The 1987 Iowa Hawkeyes football team was an American football team that represented the University of Iowa as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 1987 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their ninth year under head coach Hayden Fry, the Hawkeyes compiled a 10–3 record (6–2 in conference games), tied for second place in the Big Ten, and outscored opponents by a total of 360 to 231. In games against ranked opponents, they lost to No. 17 Tennessee and defeated No. 11 Indiana, and concluded the season with a victory over Wyoming in the 1987 Holiday Bowl. They were ranked No. 16 in the final UPI and AP polls.
The team's statistical leaders included quarterback Chuck Hartlieb with 2,855 passing yards, running back Kevin Harmon with 668 rushing yards, wide receiver Quinn Early with 61 receptions for 978 yards, and kicker Rob Houghtlin with a school-record 102 points scored. Defensive lineman Dave Haight was selected as the Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year. Six Iowa players received first-team honors on the 1987 All-Big Ten Conference football team.
The team played its home games at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa.
Schedule
Rankings
Game summaries Vs. Tennessee
Source: Box score
At Arizona
Source: Box Score and Game Story
Game statisticsIOWAARIZFirst downs2119Total yards371279Passing yards150115Rushing yards221164Penalties5–364–24Turnovers04
At Iowa State
Source: Box Score and Game Story
Game statisticsIOWAISUFirst downs2612Total yards455259Passing yards202155Rushing yards253104Penalties4–246–30Turnovers23
Kansas State
Source: Box Score and Game Story
Game statisticsKSUIOWAFirst downs1127Total yards188443Passing yards104271Rushing yards84172Penalties10–766–44Turnovers57
Michigan State
Source: Box Score and Game Story
Game statisticsMSUIOWAFirst downs1615Total yards249214Passing yards13230Rushing yards236(-16)Penalties13–1027–50Turnovers11
At Wisconsin
Source: Box Score and Game Story
Game statisticsIOWAWISFirst downs2310Total yards412175Passing yards22358Rushing yards189117Penalties5–503–35Turnovers34
At Michigan
Source: Box Score and Game Story
Game statisticsIOWAMICHFirst downs1319Total yards349352Passing yards362190Rushing yards(-13)162Penalties4–422–16Turnovers12
Purdue
Source: Box Score and Game Story
Game statisticsPURIOWAFirst downs1629Total yards301520Passing yards259317Rushing yards42203Penalties5–457–44Turnovers52
Indiana
Source: Box Score and Game Story
Game statisticsINDIOWAFirst downs1623Total yards305445Passing yards237282Rushing yards68163Penalties8–918–72Turnovers32
At Northwestern
Sources: Box Score and Game Story
Chuck Hartlieb completed 25 of 32 passes for 471 yards and a Big Ten single-game record 7 touchdowns. Wide receiver Quinn Early hauled in 10 passes and set school records with 256 yards receiving (Big Ten record at the time) and 4 touchdown receptions. The 584 team passing yards remains a single-game school record.
Game statisticsIOWANWFirst downs2821Total yards674364Passing yards584245Rushing yards90119Penalties4–389–65Turnovers48
At Ohio State
Source: Box Score and Game Story
With six seconds left, Chuck Hartlieb threw a 28-yard touchdown pass to Marv Cook on fourth-and-23 to earn Iowa's first victory at Ohio Stadium since 1959.
Game statistics IOWAOHIO STFirst downs2217Total yards489383Passing yards333216Rushing yards156167Penalties2–156–56Turnovers33
Minnesota
Source: Box Score and Game Story
Game statisticsMINNIOWAFirst downs1430Total yards295510Passing yards216328Rushing yards79182Penalties4–337–64Turnovers02
Vs. Wyoming (Holiday Bowl)
Roster
Statistics Team statistics. On offense, the Hawkeyes gained an average of 296.6 passing yards and 141.2 rushing yards per game. They led the Big Ten with an average of 29.2 points per game. On defense, they gave up an average of 163.0 passing yards and 122.6 rushing yards per game. They ranked fifth in the Big Ten in scoring defense, giving up an average of 19.2 points per game.
Passing. Quarterback Chuck Hartlieb did not start until the third game of the season but finished the season as the top-rated passer in the Big Ten and the No. 3 passer in the country with a 161.4 passer rating. He completed 196 of 299 passes (65.6%) for 2,855 yards, 19 touchdowns, and eight interceptions.
Rushing. Running back Kevin Harmon led the team with 668 rushing yads on 139 carries (4.8 yards per carry) and six rushing touchdowns. David Hudson ranked second with 421 rushing yards on 103 carries (4.1 yards per carry) and five rushing touchdowns. Hartlieb tied a Big Ten record with seven touchdown passes against Northwestern and tied an NCAA record with four touchdown passes in a quarter in the same game.
Receiving. Wide receiver Quinn Early led the team with 61 receptions for 978 yards and 10 touchdowns. Early set a Big Ten record with a 95-yard touchdown reception against Northwestern. Early also handled punting for the team, averaging 34.7 yards per kick.
Tight end Marv Cook ranked second with 43 receptions for 760 yards. He caught the game-winning touchdown pass in the closing seconds in Iowa's first win over Ohio State in Columbus since 1959. Cook was also the team's regular punter and led the team with 30 tackles on special teams.
Scoring. Kicker Rob Houghtlin led the Big Ten in scoring for the third year in a row and ran his streak to 40 consecutive extra points. For the 1987 season, he scored 102 points scored, converting 39 of 39 extra points and 21 of 29 field goals. Quinn Early ranked second with 60 points on 10 touchdowns. Houghtlin concluded his Iowa career in 1987 as the school's all-time scorer with 288 points.
Tackles. Dave Haight led the Big Ten with 119 total tackles and 74 solo tackles. He also had 14 tackles for loss, six quarterback sacks and three fumble recoveries. He set a school record for tackles by a lineman and was the first lineman in school history to lead the team in tackles.
Awards and honors No Iowa players received honors on the 1987 All-America college football team.
Junior nose guard Dave Haight was selected as the Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year.
Iowa's most valuable player award was shared by three redshirt juniors: Haight, quarterback Chuck Hartlieb, and tight end Marv Cook.
Six Iowa players received first-team honors on the 1987 All-Big Ten Conference football team: Haight (AP-1, UPI-1); Hartlieb (AP-1, UPI-1); Cook (AP-1, UPI-1); wide receiver Quinn Early (AP-1, UPI-1); defensive back Kerry Burt (AP-1, UPI-2); and kicker Rob Houghtlin (AP-1, UPI-1).
1988 NFL draft
Quinn Early Wide receiver 3 60 San Diego Chargers Kevin Harmon Running back 4 101 Seattle Seahawks Herb Wester Tackle 5 114 Cincinnati Bengals Joe Schuster Defensive tackle 10 261 Philadelphia Eagles
References