Holiday helmets to honor Fry

SAN DIEGO - It should come as no surprise to anyone who followed the Hawkeyes during Hayden Fry's 20 years that he actually invented the way the team will honor him Friday in the Holiday Bowl.

Fry, Iowa's head coach from 1979-98, died last week after a lengthy battle with cancer. He was 90 years old. Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz said Monday after practice that the Hawkeyes will face USC with the Tiger Hawks taken off both sides of the helmet. Also, earlier this month, former Iowa athletics director Bump Elliott (1970-91) died at the age 94. Ferentz said the team will wear a sticker that says 'Bump” on the backs of its helmets.

'The precedent was set, he did that twice during his time,” Ferentz said. 'It was well received by (Fry's) children.”

In 2020, the Hawkeyes will wear a patch to honor Fry. Ferentz consulted with the Fry family about the helmet idea this week. He wanted this to be right.

Fry brought the Tiger Hawk to Iowa when he was hired in 1978. Elliott, the man who hired Fry, gave the coach a lot of room to do his thing, which included the Tiger Hawk logo.

In a way, you could argue Fry also invented what's become 'half staff” for the program.

In 1991, five people in the University of Iowa community - a student, three members of the physics faculty and a UI associate vice president - were killed on campus during a shooting. In 1996, Diane Mitchell, the mother of Iowa linebacker Mark Mitchell, died in a car accident in Iowa as the Mitchell family was traveling to San Antonio for the Alamo Bowl.

After both incidents, Iowa wore plain black helmets.

'It just seemed fitting with the tragedy in the early '90s that he recognized and then before a bowl game, coincidentally, so it just seemed like the right thing,” Ferentz said. 'His kids were very enthused about the idea.”

One of Ferentz's laments with Fry's passing has been that Ferentz's later teams didn't get a chance to be in the Hayden swirl. The last time Fry addressed one of Ferentz's teams was before the 2006 Alamo Bowl. Fry did less traveling as age and illness took hold.

'The current team knows of him, but never really had a chance to interface,” Ferentz said. 'That's my biggest regret with the present team. Every time he's been in front of our team, the players get a sense of why he was so special.”

Quick slants

' There was no real news with Hawkeyes going to the NFL. Epenesa and offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs spoke to media on Monday. Both said the process is 'ongoing.”

' All Hawkeyes are present and accounted for on the trip. Ferentz did say, however, that a few injured players aren't practicing.

' Ferentz gave what might have been his most positive update on wide receiver Brandon Smith, who's been out since October after suffering a high ankle sprain. Smith has been dressed for games and has even played one emergency snap, but hasn't been active.

'I feel better today than the last time I saw you guys, he's practicing now and seems to be doing well,” Ferentz said.

Smith has missed five games and has 33 catches for 407 yards and four TDs.