Hawkeye pride
Posted
|
'Is this heaven?' - 'It's Iowa.' - 'Iowa? I could have sworn this was heaven.'
STATE FACTS
Population: 2,988,046*
Bird: Eastern goldfinch
Flower: Wild prairie rose
Tree: Oak
Rock: Geode
Colors: Red, white and blue
Average annual snowfall: 32 inches
Average temperature: 48 degrees
Average annual tornadoes: 34
* 2007 estimate
-- From the 1989 movie Field of Dreams
Long before Zach Johnson won the 2007 Masters Tournament, Iowa produced the 31st U.S. president, the inventors of the gas-powered washing machine and the paper clip, the first Heisman Trophy winner and a field of dreams. In tribute to American Indian leader Chief Black Hawk, Iowa is the Hawkeye State, hence the University of Iowa Hawkeyes.
FAVORITE IOWA SPORTS FIGURES
BOB FELLER
BIRTHPLACE: Van Meter, Iowa
CLAIM TO FAME : "Bullet Bob" pitched for 17 seasons from 1936 to 1956 for the Cleveland Indians, posting 266 wins and three no-hitters, including the only one ever thrown on opening day, in 1940. He was the first major leaguer to enlist in the Navy on Dec. 8, 1941, the day after the attack on Pearl Harbor. He served as an anti-aircraft gunner on the USS Alabama, missing four prime seasons during World War II.
BACKGROUND: Feller learned to pitch on a homemade diamond his father built between the barn and their farmhouse. He claimed that shoveling manure and baling hay gave him the strength to throw as hard as he did. A scout secretly signed him at age 16 to his first pro deal for $1 and an autographed baseball. He struck out 15 in his debut at age 17 and later that season fanned 17 Philadelphia A's before graduating from high school.
KURT WARNER
BIRTHPLACE: Burlington, Iowa
CLAIM TO FAME: Warner went from bagging groceries to the Arena League to NFL Europe to NFL MVP. After St. Louis Rams starter Trent Green (coincidentally, born in Cedar Rapids) injured his knee in a 1999 preseason game, Warner stepped in and guided the Rams to the title in Super Bowl XXXIV. He currently plays quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals, coached by native Augustan Ken Whisenhunt.
BACKGROUND: Warner starred at the same Cedar Rapids Catholic high school Zach Johnson attended. He wasn't recruited by Iowa's major colleges and played at Northern Iowa. He rode the bench until his senior year, when he became offensive player of the year in the Gateway Conference. He was working as a shelf stocker at a Hy-Vee grocery store in Cedar Falls while playing with the Iowa Barnstormers of the Arena Football League in 1995.
JACK FLECK
BIRTHPLACE: Bettendorf, Iowa
CLAIM TO FAME: The former club pro decided to compete full-time on the PGA Tour in 1955, and six months later he beat Ben Hogan in an 18-hole playoff to win the U.S. Open at The Olympic Club. It is often referred to as the greatest upset in major championship history. He won only twice more on tour, at the 1960 Phoenix Open and the 1961 Bakersfield Open.
BACKGROUND: Fleck was the son of poor Iowa farmers who lost their land in the 1920s. He was introduced to golf by caddying for a local dentist in the mid-1930s. On the day of his graduation from Davenport High School, Fleck announced he was going to be a golf pro. He worked as an assistant pro before joining the Navy during World War II and participated in D-Day from a British rocket-firing ship off Utah Beach. He returned to pro golf after leaving the Navy.
DAN GABLE
BIRTHPLACE: Waterloo, Iowa
CLAIM TO FAME: Gable was voted the top sports figure in Iowa history based on his accomplishments as both a wrestler and a coach. He won the 1972 Olympic gold medal in freestyle wrestling without surrendering a point. Gable compiled a 182-1 record in high school and college at Iowa State, losing only his final collegiate match in the NCAA finals. He coached Iowa to 15 NCAA titles, including nine in a row from 1978 to 1986.
BACKGROUND: Gable's life was transformed when his older sister, Diana, was murdered by a local student when he was a sophomore in high school. Trying to divert his family's attention from the tragedy, he took up wrestling and dedicated himself to becoming the best. He dedicated his accomplishments to the memory of his sister.
