Chuck Long: Destined for Greatness: The Story of Chuck Long and Resurgence of Iowa Hawkeyes Football

by Aaron Putze

The year is 1981. The U.S. space shuttle Columbia takes its first flight. Ronald Reagan becomes president and Muhammad Ali officially retires with 55 wins. "Raiders of the Lost Ark" debuts in theatres, the term "Internet" is first mentioned and Post It Notes are launched by 3M Corp. And the Iowa Hawkeyes are struggling mightily to gain respectability on the football field after decades as a Big Ten Conference doormat. Hayden Fry, a larger-than-life character and river boat gambler with Texas roots, had arrived in Iowa City in 1979. Now, in his all-important third year as head coach, it's make-or-break time for a man doggedly determined to transform a beleaguered program into a national powerhouse. While the team has many needs, one of the most important is a strong leader at quarterback. Unexpectedly, Hayden and his staff sign a blonde-haired, six-foot-four quarterback named Chuck Long. Safe to say the son of Charlie and Joan Long was as much a mystery to Iowa fans as winning. Only two other universities offered Chuck a scholarship - Northwestern and Northern Illinois. The lack of suiters wasn't surprising. Chuck averaged just a handful of throws per start as a high school signal caller for a Falcons team coached by Jim Rexilius. Even in Wheaton North's 14-6 victory over LaSalle-Peru in the 1979 4A Illinois state football championship game, Chuck completed just one of four passes for minus-three yards. Now, Chuck Long is an Iowa Hawkeye. And as he waits to make first team as quarterback, Coach Hayden Fry takes to the microphones as the 1982 campaign approaches and, in front of a gaggle of reporters, proclaims the sophomore-to-be as "destined for greatness." Reporters are nearly speechless. Hawkeye fans are bewildered. Chuck Long? Destined for greatness? Chuck Long - the same kid who hasn't taken a snap as a starter? Yep, that Chuck Long. The QB responds to the high praise from his head coach by taking the field just weeks later in his first start against the Nebraska Cornhuskers in Lincoln only to get bruised, battered and benched in a 42-7 drubbing. One week later, the Hawkeyes host in-state rival Iowa State and lose again as Chuck watches from the sidelines. So much for the "destined for greatness" talk. Then again, Chuck Long isn't your ordinary quarterback and Hayden Fry isn't your ordinary coach. In a twist of fate not even Hollywood could script, Chuck and the Iowa Hawkeyes quickly right the ship and set sail on a voyage that would ultimately take them (and the state of Iowa) into the national spotlight. At the heart of it all was a once-obscure quarterback who played for a high school football program that featured the run - a quarterback that would become Iowa's most celebrated signal callers, play in an unprecedented five college bowl games, throw for more yards than any other quarterback in Big Ten history, finish runner-up for the Heisman Trophy to a kid named Bo from Auburn University and hear his name called in the first round of the 1986 NFL Draft. Sound too good to be true? Not if you're destined for greatness. * * * "I have been around great, great people all my life. I've associated with great players and great coaches. I've taught history and I know a little about the qualities of great people in history. It was just so evident to me that Chuck Long had all the qualities you find in great people. I could just see it." Iowa Coach Hayden Fry on his first impressions of Wheaton North's Chuck Long ("Chuck Long: an eye on greatness," by Ken Fuson, Des Moines Register, Sept. 2, 1984)

398 pages, Paperback

First published October 13, 2017

Reviews

[Terri Fredrickson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must-read for Hawkeye fans! Fun to reminisce about many of the regular season games and bowl games I attended.

[Chad · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ahhh, the time when Iowa Football had Offense! Books can just make you feel good! Great history about Chuck! I learned a lot!

[Joy Kidney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chuck Long's enthusiastic but calm take on life and football almost makes me wish I'd been a football fan back in the day. I enjoyed getting acquainted with him especially through his years playing for the Iowa Hawkeyes. There are vignettes throughout of his coaches, Governor Terry Branstad, the Farm Crisis of the 1980s (and Hayden Fry having the team wear ANF stickers--America Needs Farmers), other players, and family members. The book has several photos and is full of anecdotal footnotes. At the end is a salute to sports reporters by Chuck Long. Also tidbits and quotes which "didn't find a home in the storyline but were too good not to share!" A wonderful story about servant leadership. Chuck insists that football "is just a game."

[Keith Comfort · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read of you are a Hawkeye fan, or a Chuck Long fan. enjoyed the perspective.