The Hawkeye Wave has grown into the best tradition in all of college football. This offseason, Iowa reached out to the fans to vote on what song should be played moving forward. The resounding decision: have the kids within the hospital decide.
After all, this is about them. The wave is to show their fight, show the support the entire world has for them, and give them those special moments. That is exactly what is happening. The kids will choose the song played during the Hawkeye Wave each home game.
We asked. You answered.
"𝗟𝗲𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗸𝗶𝗱𝘀 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗱𝗲."That's exactly what we'll do! The @UIchildrens Kid Captain at every home @HawkeyeFootball game will select a song to accompany the Hawkeye Wave.#Hawkeyes pic.twitter.com/reybpW8h7T
— The Iowa Hawkeyes (@TheIowaHawkeyes) June 22, 2022
“The interest and passion for the Hawkeye Wave cannot be overstated, and the selflessness of the Hawkeye community proved once again why the Wave is the greatest tradition in college sports,” said Peter Matthes, vice president for external relations and senior advisor to the president. “The response for a new song was incredible, and one suggestion we continued to hear was, ‘Let the kids decide.’ So that is exactly what we will do.
“We felt after five years it was time for the fans to choose the song for the Hawkeye Wave, and the fans suggested we extend that honor to the children. The children are the true heroes, so the choice is theirs. That is something we can all agree on, and I cannot thank our fans enough for their input, engagement, and generosity.”
The Hawkeye Wave has been in existence for the last five seasons and every week it sees every fan in Kinnick, every Hawkeye player and coach, and every opposing player and coach turn to face the UI Stead Family Children’s Hospital in a sign of unity to support those kids.
Every Hawkeyes home game there is a Kid Captain that is involved with the coin flip, meeting the team, and enjoying an unforgettable day. To top it off, the Kid Captain will now be selecting what special song they want to play during the Hawkeye Wave in between the first and second quarters.
An already extraordinarily special tradition just received another layer of meaning.
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