How Iowa football’s ‘unconventionally appealing’ season is helping Iowa City food bank

IOWA CITY — When Julia Winter first received a call from a man in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, she thought, “Oh, this is probably a sales call.”

Winter, the director of development for CommUnity Crisis Services in Iowa City, was wrong.

She instead was about to learn about a group of college football fans called the Sickos Committee from one of the group’s leaders, Jordan Edmonson.

“I never knew that there was a group like this, but I’m really thankful for them,” Winter said.

The Sickos Committee, which started in 2020 and have grown a national following on social media, is raising thousands of dollars for the Iowa City nonprofit.

The philanthropy is a result of Iowa football’s ugly offensive performance in 2022. Well, maybe ugly is not the right word for it.

The Sickos prefer the term “unconventionally appealing.”

"It’s not necessarily ugly football because we find the enjoyability in it if people are just struggling, punt after punt after punt,” said George Smith, commissioner of the Sickos Committee.

Anyway, the Hawkeyes were “unconventionally appealing” enough for the Sickos’ national following to vote them as the Sickos national champions — an honor that comes with a donation drive for a local food bank.

“Iowa’s defense and special teams are like national championship-worthy,” Smith said, referring to the actual national championship, not the Sickos’ national championship. “That offense is just the complete polar opposite of that.”

Already No. 9 in the Sickos’ preseason poll, Iowa quickly emerged as a candidate to win the unconventional honor with its 7-3 win over South Dakota State.

“They pretty much almost sealed the title, I would say, from their first game,” Smith said. “Inventing something called the Iowa touchdown, which is basically two safeties and a field goal.”

The Sickos do not “want to punch down” on anyone, Smith said, but rather celebrate what he considers the “magic of college football.”

That magic comes in the form more than teams that have punted 10 times in one game. A running back at Ball State, for example, has a pet alligator named Crocky-J.

“We shine a light on them and we try to do it with humor,” Smith said.

After exceeding the Sickos’ goal of raising $2,000 — Winter estimated $2,000 would be enough to feed 200 families — they upped the goal to $3,065 because the Hawkeyes had 3,065 total offensive yards this season.

The fundraiser will end at the conclusion of the Quick Lane Bowl, which kicks off Monday at 1:30 p.m. As of Friday afternoon, the Sickos raised $2,923.

The online fundraising platform, accessible at givebutter.com/sickoscommittee, allows donors to make their gift in honor of or in memory of someone.

It did not take long for quick-witted fans to make donations in honor of Brian Ferentz — Iowa’s offensive coordinator overseeing a unit ranked 130th out of 131 teams in yards per game and the son of head coach Kirk Ferentz.

Others dedicated their contributions to nepotism, “the 7-3 win over South Dakota State with two safeties and a field goal,” Tory Taylor’s punting leg and “Transfer Portal Kirk.”

One Iowa City resident who contributed $25 said in the comment section they “feel like I need to cleanse my soul with a donation” after watching the 7-5 season.

Another donor asked CommUnity in the comment section to “make sure Brian Ferentz doesn’t come by for a box of goods.”

Along with the monetary donations, the Sickos’ fundraiser has boosted awareness of food insecurity, which Winter said has worsened amid inflation and a decrease in benefits via the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

“Folks aren’t being supported the same way they have been over the last two years,” Winter said. “It’s really back in the hands of our community now.”

In the first quarter of the 2022-23 fiscal year — July, August and September — visits to CommUnity’s food bank, located on Hwy 6 along Broadway Street, increased by 26 percent compared to those three months in 2021.

While undoubtedly grateful for the Sickos’ generosity, Winter — “a Hawkeye through and through” — would be happy to see another fan base have the Sickos national title next year.

“We’re just thankful for the opportunity, and we’ll hope that it goes back to Lincoln,” Winter said with a laugh.

Comments: john.steppe@thegazette.com