 Total
• Spartans
0
2 10 3
15
Hawkeyes
0
0 0 6
6
Date: November 24, 1973Location: Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA Game attendance: 31,119Game weather: 48 °F (9 °C), Cloudy, Wind NW 6–12 mph (9.7–19.3 km/h)
Roster
1973 Iowa Hawkeyes football team roster
Players
Coaches
Offense
Defense
Special teams
Pos.
#
Name
Class
P
Joe Heppner
K
3
Harry Kokolus
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
Injured
Redshirt
Team players in the 1974 NFL draft [ 13]
References
^ "Iowa football team of 50 years ago went winless, yet had plenty of winners" . The Gazette . August 27, 2023. Retrieved September 4, 2023 .
^ "Iowa loses again" . Chicago Tribune . October 7, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "1973-74 Football Schedule" . University of Iowa Athletics . Retrieved September 4, 2023 .
^ "Mighty Michigan 'grounds' Hawkeyes, 31-7" (PDF) . Daily Iowan . September 17, 1973. p. 10. Retrieved September 4, 2023 .
^ "Explosive UCLA rips Hawkeyes 55-18" (PDF) . Daily Iowan . September 24, 1973. p. 10. Retrieved September 4, 2023 .
^ "Silver lining in Hawkeye defeat" (PDF) . Daily Iowan . October 1, 1973. p. 10. Retrieved September 4, 2023 .
^ "Late field goal topples Hawkeyes, 23-20" (PDF) . Daily Iowan . October 8, 1973. p. 12. Retrieved September 4, 2023 .
^ "Hapless Hawkeyes hit bottom" (PDF) . Daily Iowan . October 15, 1973. p. 12. Retrieved September 4, 2023 .
^ "Hawks bow to Gophers; FXL rakes negative views" (PDF) . Daily Iowan . October 22, 1973. p. 12. Retrieved September 4, 2023 .
^ "Illinois deals Hawks seventh loss, 50-0" (PDF) . Daily Iowan . October 29, 1973. p. 16. Retrieved September 4, 2023 .
^ "Purdue's Northington blitzes Hawks, 48-23" (PDF) . Daily Iowan . November 5, 1973. p. 12. Retrieved September 4, 2023 .
^ "Awesome Buckeyes thrash Iowa, 55-13" (PDF) . Daily Iowan . November 19, 1973. p. 14. Retrieved September 4, 2023 .
^ "1974 NFL Draft Listing" . Pro-Football-Reference.com . Retrieved September 4, 2023 .
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