1987 was a very significant year for Iowa athletics. 

Most Hawkeye fans probably best remember the year because of the memorable Elite Eight run the men's basketball team made, but that wasn't the only success Iowa had in 1987. 

C. Vivian Stringer and the women's basketball team also advanced to the Elite Eight that year, and the football team continued its sustained success in the decade under Hayden Fry by winning 10 games and securing a thrilling Holiday Bowl win over Wyoming.

The 10-3 season is still fondly remembered by fans, but some folks that witnessed Iowa's Week 2 triumph at Arizona never could've imagined they would still be waiting nearly four decades for a Hawkeye triumph out West. 

No. 20 Iowa (4-1, 1-1) will have a chance to end the 39-year drought on Friday against Washington (3-2, 0-2) at Husky Stadium, but since the game is still five days away, let's flip the dial back to 1987 and take a look at this Arizona game along with the subsequent regular season defeats the Hawkeyes have had out west since. 

To say the schedule looked a lot different in 1987 would be an understatement. The Big Ten still had just 10 teams back then, and playing 11 regular season games was still the standard.

The Hawkeyes would play 12 regular season contests in '87 because they played Tennessee in the Kickoff Classic in East Rutherford on Aug. 30, though. Iowa led for the majority of the second half in that game, but the Volunteers won the game by a point with a game-winning field goal in the final seconds. 

After an bye, the Hawkeyes then faced the tough task of traveling to Arizona on Sept. 12. The Wildcats were coming off a stellar 1986 campaign, but were in the midst of a transitional period after head coach Larry Smith left the school to become USC's new coach. But this primetime game at Arizona Stadium would be Arizona's first contest of the season, so over 57,000 fans packed the stands.

It was far from a pretty game, but the Hawkeyes and Wildcats played right down to the wire. It's very hard to find information about the contest, but according to HawkeyeRecap.com, the highlight of the game was Chuck Hartleib taking over as the starting quarterback. 

Iowa only found the end zone once - a two-yard run by Richard Bass - but that was all it needed. Arizona missed a 46-yard field goal with under five minutes to go, and the Hawkeyes were able to hold on for a 15-14 victory. 

A five-point home loss to Michigan State on Oct. 3 cost Iowa a Big Ten championship and Rose Bowl berth, but the 10-win campaign would ultimately be the second of three times the Hawkeyes would reach the mark under Fry. 

Sept. 9, 1988: 27-24 loss at Hawaii (technically not on the West Coast, but still a long trip out West) 

Sept. 24, 1994: 40-18 loss at Oregon 

Sept. 18, 2004: 44-7 loss at Arizona State 

Sept. 18, 2010: 34-27 loss at Arizona 

Nov. 8, 2024: 20-17 loss at UCLA 

Nov. 15, 2025: 26-21 loss at USC 

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HawkeyeRoundtable publisher Brad Schultz has covered the Iowa Hawkeyes since 2023. To send him story ideas, scoops, or criticize his writing, reach him at [email protected]