While some Nebraska fans won’t even acknowledge that the series with Iowa is a rivalry, the fact of the matter is that it’s becoming one of the most heated in college football. The Huskers and the Hawkeyes don’t like each other. At all.
Obviously, this hasn’t been the longest-running rivalry in college football, despite the ability to be in Nebraska one minute and Iowa two minutes later. However, once the Cornhuskers joined the Big Ten, the conference saw there was something to the neighboring states going head to head every year.
Eventually, the rivalry became so obviously bitter that the conference decided it needed to be the B1G’s premier Thanksgiving weekend matchup. All of that is true even though more often than not over the two programs’ 56 games, the score has been very lopsided.
3 most crazily lopsided games in the history of Nebraska's rivalry vs Iowa
Dr. Tom’s Nebraska routs Hayden’s Hawkeyes (Nebraska 57, Iowa 0)
The most lopsided victory in the series for either team was the Huskers’ second game of the 1980 season. Coming off a 55-7 win over Utah in the season opener, the Top 10-ranked Cornhuskers laid a beating down on Hayden Fry’s Iowa.
Nebraska scored those 57 points despite starting quarterback Jeff Quinn throwing just 10 times all game as the Huskers ran for 456 yards. The offensive outing was certainly impressive, but so was the defense. The Hawkeyes managed just 44 yards rushed and amassed just 7 first downs to NU’s 33.
Ruining Kirk Ferentz’s debut (Nebraska 42, Iowa 7)
There are actually a couple of 42-7 wins the Huskers have posted over the Hawkeyes in this series, but this one was especially interesting because it was the debut of new head coach Kirk Ferentz. This game was also the first time that the two neighbors had faced off since 1982, which was also a 42-7 whupping at the hands of the Huskers.
Nebraska gained 543 yards (347 rushing, 196 passing) compared to Iowa's 169 total yards. That included Eric Crouch running for 99 yards and 3 touchdowns.
Mike Riley’s final game
Unfortunately, one of the most lopsided games in the series between Nebraska and Iowa included an ugly blowout in head coach Mike Riley’s final game. The Hawkeyes were a good but far from great team in 2017. They finished just 8-5 on the year. And yet, they were a juggernaut against a Huskers’ team that appeared to have mailed in the end of the season.
In the 56-14 win, Iowa amassed 505 total yards and 313 yards on the ground. The game was the third straight time NU allowed 50+ points and the fourth time in six games. A 4-4 Nebraska squad finished the year with four straight losses, and Iowa continued a streak that has now grown to 10 wins in the last 11 meetings between the two schools. Those 56 points are also the most the Hawkeyes have ever scored in this series.
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