Oct. 26, 2002; the day Iowa football silenced the Big House
By Pat Harty
IOWA CITY, Iowa – When ranking Kirk Ferentz’s greatest wins as the Iowa football coach, the 55-24 beat-down of Ohio State in 2017 at Kinnick Stadium certainly deserves consideration for the top spot.
Beating Ohio State in any fashion is a monumental achievement, but to do it as convincingly as Iowa did nine years ago makes it one of those transcendent moments.
This column, however, is about another Hawkeye win under Ferentz that stands out for pretty much the same reasons as the Buckeye beat-down in 2017.
It seems timely to bring up what happened on Oct. 26, 2002 since that was the day Iowa crushed No. 8 Michigan, 34-9, before 111,496 fans at the Big House in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and with Iowa also preparing to face Michigan on Saturday in the Big Ten opener at the Big House.
In 2002, Iowa already had served notice with a 7-1 record heading into the Michigan game that something special might be brewing under Kirk Ferentz, who was in his fourth season as head coach at the time.
But there was nobody outside of maybe the Iowa players and coaches who believed the game would turn out the way it did, and they were probably even surprised because it was so unusual for Iowa to dominate Michigan, especially on the road.
Iowa has had some big wins at the Big House, including the 9-7 victory in 1981, which helped pave the way to the first of three Rose Bowl appearances under Hayden Fry.
The 1958 Iowa team also defeated Michigan 37-14 at the Big House, and on its way to winning the Big Ten title under head coach Forest Evashevski, who grew up in Detroit and played football for Michigan.
Iowa hadn’t defeated Michigan since 1924, so the win in 1958 had historical significance.
However, Michigan also finished just 2-6-1 that season, while the 2002 Michigan squad would go on to finish 10-3 after being crushed by the Hawkeyes.
Iowa, ranked 13th at the time, didn’t just beat a good Michigan team in 2002, it dominated the Wolverines, and did so without starting running back and Michigan native Fred Russell, who missed the game due to an injury.
Quarterback Brad Banks threw three touchdown passes, including two to his cousin, receiver C.J. Jones, as Iowa handed Michigan its worst home loss since 1967.
Iowa scored 21 consecutive points after recovering a Michigan fumble in the third quarter.
When the game ended, the Iowa players celebrated with their fans in a mostly empty Michigan Stadium, much to the delight of Kirk Ferentz.
“I enjoyed that,” Kirk Ferentz said afterwards. “I’d be lying if I said I didn’t.”
Michigan running back Chris Perry called the loss embarrassing afterwards.
Iowa’s best win in 2002 prior to beating Michigan was probably the 42-35 overtime victory at Penn State, which was ranked 12th at the time. But that game was more about surviving as Penn State made a late comeback.
The 25-point win over Michigan, on the other hand, was about dominance as the lopsided score said loudly and clearly that Iowa wasn’t just for real under Kirk Ferentz, but also elite.
Jermelle Lewis replaced Russell as the featured back that day and Lewis responded by rushing for 109 yards and two scores.
Iowa also outgained Michigan 399-171.
The Hawkeyes would go on to finish 11-2 in 2002, setting a school record at the time for most wins in a season.
Banks also finished as the runner-up for the Heisman Trophy in 2002, while Eric Steinbach was named the Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year and Dallas Clark won the John Mackey Award as the nation’s top collegiate tight end.
Bob Sanders was also a junior strong safety for Iowa in 2002, and was well on his way to becoming one of the greatest and most impactful players in the Ferentz era.
Robert Gallery started at left tackle for the 2002 team, and was a rising star as a year later he would go on to be the recipient of the Outland Trophy in 2003.
Iowa had its breakthrough season under Ferentz in 2001, finishing 7-5 overall, its first winning season since 1997.
The 2002 season made the Iowa program relevant again on a national level.
It also made Kirk Ferentz a hot coaching commodity as he considered leaving Iowa to become the head coach of the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars.
Ferentz chose to stay at Iowa where he is now in his 28th season as head coach and is the longest tenured head coach in the country and the Big Ten’s all-time winningest head coach.
To help put Ferentz’s longevity in perspective, Michigan has had six different head coaches since 2002 with Kyle Whittingham currently in his first season.
Nearly a quarter century has passed since Iowa unleashed a beat-down in the Big House.
They way in which Michigan Stadium became silent as Iowa pulled away is the kind of moment that the fans who happened to be at the Big House that day will cherish forever.
A case could be made for the 2002 squad being Ferentz’s best team at Iowa.
From the individual star power to the results on the field, the 2002 squad was special in so many ways, and that was on full display during the win over Michigan.
Iowa 34, Michigan 9
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
IOWA
|
10 | 0 | 14 | 10 | 34 |
|
MICH
|
0 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 9 |
Scoring summary
| 1 | 10:37 | 0 | 7 | |
| 1 | 03:12 | 0 | 10 | |
| 2 | 01:13 | Perry, Chris 1 yd run (Brabbs, Philip kick failed), 2 plays, 3 yards, TOP: 0:39 | 6 | 10 |
| 3 | 12:31 | Finley, Adam 40 yd field goal, 11 plays, 55 yards, TOP: 2:29 | 9 | 10 |
| 3 | 08:57 | 9 | 17 | |
| 3 | 02:58 | 9 | 24 | |
| 4 | 14:47 | 9 | 31 | |
| 4 | 02:49 | 9 | 34 |
