T Minus 100 Days

And so it begins, folks. The countdown to Hawkeye football offically starts today. If you'll take a moment to glance at the upper-right hand corner of the stie, you will notice the countdown to kick-off which has been up roughly since the week after the Orange Bowl. And while we have been anxiously awaiting 11:05 Central Time on Saturday, September 4, we are now in full countdown mode. It is 100 days until the Hawkeyes kick off the 2010 season in Historic Kinnick Stadium. To celebrate, we begin our own countdown of the top 100 things about the Hawkeyes. The list will be a hodge-podge of great players, moments and random tid-bits that make Iowa Football great. Sure, the order may be a little odd and there may be some things you don't think deserve to be here or we may leave something out. But hey, it's OUR list! If you have changes or additions, let's hear them! So, without further adieu we begin with number 100.

#100 - ANF

You probably didn't even notice it. If you did, you probably didn't know what it was. But that goofy little gold (okay, maybe yellow) sticker on the Hawkeye helmets up near the gold stripe actually means something. ANF - America Needs Farmers. Well, Iowa does anyway, and we'll just assume the rest of the country wants us to have 'em. Back in '85, when the Hawks first boasted the decal, Iowa was in the midst of some tough times.  Seed prices were falling and many farms across the state were going under.  Families lost their income and their way of life.  To show his support for the state and the way of life, Fry plastered the decal on the side of the then #1 ranked Hawkeyes' helmets, where it remained until 1992.  The decal is one of the many things that made Fry legendary among the Hawkeye faithful and in honor of Hayden, the 2009 team brought it back. Word on the street is it won't be going away any time soon, either. And with a season like last years, I say we keep anything we can the same - you don't mess with superstitions until they're proven wrong.

Love it or leave it, that's #100. Short and sweet.  Be sure to check back every day from now until kickoff as we reflect on our 100 best things about the Hawkeyes.