First went the Iowa State Fair. Thursday, coronavirus claimed another of our State of Iowa staples:
The 2020 Cy-Hawk football game.
“Talk about a one-two punch to the gut,” said Dan McCarney, who has one of the most unique perspectives of the rivalry game that’s been played annually since 1977. “Those are fabrics of the State of Iowa. Even non-football fans look toward that special Saturday every season, that special fall tradition of the Iowa-Iowa State football game. It’ll be a real void, not having it this year.”
McCarney, who coached 25 of those games either as the Cyclones’ head coach or a Hawkeye assistant, was one of three insiders weighing in on Friday, a day after the Big Ten Conference proclaimed that its 14 teams would play conference games only.