Most bowl representatives and stadium officials around the country would attest Iowa has great fans.
To say Iowa has great fan traditions, however, would seem hyperbolic.
To remedy Iowa’s apparent fan-identity issues, the Student Committee on Athletics will host a “Hawks Nest Insider Meeting” at 7 p.m. today in W10 Pappajohn Business Building. The meeting aims to provide students a forum to discuss new cheers, attendance at non-football events, and general sportsmanship issues.
Gregg Niemiec, Iowa’s head cheerleading coach and the committee’s official liaison to the athletics department, said the main focus will be brainstorming new avenues for fans to participate, while also building on existing fan traditions.
One such standing tradition is Kinnick Stadium’s I-O-W-A chant before the game and after every Hawkeye score. The cheer, along with its trademark arm movements, is arguably the most widely recognized fan tradition among the Iowa faithful.
Niemiec established the cheer in the late 1990s after he noticed the program’s huge I-O-W-A flags were used sparingly during games. Fan photos of the cheer have been used in numerous promotions by the athletics department and various other outlets.
The Hawkeye Marching Band has also played a key role in developing existing fan traditions, such as playing the “Darth Vader Theme” after stops on third down.
Kevin Kastens, the director of the Hawkeye Marching Band, said the band has worked closely with the athletics department in recent years to increase fan participation. While the band makes an effort to play a variety of songs, the tunes “Sweet Caroline” and “Hey Baby” have been specically instituted to give fans a chance to interact during games.
In stark contrast to the band’s universally crowd-pleasing music, the “Panchero’s Burrito Lift” is possibly the most provocative fan activity on game days.
Since its inception into routines in both Kinnick Stadium and Carver-Hawkeye Arena, many fans call the “Lift” their favorite part of Hawkeye games. Other fans argue its memorable song and “pump it up” gestures are annoying.
“I don’t know if you’d call that a fan tradition,” said Rick Klatt, an associate athletics director. “Traditions have a little longer shelf life. [The Burrito Lift] is one of those things that gets reviewed annually … whether or not we want to continue that or change things.”
Like the “Burrito Lift,” color-themed games have steadily grown in popularity since the initial “Black-Out” game against Michigan in 2005.
However, fan involvement in color-themed games over the past several years has been inconsistent compared with similar initiatives in college stadiums across the country.
Penn State’s annual “White-Out” games are typically seen as the quintessential one-color stadium scheme in the Big Ten, if not the nation. The UI student committee was instrumental in organizing Iowa’s most recent “Blackout” against Michigan on Oct. 10, which many said rivaled Penn State’s impressive yearly showcase.The organization was also responsible for organizing Hawkapalooza in early September, bringing Lupe Fiasco to Iowa City.
