Tales from the Iowa Sidelines

by Ron Maly

This book goes behind the scenes of one of the nation's most successful and storied men's athletic programs, from Anderson's Ironmen to Hayden Fry, war heroes to Heisman Trophy-winners.

200 pages, Hardcover

First published August 25, 2003

Reviews

[Charles]

As a lifelong resident of Eastern Iowa and a longtime follower of the Iowa Hawkeyes football team, many of these short stories were familiar. From the disastrous years where three wins in a season was a good year to the major successes of coaches Hayden Fry and Kirk Ferentz. There were also many stories featuring the teams under Dr. Eddie Anderson and Forest Evashevski. The author has covered the Hawkeyes for local newspapers for decades, so there is a clear bias in favor of the personalities and the team.
Even if you already know the stories, Hawkeye fans will enjoy reading them. While most of them are based on public knowledge, some of them reveal unusual information on how certain situations came about. Specifically, regarding how some of the players ended up playing for Iowa. It is a great coffee table book and is also one suitable for bathroom reading. For you can open it randomly and find a short story that you will find interesting, even if it has already passed through your eyeballs.

[Leah Vann]

Good for a quick dose of Iowa football history that I needed, but not a fascinating read.