Well, it's rivalry week here in the state of Iowa. It is without question the most electrified, exciting time of the year to be an Iowan.
To say that football is big in Iowa is an understatement. Iowa is fairly unique in that we only have 3 state universities here and two FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) schools in Iowa and Iowa State and one FCS (Football Championship Subdivision) team in Northern Iowa. While I personally love UNI Panther Football and would consider myself a fan their small fan base and placement in the FCS places them in a very distant third when it comes to football in our state.
The state of Iowa is effectively polarized between the University of Iowa Hawkeyes and the Iowa State University Cyclones. Anyway this game is huge. You will be hard pressed to find someone who doesn't have a favorite going in to the game in Iowa City this upcoming Saturday. It is the topic that everyone is talking about, that people are excited about and eagerly awaiting. So why does an annual event with such significant cultural impact have a trophy that most would expect to be handed to the winner of parks and rec flag football league? It's terrible. Shouldn't the spoils of the most relevant sporting event in the state of Iowa demand grandeur? This think looks like it was built by a junior high shop class with pieces they bought at a flea market.
The name is bush-league. The hyphenated concatenation of the two schools nicknames? In a sport that lays claim to the Old Oaken Bucket, the Civil War and Paul Bunyan's Axe can't we come up with something better? Iowa's rivalry with Minnesota even has a more creative and inspired trophy in Floyd of Rosedale. Iowa State has the Telephone Trophy with Missouri. Both of these awards are won in far less contentious, bitter affairs. This rivalry demands a better effort from the Greater Des Moines Athletic Club, the schools involved and the fans involved.
I would suggest renaming the trophy to the Corn Cup due to the natural affiliation with our state and America's favorite grain. I know that after the marketing disaster that is the Iowa Chops that many people will see the a football trophy named the "Corn Cup" as an insulting reference to Iowa's agricultural heritage. Let's be honest with ourselves, it's undeniable. And I don't see anyone in
Washington State upset about the Apple Cup being an association with that state's most famous crop. Put the Cy-Hawk Trophy to bed and give the trophy and the series an overhaul. The vicorious teams and fans have earned it, and the state as a whole deserves it.
