Iowa is not only in the center of the United States of America, it’s also the country’s heart in many ways. There’s no better example of this than Iowa’s football program, which has publicly displayed the Hawkeyes’ love affair with its country for decades. Forget the Dallas Cowboys. Here’s 5 Reasons Why Iowa is America’s College Football Team.
5. Nile Kinnick’s Heisman Trophy Speech
Not only did Iowa name its stadium after the great native son Nile Kinnick, but the program owes much of its patriotism to the 1939 Heisman winner as well. Kinnick’s acceptance speech is among the greatest pieces of sports oratory ever delivered, in which he spoke eloquently and beautifully about World War II — the United States was still two years from entering — inspiring the Boston Post’s Bill Cunningham to write, “This country’s okay as long as it produces Nile Kinnicks.