The 1960 Iowa Hawkeyes football team was an American football team that represented the University of Iowa as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 1960 Big Ten football season. In their ninth and final season under head coach Forest Evashevski, the Hawkeyes compiled an 8âÂÂ1 record (5âÂÂ1 in conference games), tied with Minnesota. for the Big Ten championship, and outscored opponents by a total of 234 to 108. They opened the season with six consecutive wins over ranked opponents, as eight of Iowa's nine opponents were ranked, and the ninth was Notre Dame. The only loss was to eventual national champion Minnesota The Big Ten voted to send Minnesota to the Rose Bowl over Iowa.
The Hawkeyes were ranked No. 2 in the final UPI poll and No. 3 in the final AP poll, but were ranked No. 1 in the season's final Litkenhous Ratings and were awarded the Litkenhous national championship trophy. They have also been declared the national champion by the Boand System, Berryman QPRS, Sagarin Ratings, and Billingsley Report.
The 1960 Hawkeyes gained 2,284 rushing yards and 511 passing yards. On defense, they gave up 1,492 rushing yards and 573 passing yards. The team featured the strongest rushing attack in Iowa history with an average of 252.8 rushing yards per game. They also had the fifth best scoring defense in modern Iowa history, allowing an average of 12.0 points per game.
The team's statistical leaders included halfback Larry Ferguson (665 rushing yards), quarterback Wilburn Hollis (22-of-62 passing for 289 yards, 68 points scored), and Felton Rogers (8 receptions for 96 yards). Ferguson and guard Mark Manders were selected by the Football Writers Association of America as first-team All-Americans. Ferguson, Manders and Hollis received first-team honors on the 1960 All-Big Ten Conference football team. Halfback Jerry Mauren was the team captain. Halfback Bernie Wyatt was selected as the team's most valuable player.
The team played its home games at Iowa Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa. Home attendance totaled 264,100 an average of 52,820 per game.
The following players received varsity letters for their performance on the 1960 Iowa football team: